Anyone with a computer and a color inkjet printer can create beautiful photos on fabric. A dedicated photo printer, such as the Epson Stylus Photo series, will give you the best results, but if your color inkjet printer does nice photos you should be able to get satisfactory photo fabrics.



You will need to start with a digital image. A picture taken with any digital camera is easiest, but you can scan just about any photograph. If you don't have a scanner photo stores or places such as Kinko's can do this for you.



You may want to edit the image, and most people have some type of program on their computers for this purpose such as Adobe Photoshop Elements or Microsoft Picture Manager. You can crop photos, improve contrast or brightness, and eliminate "red eye" with these programs.

If you can adjust the resolution, try to do so. I find that a resolution of 300 pixels per inch tends to make the best prints.



About fabric-we've tried them all, and find that the inkjet printing fabrics by Jacquard work the best. Some of the others stretch when you remove the backing, distorting your picture. Jacquard is also one of the least expensive and is available in cotton, silk or organza.



If you are using a photo printer-it should have settings for print quality-use "best photo" if it has that setting. It probably won't have a "Photo Fabric" setting for paper type-I usually use the "Heavy Matte" paper setting. Be sure you load the paper correctly with the fabric side on the print side. Some printers require you to load the paper "print side" down.

It's a good idea to do a test print with plain paper so you don't waste the pricey fabric. If you are not sure which side goes goes up, put an "X" on one side of your test sheet.



Once you have a satisfactory print, it's important to let it dry completely before trying to use it. Inkjet ink can take up to 24 hours to dry completely.



Next: Using your photo fabric.