It's a washout"
 

Just wondering if anyone cam recommend fabric paper for printing photos on to. I bought a packet of (expensive!) paper to print photos on for a memory quilt. Fortunately I tested it out first and on the first light wash the photo faded considerably. Has anyone found a fabric paper that really works? Thanks.

Honestly, I have yet to find ANY fabrics that will hold a photo unless I print them on my Grandmothers Epson printer. If I print it on my HP, NOTHING but black stays. This is because Epson inks are pigment ink ( permanent ) and HP inks are dye based ( water soluble ) . HP does make Vivera Pigment Ink. Make sure to check your ink to be sure it says PIGMENT and not DYE. A quick tell is if your printer uses 1 black cartridge and 1 tri-color cartridge your printer does not support pigment cartridges. Only those machines that use multiple color cartridges have the ability to use the pigment based cartridges ( and yep they cost more too ). This is why Hubs said the next time we go looking to get a printer, I am to get one that will support Pigment inks !

I made one photo quilt. I had a print shop print my pictures on fabric. The pictures are still vivid and the quilt has been washed a lot.

Thank you so much for this information! Had no idea. And we just got a new HP printer, so none in our future any time soon. I wonder if some place like Office Depot or Office Max have the pigment printers and could print off. Would get spend if there were a lot though.

I agree that epson is better but..... I use printed treasures fabric sheets, heat set with my iron, and rinse in warm (baby bath) water AFTER 24 hrs, my HP ink stays well, these quilts are washed 1-2 yrly.

Try soaking in cold salt water. I have Tshirt transfers that are still pretty good after 20 years. I used a Canon 600 when I first started. One poster is right about inks - some tend to be more permanent. Sometimes if you use the paper from the printer company, it works better than transfer paper from a different vendor.

Yup. That's exactly what I do... I have a HP printer as well and don't put a special ink in it. My DGS's quilt with photos is still bright and colorful after 6 years and my daughter washes it more often than I would. I've found printed treasures at Joanns and my LQS as well. But, with the 50% off coupon at Joanns, it's a lot cheaper.

Has anyone tried using a laser jet printer for the fabric photos? I heard they are permanent.

NOTE Most Fabric Sheet will tell you NOT TO USE A LASER JET and if you do it will void any warranty that you have.

I have used printed treasures off and on for some time and no real isues. However we just got a new quilt shop and they used to do T-Shirts so they still have all of the equipment. They are doing the transfers (using the t-shirt method) for quilters now. It is possible if you have a t-shirt shop near you that they might also do this. It didn't seem anymore expensive than the treated fabric sheets and more permanent.

Laser printers get too hot for fabric.