How to Use Cricut SportFlex Iron-On™ + Project Ideas

SportFlex is a unique iron-on material released by Cricut that was specifically designed to work well on stretchy materials. In this post, you’ll learn how to use it, tips and tricks for usage, and some project ideas!

Cricut has released various types of iron on materials in the recent years.

SportFlex Iron-On™ has been one of the most popular – and for good reason.

Although it works fairly similarly to regular iron-on, there are a few things to keep in mind, so today I thought I would share a little bit more about how to work with SportFlex Iron-On™ for amazing results.

In this post, I will share the basic instructions for using it, what you can use it on, some tips and tricks, and a few project ideas.

As always, feel free to ask questions below if you have them!

What is SportFlex Iron On?

In case you aren’t familiar with what SportFlex Iron-On™ is, it is an iron-on material that is designed to stretch – for that reason, it’s ideal for sports shirts, spandex, swimming suits, and maternity clothes. It’s also quite thin.

It also features the Cricut StrongBond™ Guarantee, which makes it ideal for lasting on your material for a long time.

It comes in a variety of colors and styles, which is really fun. Currently I just have black and blue, but I want to place an order for ALL the colors soon.

Working with the SportFlex Iron-on™ is pretty similar to working with regular Iron-on – so make sure you read my tutorial on how to use iron-on vinyl for more details on iron-on vinyl and projects.

In this post, you’ll learn everything you need to know about working with SportFlex!

How to Use SportFlex Iron-on

Here are the basic instructions for using SportFlex™ Iron-on

1. Make your design in Cricut Design Space
2. Place your material on to a StandardGrip mat
3. Select “SportFlex™ Iron-On” as your material in Design Space
4. Cut
5. Carefully weed away excess
6. Preheat shirt for about 10 seconds
7. Place material with plastic side up on the garment
8. Iron on
9. Use the cool peel technique

But now I’ll give you some more in-depth “secrets” to help you make your SportFlex Iron-On™projects even better!

1

Create your design in Design Space

2

Place SportFlex – shiny side down – on to a sticky StandardGrip mat

3

Send your design to cut – make sure you’ve mirrored your image and selected the SportFlex material.

4

Weed out the excess material

5

If it’s a large design, cut it down and work in small pieces

6

Place shirt on EP mat and preheat for ten seconds – place design on shirt

7

Press for 30 seconds at 305 degrees.

8

Flip shirt over and press for about 15 seconds

9

Once plastic has completely cooled, carefully remove from shirt

10

For more tips and full instructions, head to ClarksCondensed.com

Check out my other content @clarkscondensed on Jumprope.

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How to use SportFlex Iron On

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Active Time: 5 minutes

Additional Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

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Materials

• SportFlex Iron on
• Compatible Material

Tools

• EasyPress 2 or Iron
• Cricut Machine
• Cricut StandardGrip Mat
• Weeding Tool

Instructions

1. Make your design in Cricut Design Space
2. Place your material on to a StandardGrip mat
3. Select "SportFlex™ Iron-On" as your material in Design Space
4. Cut
5. Carefully weed away excess
6. Preheat shirt for about 10 seconds
7. Place material with plastic side up on the garment
8. Iron on
9. Use the cool peel technique

SportFlex Heating Instructions

You need to be pretty careful with what settings you use on your garment – because of the specific heat requirements, you will need to make sure you pick a material that is compatible with the heating instructions below.

These are directly from Cricut on the temperatures to use with SportFlex Iron-On™:

USING THE EASYPRESS

• Heat the EasyPress to 305 F
• Preheat the area of the material in which you will be applying your cut image for 5-10 seconds
• Place your cut image on your garment (plastic side up) for 30 seconds on the front of the garment and  15 seconds on the back of the garment, using medium pressure.
• Use Warm Peel technique – essentially, allow the transfer material to cool about 15-20 seconds before peeling.
• For an even better press, make sure you are using the EasyPress mat. 

USING AN IRON 

Iron Heat – Preheat the area of the material in which you will be applying your cut image for 5-10 seconds. Wool setting for 50 seconds on the front of the garment. 15 seconds on the back of the garment, medium pressure. Warm Peel.

Tips for Using SportFlex Iron On

Face the bubbly side up

Typically when working with iron-on, I will tell people to put the pretty/shiny side facing the mat, because it’s typically pretty easy to tell what that is. However, with the SportFlex Iron-On™, it’s a little trickier, especially if you aren’t familiar with it. Both sides are shiny!

There is one side of it that seems “bubblier” than the other, so that is the side that should be facing up. If you can tell which side the clear plastic is on, that should be facing down.

Do a Test Cut

Cricut has added SportFlex Iron-On™ as one of it’s custom materials in Design Space. Make sure you select this instead of regular iron-on. If you have the Explore Air 1 or 2, make sure you put the dial to “custom” before you go to cut. However, I still recommend doing a test cut.

Here’s why.

When I went to use it for the first time, I used the pre-set settings for SportFlex Iron-On™, and it actually cut through the back on several of the numbers. It is supposed to do a “kiss cut” (where it cuts through just the first layer), but a few times, this failed to happen.

If you do a small test cut and see that it cuts all the way through, I would just decrease the pressure (which you can do in Design Space before you start the cut). I just do this by default now when I cut with it.

I’m not sure this happens to everyone – I’ve seen others say it has, but then other people say they haven’t had any issues. So just save yourself sometime and cut through just one layer!

Mirror!

Okay this is important for ANY iron-on project, but I almost always forget to mirror (thank goodness Design Space always reminds me!) Always mirror!

You Don’t Need Teflon or Iron-on Protective Sheet

For many iron-on projects, it’s recommended to use Teflon or a Cricut Iron-on Protective sheet. However, that is not required with the SportFlex™ Iron-On.

Cut in Sections

I just find this easier with iron-on projects in general to cut the iron-on into smaller pieces if you are putting a large design on. It makes it easier to peel up the plastic, and if something didn’t stick, you don’t have to compromise the entire design for just a small part.

Can You Use Cricut Sportflex on cotton?

This is a very popular question, because when you use the heat guide for the EasyPress 2 on Cricut.com, it says “options not compatible.”

So Cricut does not suggest you use 100% cotton with SportFlex. With that said, I have done it. I don’t feel like the results last as long, but it can be done.

I would test some SportFlex out on a small piece of 100% cotton first before doing a big design, just to ensure you are okay with the results. I have had great results using cotton-poly and modal blends with SportFlex.

I use 305 degrees for about 30 seconds. You may need to experiment a little bit!

What Other Materials Can You Use with SportFlex?

SportFlex Iron-On™ is designed to work best with tech fabrics like polyester and nylon, therefore, if you are going to be using their heat guide, those are the only ones where instructions will actually come up.

Here are a few blanks you could consider:

• Cricut Infusible Ink T-Shirts
• Cricut Infusible Ink Baby Bodysuits

You can certainly try other materials, though, and see what happens!

SportFlex Project Ideas

If you are looking for some ideas of what you can make with SportFlex, here are a few things for inspiration:

• DIY Funny Pregnancy Shirt – Free Cricut File
• Workout Leggings
• Baby Onesies
• Stretchy Shirts
• Will Run for Donuts Tank
• Custom Workout Shirt
• Baby Onesies and Bow
• Swim Shirts
• Gymnastic Shirts
• Cycling Clothes
• Mermaid Rashguard
• This post has five project ideas – custom bathing suit, headbands, socks, activewear, and soccer shorts
• Fun Fitness Shirt
• Yoga Shirt
• Here for the Snacks Onesie
• Monogrammed Bag
• Practice Jersey
• Headband
• Workout Buddies T-Shirt/Tank
• Sorority Letter T-Shirt
• Ballet Warmups
• School Gym Clothes
• B.U.M.P. Pregnancy Shirt
• Personalized Easter Bag