There could be any number of reasons you’ve either thought about or have already designed and ordered custom t-shirts. Whether their giveaways to promote your business, uniforms for your staff or sports team, or selling custom apparel is your business, to succeed at whatever your goals are, the finished product has to have the quality and durability that properly represent your brand.
So make sure, before you start creating your design, that you partner with a printing house that offers a low-price guarantee on the top name-brand t-shirts, provides free Canadian (& below-market international) shipping and t-shirt design service from graphic designers and screen-printing experts on-demand, should you need the help. Whether you need 12 or 1200 t-shirts, your custom t-shirt order must meet all of your needs.
Follow these tips for professional-looking designs on your custom t-shirts.
Artwork and Screen Print Design
While you’re only limited by your imagination, if you look at screen-printed apparel, you’ll notice that there are common styles that are frequently used. For example, artwork is generally either minimalist with one colour and thin-lined images that use empty space, or a more colourful, filled-out and detailed print. When it comes to the number of colours in a screen print, less is usually more as it focuses attention on the artwork. Contrast is a key consideration. If you choose a coloured t-shirt, your design should be more or less monochromatic (one base colour with shades of the same colour), and the colour(s) must stand out against the colour of the t-shirt. The opposite is true for colourful designs; you’ll want to pick a neutral-coloured t-shirt (white, beige, black.)
Your Logo or a Catchphrase on a T-Shirt
There’s a fine line between designing a custom t-shirt that promotes your business and/or event and designing a walking billboard.
In other words, your design should not take up all available space on the printed area of a t-shirt. This is especially true for corporate logos (whether on swag or uniforms) and, to a lesser extent, with text. The idea is for your staff or the general public to wear your branded swag, and they’re less likely to do so if your company name/logo is loudly and embarrassingly announced to everyone in the vicinity because of its size. And if the font of a catchphrase or any other written statement is too large, it can be difficult to read and may detract from the message (there are times, however, when a disproportionately large word or two can enhance the overall effect.)
Adding Images to Your Custom T-Shirt Design
If you want to include an image in your design, there are a couple of things to keep in mind.
First, images generally attract the eye more than text, so wherever your image appears in your design, that will likely be the focal point of the print. Try to place it on the centre of the t-shirt, or as close as possible. Also, the design should start approximately four inches below the collar.
If you are uploading all or part of your design, be sure to use a high-quality image that’s at least 300 dpi so that it retains integrity if/when you resize it.
