Thinking Embroidery?

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW:

Embroidered custom clothing is a great way to stand out from what everyone else is doing. Embroidery has a higher perceived value than screen-printing, and is commonly used in places where an extremely professional appearance is necessary, and commonly on head-wear like custom hats and tuques.

Unlike Screenprinting, embroidery pricing is not based on the number of colors in the print, but rather the total stitch count.

WHAT IS STITCH COUNT?

Embroidery is literally sewn into each garment. In times past this was done by hand, but today the embroidery is done by a machine which has a computer guided needle and thread. Many of these machines have multiple heads, which means up to 12 products and beyond can be printed at once. In fact it’s very interesting to watch embroidery come together while the machines work and the clients artwork and logo slowly appears.

The stitch count itself relates to the number of stitches the machine needs to complete to finish the logo. The stitch count is established during the digitization process. An artist creates a digitization to plot the machines, and they will determine the total number of stitches needed to render the design so that it will look good on a clients custom polos, custom jackets or custom hats.

Beyond the size of the logo itself (bigger = more stitches) the pre-press artist has some freedom to decide on stitch count. Typically the more stitches in the logo, the better it looks. With too few stitches, it will look stringy and thin, and we find it’s better to err on the side of a healthy stitch count than a sparse one.

WHEN TO EMBROIDER:

Unless an economy priced custom hat option is priority, we recommend all hats are embroidered. We also recommend that polo’s and jackets are embroidered also, because relative to the unit cost a few dollars more on an order can really bring the look of an order to a new height.

In instances where weatherproofing is necessary, it’s important to understand embroidery can – but not necessarily will – weaken waterproofing integrity on custom jackets. It’s important to discuss that with your printer.

MORE TO CONSIDER:

Embroidery is not priced on colors, so you’re free to go wild with a range of color unique to your project.

Embroidery has some interesting thread options, like metallic, glow in the dark & others

The digitization process of a logo is a complex task and usually billed for. It’s not a vector graphic or high res picture – it’s a file an embroidery specialist creates that plots the needle on the machine. The good news? once you have a digitization, it’s yours. You’ll be able to re-order without any set-up fee’s on any repeat orders

Embroidery is common for premium orders (think golf courses, sales staff, executive positions, top performing organizations)