Embroidery
Design Tips
We have found that many people (professional
artists included) are not familiar with the the embroidery process
and what makes the artwork used different from what we print on
paper or shirts. If you are designing a new logo for embroidery
here are some helpful tips:
The first and fundamental thing to
consider when designing a logo for embroidery is that the logo is
going to be sewn in thread. This presents considerable differences
from designing for the web or print advertising. You have a
limited color pallete (1-9) colors and minimum size for detail and
fonts. With that in mind consider these tips:
1. TEXT
Embroidered lettering differs greatly
than printed lettering. You are limited in the detail of the font
and the minimum size. For example a 12 pt font can be printed fine
on a brochure, looks good as a web GIF but is impossible to
reproduce with a needle and thread. Some general rules are: The
more detailed the font the larger it needs to be. For the smallest
writing use a simple font like Arial. Generally speaking fonts
below 20 pt do not sew legibly. Remember a thread is significantly
larger than a computer pixel or drop of ink. Fonts below 24 pt
generaly lose the unique features of the font and appear as simple
block or Arial style lettering. Fonts that are spaced tightly
together may need to be expanded when sewn to prevent the letters
from sewing on top of each other.
2. COLORS
Most embroidery machines allow the use
of up to 9 thread colors. Most corporate logos only contain 1-4
colors so this is not a problem. However many of our customers
today are using logos designed for the web, created in programs
like PhotoShop and PhotoDraw. These logos are rendered
in hundreds or thousands of colors and need to be modified for
embroidery. For example a logo featuring a small photographic
image of a jet may produce that jet as a bitmap of 120
colors. This needs to be reduced to a small number of
colors. This can be thought of as changing the logo from
a photograph to an illustration. Tiny details below 2mm need
to be eliminated or merged into larger items. Don't worry,
embroidery is an art form and the although your logo may be appear
different it can still maintain it's integrity as well as
look good on clothing. Photo editing effects such as
shadowing, color fading and bleeding, metallic filters and
blurring are not generally compatible with the embroidery process.
A PhotoShop rendered shadow may contain 32 shades of gray,
imagine trying to do that in thread!
3. OUTLINES
Outlines of objects or text need
to a be minimum size (approx 1.5mm) Outlining small text is
not recommended as it will not produce the same visual
affect in thread as it does in print.
4. SIZE
Keep in mind the size that your
logo will be when sewn on the garment. Left chest logos on shirts
and sleeve logos on shirts are generally 3-4.5" wide. A
hat logo is usually limited to height of 2.25" For exact size
requirements contact us for garment specifications.
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