Artwork and digitizing
Before anything gets stitched or printed, a designer on our team turns your logo into production artwork and sends you the proof. The three weeks of production start on the day you approve that design.
Files we can work from
Vector files (SVG, AI, EPS) come first on our list because they scale to any size and stay sharp. A 300 dpi PNG works too. Send what you have, and a designer on our team checks the file before the proof goes out.
You don't need to clean the logo up before you send it, because redrawing and sizing it is the designer's job.
A designer finishes the design and sends the proof.
The Design Studio builds the first version from your logo and a description of the team, and a designer on our team finishes it. For a print, the designer sets the art at its real size on the garment, with a DTF chest print up to about 10 in wide and a back print up to about 12 in.
You approve the design on that proof. The three weeks of production are counted from your approval, never from the day you first upload a logo, and the design you approve is the one we make.
How digitizing turns a logo into thread
Embroidery needs its own version of the artwork, so our designers redraw the mark for thread. The result is a stitch file, a set of instructions the machine follows: where each needle drop lands, which way the thread runs, which areas get satin stitch and which get fill, and what underlay goes down first to keep the top stitches flat.
| Embroidery spec | What we work to |
|---|---|
| Left-chest mark | 5,000 to 12,000 stitches |
| Thread colors | Up to 12 in one mark |
| Smallest lettering | 5 mm tall |
| Chest width | Up to about 4 in |
| Caps | Flat or 3D embroidery |
A mark with more than 12 colors, or lettering under 5 mm, goes to a DTF print instead, which has no color-count limit. For everything else about thread, see custom embroidery.
Related reading
- How Our Own Production Works
- Decoration in Our Own Production
- Custom Embroidery for Team Apparel
- Brand Guidelines for Merch
Artwork questions we get
What file format should I send?
Vector (SVG, AI, EPS) if you have it. A 300 dpi PNG works as well, and for embroidery our designers redraw the mark for thread either way.
Do you make a sample before production?
Only if you ask for one. A sample set is a paid extra that takes about two weeks, and it isn't part of a standard order. Either way, you approve the design on the proof, and we make the order from that design.
Is there an art or setup fee?
No. Design is included in every order, and we charge no setup fee and no art fee.