Embroidery is an attractive and durable way to add your branding to T-shirts and other custom garments. When done properly, you’ll have a high-end and easily recognizable look. But before you work on your design, familiarize yourself with the best practices to follow and common mistakes to avoid.

Do:

Keep it simple.

When it comes to embroidery, less is more. The thick thread lines look neat but don’t allow for intricate detailing. Even if you can get a small text or complicated image on the shirt, it will likely be hard to read. Choose a simple but easily recognizable design with just a few words and a simple outlined image or silhouette.

Place it right.

There are typical places where an embroidered logo or text is set on a T-shirt, and putting it elsewhere may look strange. The most popular locations to place a logo is on the left breast and the side of the sleeve. If you want to be more creative with a sweatshirt, add embroidery on the edge of the hood.

Don’t:

Make it too big.

Threadwork looks elegant when it’s compact; it’s not like screen printing a large image on a shirt. For logos on the breast, keep the width between 3 and 3.75 inches when they are wider than they are tall.

If it’s square, each side should be between 1 and 1.5 inches, and 2 to 2.5 inches in diameter for a circular image.

If the design is on the sleeve, it should be about one-half to one-third the size of the design on the breast.

Forget contrast.

Decide on your shirt color before you choose your thread color, or vice versa. You don’t want the colors to be too similar, or the image won’t be distinct from a distance.

Red, blue, black, and other bold or dark colors all stand out on a light shirt. White thread contrasts well with a black or navy shirt.

Honolulu Shirt Shop will bring a professional and attractive embroidery design to life for your organization. This Hawaii shop has created custom T-shirts since 1984. They use the latest techniques in the industry for professional results with a quick turnaround time. Learn more about their capabilities on their website, and call (808) 847-0831 to place an order.