Getting Your Artwork Ready for Custom Printed Workwear

Ordering custom printed apparel for your team is a straightforward process, but the quality of the final result depends heavily on what you provide before the first shirt is made. Sending a blurry logo or a file with the wrong colour space can lead to delays, disappointment, and extra costs. This article walks through the steps to prepare your logo for printing, from the initial file check to the final approval, so the finished garments look professional and last through many washes.

Start With the Right File Format

The most common mistake is sending a low-resolution image saved for a web page. A logo pulled from a website or a social media profile will be a JPEG or PNG file with a resolution of 72 or 96 dpi. That looks fine on a screen but breaks apart into visible pixels when printed on fabric. Print shops need a high-resolution version, ideally a vector file. Vectors use mathematical paths instead of pixels, so they scale to any size without losing sharpness. The standard vector formats are Adobe Illustrator (.ai), Encapsulated PostScript (.eps), and Scalable Vector Graphics (.svg). If you do not have a vector file, a high-resolution PDF or TIFF at 300 dpi can work, but the safest route is to supply a vector file. Many branding agencies will supply one on request, even if they originally designed the logo for digital use.

Understand Colour Modes and Matching

A logo designed on a computer monitor uses the RGB colour mode (red, green, blue). Printers use CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) for most garment decoration methods. The two colour spaces look different. A bright blue in RGB can turn into a dull, muddy tone when converted to CMYK without adjustment. If you want the printed colour to match your brand guidelines closely, convert the file to CMYK yourself or ask the print shop to do it, then request a proof. For spot colours, say a specific Pantone number, provide that number clearly in your file or in your instructions. The printer can then mix ink to that standard, which gives the closest match across different print runs and fabric colours. Do not rely on the colour you see on your monitor alone; ask for a physical sample or a digital mock-up on the actual garment colour.

Check the Artwork for Printability

Not every logo element that works on a website transfers well to fabric. Fine lines, tiny text, and intricate details can fill in or disappear during printing. A general rule is that the smallest line thickness should be at least 1 point, and the smallest readable text should be around 6 to 8 points for screen printing, slightly smaller for direct-to-garment or embroidery. Thin strokes in small areas can cause the ink to bridge across gaps. If your logo has very fine details, consider creating a simplified version for apparel. Many brands keep a separate one-colour or two-colour version of their logo for embroidery and screen printing. The same principle applies to reverse type: white text on a dark background needs enough stroke weight so the background colour does not close up the letters. Ask your print shop for their minimum line and text specifications before you finalise the artwork.

Choose the Right Print Placement

Where the logo sits on the garment affects both the look and the durability of the print. The most common placement is the left chest, centred roughly 4 to 6 inches below the collar, or the full front centre for a more prominent display. Sleeve prints, back-of-neck prints, and large back designs each have their own size limits and positioning guides. Each print method also has a maximum print area. Screen printing can cover a large area but needs separate screens for each colour. Direct-to-garment printing has no colour limit but a smaller print bed. Embroidery requires a hoop that limits the maximum design size and works best with simpler shapes. Talk to your print shop about the placement you want, and ask if they have templates or size guides for each garment style. A common mistake is centring a logo perfectly on a flat shirt, only to have it sit off-centre when worn because the collar pulls the fabric. A test print or a layout mock-up can catch this before the full run.

When you are designing for logo work shirts, the placement also needs to consider how the shirt is worn. If the shirt is tucked in or worn under a jacket, a left-chest logo may be partially hidden. A full-front or back-of-neck placement might work better. Balance visibility with practicality for the wearer.

Consider the Garment Colour and Fabric

The colour of the shirt itself affects how the logo reads. A light-coloured logo on a dark shirt needs an underbase, usually a layer of white ink, to keep the colours bright. That adds one more screen to the print process and a small cost increase. On light-coloured shirts, an underbase is rarely needed. Fabric texture also matters. Heavier cotton or cotton-poly blends give a smooth surface for screen printing and direct-to-garment. Very textured fabrics, such as fleece or pique knit, can make fine details look fuzzy. Embroidery works well on most fabrics but can pucker on very thin materials if the backing is not chosen correctly. If you are ordering a mix of garment styles, say a cotton polo and a polyester performance shirt, the same logo may need to be adjusted for each fabric type. A single file that works on cotton may not look as sharp on a slick polyester surface. Let the print shop know the exact garments you have chosen so they can adjust the artwork or print method accordingly.

Prepare the File for the Print Method

Screen printing, direct-to-garment, heat transfer, and embroidery each need a different file setup. For screen printing, each colour in the logo becomes a separate screen. The artwork must be separated into colour layers, with each layer saved as a solid black shape on a transparent background. If your logo has gradients or shadows, screen printing requires halftones, which need a specific dot pattern and angle. Direct-to-garment printing can handle full-colour images and gradients as long as the file is saved at 300 dpi in a flattened format like TIFF or JPEG. Embroidery needs a digitised file, usually a .dst or .pes format, that tells the embroidery machine where to stitch, in what order, and with which thread colour. Converting a flat logo to embroidery is not automatic; the digitiser must decide the stitch type, density, and underlay. Ask for a digitised proof before production, because the same logo can look very different as embroidery compared to print. If you plan to use the same logo on both screen-printed and embroidered items, keep a master vector file and supply it to the digitising service as the source.

Request a Proof and Check It Carefully

Never skip the proof stage. A digital proof, sometimes called a mock-up, shows how the logo will look on the chosen garment colour and placement. Check the colours against your brand guidelines. Look for any missing elements, misaligned layers, or wrong font choices. If the proof shows the logo at actual size, print it out and hold it against the garment at the correct placement to see if the proportions feel right. A logo that looks balanced on a screen can appear too large or too small when you see it on a person. If the print shop offers a physical strike-off, meaning a single printed sample on the actual fabric, take that option. It costs a little more but eliminates guesswork. Make sure you approve the proof in writing before the shop starts production. Any changes after approval may incur extra fees and delay the delivery.

One more thing to watch at this stage is the orientation of the logo. On a left-chest placement, the logo should face forward, not sideways. On a sleeve, the base of the logo usually points toward the cuff, but some designs are rotated to read vertically. Confirm the orientation with the shop, especially if you are ordering multiple styles or sizes. Small mistakes here can make the entire batch unusable.

Plan for Future Orders

Once you have a final approved artwork file that works for your garments, save it in a dedicated folder with clear naming: include the garment style, colour, print method, and date. Keep the original vector source file and the print-ready versions. If you order more logo work shirts later, you can send the same file and expect consistent results, as long as the print shop and garment style remain the same. If you change suppliers or garment brands, re-test the file with the new shop before placing a large order. A file that works perfectly with one printer may need adjustment for another, because different shops use different mesh counts, inks, and machines. By keeping your master artwork organised, you save time and avoid paying for re-separation or re-digitising every time.

Preparing a logo for custom printed apparel is a small upfront effort that pays off in consistent quality and fewer headaches. The key is to start with the right file, communicate clearly about colours and placement, and always check a proof before production. That approach keeps your team looking sharp and your brand represented well on every shirt they wear.