Most uniform orders go wrong in the artwork, not the garment. This page is the honest version of how decoration works, what each method is genuinely good at, what it cannot do, and what we need from you to get it right the first time.
Thread stitched into the fabric by a multi head machine, following a digitised file that sets the stitch path.
Minimum guide Around 10 to 12 units on a new logo, and often a single garment on a reorder once the file is on record. Caps usually hold about 12 either way.
Your artwork is printed onto a film, powdered, cured, then heat pressed onto the garment. Direct to film.
Minimum guide Effectively none. It starts making sense from about 10.
Ink pushed through a fine mesh screen onto the garment, one screen per colour, one pass per colour.
Minimum guide Around 20 to 25 per design per colour.
A woven or printed patch, or cut vinyl, heat applied to the garment.
Minimum guide Low, and confirmed per job.
Minimums are a guide and are confirmed on your quote. They move with the garment, the decorator and whether your logo is already on file.
| Position | Where it sits | Typical maximum width |
|---|---|---|
| Left chest | The default uniform position, on the wearer’s left. | 80mm to 100mm wide |
| Right chest | Second logo, a name, or an accreditation mark. | 70mm to 100mm wide |
| Centre chest | Casual and merch, hoodies especially. | 180mm to 260mm wide |
| Upper back | Across the shoulder blades. The standard place for a business name. | 200mm to 280mm wide |
| Full back | Large merch prints and club designs. | 250mm to 350mm wide |
| Sleeve | Upper arm, left or right. | 50mm to 75mm wide for embroidery |
| Cap front | Centre front panel. Height is the tighter limit, not width. | 90mm to 120mm wide |
| Cap side | Small secondary mark. | 40mm to 70mm wide |
Positions are described from the wearer’s point of view. Sizes are typical maximums and vary by garment, so the mockup you approve is always the real answer. Full decoration guide →
A vector file is best, so EPS, AI or PDF with the fonts outlined. Vector has no resolution, which means the same file works on a cap and on a full back. For DTF and full colour work, a high resolution PNG at the actual print size with a transparent background is also fine.
A logo pulled off your website, a screenshot, or a JPG with a white box behind it. These reproduce exactly as blurry as they look on screen, and the white box prints as a white box. If that is genuinely all you have, send it anyway and tell us. Redrawing a logo properly is a small job and it is worth doing once.
Before a machine can stitch your logo it has to be digitised, which is a separate file telling it the stitch path, the density and the order it sews in. That is a one off cost per logo. We keep the file, so your reorders and your new starters do not pay it again. Ask for the DST file if you want to own it outright.
Send your brand colours as Pantone references if you have them. Embroidery is matched to a thread chart and printing is matched to ink, and neither mixes the same way your screen does. A colour that looks right on a monitor will not necessarily come out the same, which is what the mockup is for.
Positions are described from the wearer’s point of view. Left chest means their left, which is your right when you are looking at them. Getting that straight at the start saves a whole reprint, and it is the single most common cause of one.
Pick the garments below and send them through, or just describe the job. Headcount, rough sizes, how many logo positions and your deadline are enough to start.
We price the garment, the decoration and the freight to your address as one number, and we confirm the real minimum order and lead time for your job rather than a general one.
You get a visual showing your logo in position and at actual size on the garment you chose. Nothing is stitched or pressed until you approve it.
As a guide, ten to fifteen business days from artwork approval, plus freight. The clock starts at approval, not at order, and supplier stock is the usual cause of a delay.
Embroidery for anything that reads as a uniform. Print for merch, large designs, full colour artwork and anything personalised. If your run is small, DTF. If your run is large and your design is one or two flat colours, screen print. Tell us the garment, the numbers and what the artwork looks like and we will tell you which we would pick and why.
It depends on the method, the position, the size and, for embroidery, how many stitches your logo needs. A dense logo with a lot of fill costs more to stitch than a simple one at the same width. That is why we quote rather than publish a rate, and why we ask to see the artwork before giving you a number.
Digitising converts your logo into a stitch file for the embroidery machine. It is a one off cost per logo, not per order. We keep the file on record, so reorders and new staff do not pay it again. If a supplier charges you digitising on a repeat order, ask why.
Yes, and most uniform orders do. A chest logo with the business name across the upper back is the common pairing. Each position is a separate setup, so decide them all before you order rather than adding one later.
The front panel gives you roughly 90mm to 120mm of width, and height is the tighter limit. Wide logos work well. Tall logos, or a logo with a tagline stacked underneath, usually need simplifying. On a six panel cap there is a seam up the middle that will distort fine detail sitting across it.
Decoration cannot reduce the compliant hi vis area and it cannot sit on or across the reflective tape. In practice that means a chest logo and a panel above the back tape are fine, and a large full back on a taped garment often is not. We check the plan against the exact garment before quoting rather than after you have paid.
As a guide, 10 to 15 business days from the moment you approve the artwork, plus freight. The clock starts at artwork approval, not at order, and garment stock is the most common cause of an overrun.
Always. You get a visual mockup showing your logo in position and at actual size on the garment you chose. Nothing is stitched or pressed until you approve it.
Send us the headcount, the garments you like and your deadline. We will come back with a real number, including freight to your address.
Get a uniform quote →Corporate and sports polos in mens, ladies and kids fits.
See the range →Retail quality tees for merch, plus volume tees for crews.
See the range →Day and day/night garments, drill shirts, shorts and pants.
See the range →Fleece, softshell and puffers. The garment people keep.
See the range →Structured caps, truckers, buckets and beanies.
See the range →Aprons, chef wear and front of house uniforms.
See the range →Business shirts, knitwear and the corporate outer layer.
See the range →