Learn How To Design Your Perfect T-Shirt with Printwell!
Are you looking for a way to promote your brand, sell products, or just get some exposure? If so, there are few better ways than through t-shirts. But t-shirt design isn’t just about putting words on a shirt. It’s also about making sure that those words will be read by as many people as possible—in the best way possible. That means knowing who is going to wear your tee and why they’re going to want it (and hopefully buy it). So before we get started with how exactly you can use design elements like contrast and repetition to make your own perfect t-shirt design, let’s look at what information goes into making one in the first place:
You can come up with a great t-shirt design by answering a few simple questions.
You can come up with a great t-shirt design by answering a few simple questions.
- What is your message?
- How much are you willing to spend?
- What kind of product will be printed on the shirt (graphic or text, one color or multiple colors)?
- Do you want it to be printed on an adult or youth style shirt (large or small)?
- Is this for personal use only, or are you selling them as well?
Who is your target audience?
This is the first step to creating a winning T-shirt design. The more you know about who you’re trying to reach and what they want, the better off you’ll be. There’s no one way to define your audience, but here are some questions that can help:
- What is their age range?
- How old should they be before they don’t wear T-shirts anymore? If this seems like a silly question, think again—even though many of us still wear them today, there was a time when T-shirts were considered strictly children’s clothing.
- Who are they shopping for themselves or someone else (mom, dad)?
- Are there any unique characteristics of this person (gender)?
- What do they look like (height/weight)?
What kind of lifestyle do they have (hobbies)? Are their hobbies expensive or inexpensive? Do certain hobbies require special gear (cycling gear vs. golf clubs)? How much money do these people make per month and how much money does each hobby cost per month? Do these hobbies even cost anything at all (biking trails vs science fairs).
What is your brand?
First, it’s important to think about what your brand is and how you want it to be perceived. Is it playful? Strict? Trendy? Calm and laid back? Something else entirely? The answers will help inform the rest of your decisions.
Once you’ve decided on a tone for your brand, the next step is to decide what colors and fonts you’ll use. These are both extremely important—if they don’t match up with who you are as a person or company, they could come across as confusing or unprofessional instead of stylish and cohesive.
Next comes the message itself: what is your T-shirt going to say about yourself or business? Will it be a cute saying that makes people laugh when they see it on someone else (and hopefully make them want one themselves)? Or maybe an inspirational quote that inspires people when they read it while wearing their shirt—or even just see someone else wearing one in public!
What’s your message? What do you want your t-shirt to say about you?
Think about what you want your t-shirt to say about you. What message do you want it to convey? What story do you want it to tell? What are your core values, goals, and business goals? How does this tie into the personal brand of who you are and what makes up the person that others see when they interact with you or see an image of yourself on social media.
This will help guide your design decisions as well as determine if a certain style is right for communicating these ideas in visual form.
What is your budget?
The cost of printing is the first thing you need to consider. If you are going to sell your t-shirts, how much should you charge for them?How much are you willing to spend?
This is a big consideration when designing your own shirt, and it’s often the first thing people ask themselves. But it shouldn’t be the last question on your mind. The costs of printing vary greatly depending on what kind of material you choose and where you get printed. There are also many different methods of printing that can affect cost, so we recommend doing some research before deciding on a design or ordering samples from different online shops.
Before setting a price for your T-shirt, you need to know what choices are available for printing methods and quality of material. For example, there is screen printing which is one of the most popular ways of making a T-shirt with an image or design on it. Screen printing uses ink that goes through an almost see-through mesh screen where only areas exposed by holes in the screen will be printed on your shirt. This gives you some control over where images appear on your shirt when compared with other types of printing like direct to garment and embroidery.
If this sounds complicated then get ready because there’s even more! There are also different methods of applying these “inks” onto clothing: direct to garment, embroidery and more – each has its own pros and cons including cost effectiveness so make sure before choosing one method over another based solely upon price point alone!
What kind of products or services are you selling?
Once you’ve decided on the general look of your t-shirt, it’s time to figure out what kind of product you are selling. Is it a concert tee? A band merch item? Or is it something else entirely? The best way to answer this question is by asking yourself “Why would someone want a shirt like this? What message am I trying to convey and how can I best do that through clothing?”
Your answer could be anything from promoting an event or cause (in which case, you might want some custom design ideas) to simply helping customers express themselves in a new way—and if that’s the case, then keep reading!
What printing methods will you use to create your t-shirts?
- Screen printing: A screen printer is a machine that uses a stencil to print on the shirt. While this method is the most affordable and accessible, it also requires the most clean-up time, because of all the extra steps involved (the screens need to be cleaned, there are two different inks for each color layer, etc.).
- Embroidery: This method uses needles to sew designs onto shirts by hand. It’s more time intensive than screen printing or direct to garment printing, but it gives you more control over your designs and embroidery machines have become much easier to use over time!
- Direct to garment printing: This process involves applying ink directly on fabric through an inkjet printer instead of using stencils like with screen printing. It provides very high quality results at a reasonable price point — but only if you have access to an inkjet printer! If not—or if you just want some tips on how best to design your t-shirts?—then keep reading!
Do you have an understanding of Design Elements & Principles?
Before you start designing, it’s important to understand the elements and principles of design.
Elements are the basic building blocks of a design. They include color, line, shape, form and texture. Principles are guidelines that designers use to apply elements in a way that communicates a message. These include unity (the concept that all parts contribute toward one idea), harmony (the even distribution of elements throughout the piece) and balance (keeping everything in its place).
In addition to being aware of these terms as they relate to your shirt design process—and you should be!—you should also know how they work together so that your finished product can be both well-crafted and effective at communicating its message. For instance: If you want your T-shirt to look sharp on store shelves or wherever else people might see it in public space, it’s helpful if the colors used for text or graphics are high contrast against each other so they pop off the fabric instead of blending into an indistinct haze of grayishness like many printed things do these days due to advances in printing technology over time…
Where will it be worn?
The next step is to think about where your shirt will be worn. If it’s a gift, you might not care if the recipient wears it out in public. But if it’s being sold as a wearable piece of clothing and branding material, you’ll want to make sure the design is appropriate for any audience.
T-shirts are a great way for companies or individuals to promote themselves—and what better way than with an image that captures your brand?
How will your T-shirt be printed?
When you’re ready to get your design printed on a t-shirt, it’s important to use a professional printer who can produce high-quality prints for your designs and colors. There are many options for T-shirt printing services out there, but you want to make sure that the company has done this before—especially if you’re designing a brand new image.
Another thing that’s important is re-ordering from a reliable printer so that they have experience making what you’re looking for. It will benefit both of you in the long run because there will be less back and forth communication between your designer and printer when they already know how best to print specific items.
Tshirt Printing on cotton tees is also recommended since these are more comfortable than other fabrics like polyester or nylon. This means that people who buy products produced by this strategy will feel good wearing them because they won’t stick as much under hot weather conditions compared with other types of material used during manufacturing processes!
Are You Ready To Design Your T-shirt?
Once you’ve answered these questions, it’s time to start playing around with some designs. You can use our online tool to design your perfect t-shirt or download a template of the most popular sizes and start designing on paper. Once you have something you like, we’ll help you get it printed and shipped in just a few days!
Design Your Custom T-Shirt Now!
Printwell is the leading choice when it comes to Custom Tshirts in Ottawa.
