How to Choose the Perfect T-Shirt and Hat for Embroidery

Custom embroidered hats and t-shirts are the ideal accessory for corporate outings, sports games, community events, brand building, and so much more! But with so many choices and options to choose from, where do you start? The variety of what fabrics to choose and which style of hat fits best for your team can get overwhelming. To make your decision a little more, here's a small little guide on how to pick out the perfect shirt and hat for embroidery.

When you are using embroidery on your shirts top represent your team, organization or company, you want to make sure the shirts come out presentable and look the best! There are a few things you need to consider when choosing the perfect t-shirt for your company, team, or business:

Types of Fabrics

When choosing a type of fabric, it may get a little crazy because there are just so many options to choose from! Here are 3 popular choices:

1. Cotton - This is the most common material to use to make customized shirts. There are two types of cotton to choose from: preshrunk cotton and ringspun cotton. Preshrunk cotton shirts are usually the lest expensive shirts you can use for embroidery t-shirts. They're known to be "heaveyweight" which makes them great for embroidery because they stitch better and pucker less. On the other hand, ringspun cotton shirts are more lightweight but they have stronger fibers because they're made of a higher grade of cotton.
2. Polyester - If you're looking for a shirt for your team to wear to sporting events, then polyester is for you. Polyester is great for keeping bodies cool during hot and warm temperatures.
3. 50/50 Blend - A blend of polyester and cotton mixes both comfort and cool. It doesn't have to be 50/50, just as long as it's a blend of both cotton and polyester. These types of shirts reduce sweating and show fewer stains.

Types of Shirts

• Regular T-Shirt - Perfect for any event such as: outdoor sporting event, business team building, community service, etc.
• Polo Shirt - More business casual
• 3/4 Baseball Shirt - Great for sport teams
• Long Sleeve Button Down - For a more professional look, these shirts are great for any business-type meet or event.

Tips on T-Shirt Embroidering

If you're planning on hiring or ordering from a well-know website like NYFifth, Stitchmine or any other company that specializes in embroidering, make sure to check if the company is up-to-date with their machines as well as digitizing. Digitizing helps convert the logo or picture into a digital form that can be processed by a computer. Also, ask if the company can send a sample before ordering to make sure the logo or symbols looks great embroidered.

Embroidered hats are the perfect promotional material to hand out to customers and potential clients.

Popular Styles of Hats:

1. Baseball Cap -- Easily one of the most popular options. Usually made of cotton, these hats have a laid-back design and style that can be a great fit for almost everyone
2. Trucker Hat -- Also known as a mesh cap, these hats are a type of baseball cap. Instead of being made of cotton, trucker hats have front foam build and a plastic mesh in the back for beathability
3. Beanies -- Also known as a knitted cap, beanies are head-hugging brimless hats. They're made of cotton and are perfect to keep your head warm during cold days.
4. Sports Visor -- Also known as a visor cap or a sun visor, these types are hats are not your average daily-wearing hats. The top of the head is not covered and the visor is designer larger than your normal size hats because it's purpose is to keep your face protected from the sun.

Guidelines for Hat Embroidery

Since hats have a much smaller canvas to work with, compared to t-shirts, it may be best to choose a design or logo that is simple to work with. The more simple, the better because you want your logo or design to stand out, be distinct and clear! The more colors and intricate patterns you put into the design, the more the it will become blurred and become more like a blob.