Placing your embroidery order

Embroidery is priced on a cost per thousand stitch basis. To give an accurate stitch count, we first need to digitize your design. The final stitch count will vary based on many factors. After you’ve placed the order for blank apparel or promo items and uploaded your artwork to be embroidered, we will digitize your art and email a final price within 24 hours. If any changes are required, this can delay your turnaround time.

You can use the tools found in the left hand column of each Embroidery product page to estimate your embroidery costs before placing your order!

Most embroidery orders take 7 business days to complete.

Embroidery file and design tips Here are some helpful tips on how to design for embroidery:

We always prefer vector artwork files, but will accept all of the following: .ai, .tiff, .pdf, .ps, .eps, .jpg, .psd, .bmp, .gif, .png.

In order to create an awesome embroidery project, you first need to look at your logo. If you are developing a logo for your business, we will address a few things that maybe helpful guidelines to follow.

• LESS is MORE. Create a logo with great color and simplicity! Some of the best logos are simple, clean and basic. These types are the ones that people remember and they are easy to maintain the integrity of no matter how you use it.
• Less also means less embroidery cost. The more detail, the more time to set up for embroidery and the longer it takes to run on our machines
• Small text is always an issue when creating a high quality embroidered logo. On knit fabrics, text must not be less than 1/4 inch or the thread sinks into the knit and looks rough and unreadable. So limit your text to allow for letters that are at least 1/4 inch if possible. On tougher fabrics like jackets, hats or totes, we can go a bit smaller, but not much less than .20.
• Eliminate Big filled in areas with your logo. It creates a very heavy, patch like feel to your logo. Instead generate shapes around your logo with simple outlines or fancy lines.
• Shadows work OK, but only on large logos. We discourage shadowing on letters for hats in particular because a hat is hooped in a curricular frame and not flat like shirts. When a hat is embroidered, it sometimes will shift in the frame a slight bit - and if the shadowing gets off just a slight bit, it will destroy the entire look of your logo.
• Gradients are NOT suggested with embroidery. Blending threads are impossible so we suggest avoiding this technique entirely.
• Also avoid narrow text & serifs on small letters. Narrow text on knits will also tend to sink into the fabric and look undesirable. Short basic and thick letters work much better on knits and are much more readable. When using serifs in your text style, be sure to plan on larger size overall .30+ or again, those serifs will sink into the fabric and cause holes in your garment.

How will you match thread colors to the colors in my design? We have over 40 thread options to use when selecting colors for your design. Unlike ink colors in screen printing, there are only a finite number of thread colors. For this reason a Hotcards artist will select the closest thread match to your uploaded image. If it will drastically change the look of your logo the artist will contact you with an updated proof for your approval.

Can you embroider and screen print on the same shirt? Yes, we can! To place an order with screen printing and embroidery on the same shirt, please contact our Customer Obsession Team!