Artwork Submission Guidelines
Artwork Submission
Guidelines
Send vector art where you can, include your fonts and your Pantone codes, and keep fine detail sensible. Not sure what any of that means? Send it anyway and we will sort it out.
Know What You Want? Price It Now
If your artwork is sorted and you just need a number, the calculator prices your run right here.
Send Us Your Artwork
Attach whatever you have, even a phone photo of a sketch. Our design team looks at every file before anything goes near a press.
- What you are printing (shirts, hoodies, hats, promo)
- Roughly how many pieces
- Your art or idea, even a rough one
- Your deadline, if you have one
What Makes Art Print Well
Vector Is The Preferred Format
Illustrator (AI), EPS and SVG. Vector holds crisp lines, smooth curves and accurate colors at any size, and the files are small enough to email.
Raster Works At The Right Size
JPG, TIF, PNG and PSD are fine at 300 dpi. Below that, detail falls apart when the art gets scaled to print size.
Vector Versus JPG
JPG is built for photographs, where color varies across every pixel. It loses quality when it is scaled or edited. Vector is built for logos and type, where edges have to stay sharp.
Send Your Fonts
Type varies in style, weight and spacing. Sending the actual font file means we reproduce your design as intended instead of substituting something close.
Send Your Pantone Codes
Pantone is the standard system for naming a color precisely. Codes get us an accurate match rather than an approximation of what you had on screen.
Skip The Very Fine Detail
Ink laid through a screen has a practical limit. Hairline detail that looks perfect on screen can close up on fabric, so simpler usually prints better.
File Formats We Can Work With
All versions of Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and Corel Photo Paint are accepted. High-resolution PDFs work too, since they can carry both vector and bitmap content.
Getting Started Is Simple
Send It Over
Tell us what you need on the quick quote form. Quantity, garment, art, and your deadline. Have art? Attach it. Don't? We will help.
We Price It Fast
You get a clear quote by quantity within one business day. No guessing games, no hidden fees.
Approve The Proof
We send a mockup so you see exactly what you are getting before anything runs.
Pick It Up
Printed and stitched in-house, usually 5-10 days. Pickup on Checkrein or we will arrange delivery.
Send It Over And We Will Take A Look
Attach whatever you have. Our design team checks every file before it goes near a press.
Some Of Our Recent Work
A look at what comes off our presses and embroidery machines once the artwork is dialed in.
From Your File To The Press
Every job goes through the same path, which is why the result is repeatable rather than lucky.
We Look At It First
Our in-house design team here in Columbus reviews your artwork for anything that will cause a problem, before the job goes any further.
Screens Get Set Up
Depending on how many colors are involved, setup can take three hours or more. This is the part that decides whether the print lands clean.
Proof One, On Press
We print a sample to confirm the press is set up and aligned. Not a digital mockup, an actual shirt.
Proof Two, Design Review
Our graphic designers check the sample for both obvious and subtle problems, from misalignment to a corner that did not come through.
Proof Three, Final Sign-Off
The owner gives the last approval before the run starts. Three sets of eyes before anything is produced at volume.
Then The Run
Lasers on the press take measurements throughout, so garment position and ink pressure stay the same from the first piece to the last.
Questions, Answered
Vector art is built from shapes and math rather than pixels, so it stays sharp at any size. Common formats are AI, EPS and SVG. It gives crisp lines, smooth curves and accurate colors, and the files are small enough to email.
Send it. For screen printing we will usually use it as a guide and recreate the artwork properly. Grayscale and full-color photographs can often be used as provided for digital transfers.
300 dpi is the preferred resolution. Anything much below that will not hold up once it is scaled to print size.
Yes. They may contain usable art, or we will use them as a guide to recreate it.
Pantone is a standardized system for naming colors precisely, used for color identification, specification and quality control. Sending Pantone codes with your art gets you an accurate match instead of a close guess.
Fonts vary in style, size and spacing, and a near-match is still a mismatch. The actual font file means we reproduce your design exactly as you designed it, which matters most for brand identity.
Your artwork goes onto a screen, then ink is pushed through it onto the garment. The more screens a shop has, the more colors it can lay down. We run 7 colors plus white, which is more than many shops can offer.
No. Some shops cut costs with cheaper ink, which is less opaque and does not hold up as long. We print with premium ink because opaque ink makes a design pop and keeps looking right after repeated washing.
Vinyl is cheaper but far less durable. Vinyl sits on top of the garment while screen printing goes into it, so vinyl tends to lift after a handful of washes and does not blend the same way. We stick to screen printing for that reason.
The first hour of artwork is free. If your job needs more than that we will tell you before we do it, not after.
Send It Anyway, We Will Figure It Out
A rough sketch or a photo on your phone is a fine starting point. That is what the design team is for.