T-Shirts – Carabu Shirts & More

 Put all of that together, and you’re ready to start designing a t-shirt that’s perfect for you.

 For example, take a look at Prim’s dinosaur t-shirt design. This is a kid’s merchandise brand, so the style is cute and cartoony, appealing to its market.

 Compare that to the winning entry for the Pumpkin t-shirt design contest, by 99designs creator DiditRed.

 This German hardcore music festival is definitely not marketed to kids. That opens up their designs to edgier material, which suits their prospective clients better.

 Of course, there are more options than being terrifying or sugary sweet.

 Alex Lalove shows us how to design a professional, risk-free t-shirt without being boring. His winning entry promotes the Datafinity brand with its logo front and center, but spices up the look and feel so it seems more fashionable than a standard business tee.

 Also, remember that your design is being displayed on bodies. Lumpy, bumpy bodies that aren’t always as symmetrical as we’d like. Think about flat, uncomplicated designs since there’s no telling where the nooks and crannies will land on your image.

 For similar reasons, you also want to avoid detailed imagery, such as subtle color gradients and intricate linework. Always err on the side of simple.

 Designer Monkeii uses a 2D image and two colors that match the background well—all without sacrificing the artistic quality.

 The fonts you choose say a lot about your brand. Serif fonts (the ones with little arms) or script fonts look more classic. Sans-serif fonts make it more modern. T-shirts offer more of an opportunity than other areas of graphic design to play with fun, crazy display fonts, but do keep readability in mind. If the words on your shirt are important to communicating your message, make sure they don’t get overshadowed by swirly, grungy, loopy typography.

 The element of design that is best at instantly communicating personality is color. Each shade, hue and tint evokes an emotion, acting as a shortcut for you to portray something about your brand at just a glance.

 T-shirt designs have two sets of colors to keep in mind: the fabric color(s) and the print color(s). To make sure that these two complement each other, always use your fabric color as the background of your design ideas. (And also note that a colored canvas can have an impact on what inks look like, so make sure you talk to your printer about that!)

 Because of the way t-shirt inks work, printing colors can get a little tricky. The least expensive way to print your design will be to approximate the colors. Just know that your “teal” might not match your printer’s “teal.”

 Exact color matches are possible with Pantone (PMS) or custom blended CMYK inks—but they’re more expensive. PMS uses predefined, exact ink tones that your printers can purchase. CMYK printing creates virtually any color by combining Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key (black) inks. Check with your printer to determine what’s available.

 Like any other printing medium, t-shirts have their own set unique ink options.

 Plastisol — The standard ink used in screen-printing

 Novelty — Glitter, hologram or even a fuzzy feel

 High-density — For a dimensional appearance that pops out from the shirt

 Gel — Like high-density, but with a “wetter” look

Artisticimage.net

 Water-based — No feeling at all; ingrained in the fabric

 Got design skills? Get crackin’! If you don’t, don’t worry. There are tons of pros out there ready to turn your design concept into a reality.

 The main advantage of designing a t-shirt yourself is the price. If your budget is tight, the decision is already made for you. Design freedom is a huge advantage, but don’t forget that professionals know the technical concerns of t-shirt design (plus a whole lot more). If you broke out into a cold sweat when we mentioned acronyms like CMYK, you might sleep better handing this off to a pro.

 Rather than teaching yourself marketing, branding and graphic design, why not pay someone who knows all them already?

 Collaborating with a freelancer can be tricky, but also a lot of fun. Do your best to find a designer that thinks like you and understands what you’re looking for. Consider the designer’s personality, design style and expertise. You can also try working with multiple designers at once by launching a T-Shirt Design Contest on 99designs.

 Once you’ve found your designer(s), you have to clearly communicate your vision. Tell them what about your design ideas, messaging, and intended audience. Include details about colors, logos, visual style, t-shirt type and printing specifications. Send them images of designs that match the style you’re looking for. Give them everything they need to know so you can get the perfect t-shirt design.

 As your design options start rolling in, browse through every version and select your favorites. Don’t forget your marketing and technical requirements. Will your design fit on a tank top? Is the amount of color within your budget? Is the messaging right? This isn’t just an art contest, but a business decision. Communicate your feedback clearly to your designer to make sure your next set of options look even better.

 As your design options start rolling in, browse through every version and select your favorites. Don’t forget your marketing and technical requirements. Will your design fit on a tank top? Is the amount of color within your budget? Is the messaging right? This isn’t just an art contest, but a business decision. Communicate your feedback clearly to your designer to make sure your next set of options look even better.

 Then, make sure to run it by both key stakeholders and people who don’t have any connection to what you’re doing. Even if it’s just your neighbor across the street, people not closely associated with your t-shirt design will notice things you never did.

 Consider asking them:

 What is the one key message you get when you look at this shirt?

 Their answers to these questions will help you determine if the t-shirt is communicating what you want it to. If it’s not, go back to your designer and figure out what you can change.

 You’ve got the perfect t-shirt design. Hell yes! Now go back to that information you got from your printer and check to make sure you have the right files.

 Your t-shirt design in vector format. This will likely be an Adobe Illustrator (AI), PDF, or EPS file. You’ll need one for each different t-shirt design you’re creating.

 Color codes. If your printer does custom colors, make sure you have the Pantone or CMYK color codes so that everything turns out looking like you want.

 Once your design’s ready, it’s printing time! Find one that offers the method you need at a price you can afford. Of course, extra features and discounts to sweeten the deal are great, too. Sifting through printing options to find the best one for your particular project usually requires experience and time… but we’re going to fast-track it for you!

 Our designers create awesome stuff for us, too! T-shirt design by Asael Varas

 When getting your t-shirt prepared to print, the print shop will require all components of your t-shirt design in their respective dimensions and file sizes.

 Full Shirt Design Front or Back

 If you're ready to make your t-shirt design in PicMonkey, start with a blank canvas. You can choose from preset dimensions, or use the dimension boxes in the top right corner of the blank canvas screen to enter your own, depending on what type of shirt you're making.

 Select a color palette and typography

 T-shirt design via Drew Lakin.

 Less is typically more when designing t-shirts. Whether they’re designed to promote your brand, event, or message, the best t-shirts are kept to one to three colors with no more than three fonts. Keep it simple!

 Your brand colors, if possible, and your target audience will guide the creative treatment of your t-shirt design. A t-shirt promoting a local coffee shop will have a drastically different color scheme and font style than a t-shirt promoting love. Think about the psychology around the colors you choose for your t-shirt and ensure they align with your t-shirt’s purpose and audience.

 While the idea of bright and punchy colors may resonate with your brand or message, many t-shirt wearers prefer more versatile colors, such as white, black, blues, cream, and more. Make sure you pare down your color palette and also think about the t-shirt color you’ll have the design printed on—because some colors just don’t mesh well together. Trust us, we’ve all been there.

 When thinking of the font style you want to use, the best choice is to opt for a readable font style, such as a sans serif or serif font. Think of t-shirts like a walking billboard—you can’t just stop and read the shirt as they are being worn, they are usually seen from a distance.

 Need some font help to get your t-shirt design started on the right foot? Master the art of font pairings in no time!

 5 more t-shirt design examples to inspire you

 Arched (or curved) text is a popular go-to for many t-shirt designs. Use this text style for short phrases, such as a short motivational quote or text describing your brand or business. To balance out the arched style, try incorporating horizontal text at the bottom of your arch.

 Create curved text in PicMonkey

 You can achieve the arched (and circular!) text look in PicMonkey in just a single click. Type out your text, then with the layer selected click Curved text on the left Text Tools menu. Select Circle or Arc and define the curvature. All done!

 Curved text elevates simple horizontal text and allows the text to wrap around illustrations and graphics. Who knew something so impactful could be oh so simple?!

 T-Shirt design via Travis Pietsch.

 Retro styles always make a comeback, and for good reason too! They’re a classic style and are especially impactful when printed on a t-shirt. They invoke nostalgia, but in all of the right ways.

 To really make an eye-catching t-shirt, use a single color design that speaks to your business or brand, with retro-style fonts and a simple illustration on the back of your shirt.

 Lucky for you, you can easily achieve a similar retro-style look in PicMonkey! Incorporate this style by using a thicker script font style combined with a simple sans serif and you’ve got yourself a chef’s kiss moment. PicMonkey’s Graphics library houses endless editable graphics that you can combine, layer, and recolor.

https://carabushirts.com/

 T-shirts are also a perfect way to rock a quote or phrase that speaks to you. Whether it’s motivational, positive, or just a catchy slogan, quotes can resonate with the wearer and promote a brand.

 Highlighting fonts in a visually interesting way will definitely get your t-shirt noticed by passersby. Let’s face it, we all enjoy good type design.

 Incorporate punchy quotes in PicMonkey

 If putting together a fun phrase or quote isn’t your best skillset, we’ve got you covered in PicMonkey!

 Choose from tons of text-based graphics that can be easily edited to suit your brand or style. Simply search for “text” or browse our graphics categories and add them onto your canvas.

 Once you’re finished editing the graphics, head on over to the Download button on the top toolbar and save as a PNG to ensure transparency before sending over to the t-shirt print shop.

 Not every element of your t-shirt design has to be fully solid shapes and text. You can get creative with how each t-shirt element interacts with each other with the help of blend modes, as seen above. That simple overlay of shapes never looked so cool.

 Not every element of your t-shirt design has to be fully solid shapes and text. You can get creative with how each t-shirt element interacts with each other with the help of blend modes, as seen above. That simple overlay of shapes never looked so cool.

 Get geometric with PicMonkey

 While the thought of just using shapes may not be up your alley, consider using blend modes to jive it up a little bit! Simply select a single graphic on your canvas, then click Fade & blend in the left toolbar and experiment with the fade slider and the blend mode options. Save and download as a PNG file to ensure transparency with your layered shapes before sending it off for print.

 Referring back to the less is more approach, a minimalist take on a t-shirt design can uplift your brand or message while eliminating excess design space.

 Not every t-shirt needs to be completely filled to be a masterpiece. If your branding calls for simplistic imagery and branding, or if you want to break the cycle on what sprinkles and ice cream looks like, seen in the t-shirt above, then going the minimalist route is ideal.

 Experiment with various graphics to make a wow-worthy t-shirt design!

 Open the Graphics tab, go through the Design category and bam! You have yourself a great collection of funky shapes and patterns that can be catered to your colors. Select the newly added graphic and click Change colors to choose the one(s) you want.

 Creating the perfect t-shirt design for your brand, message, or event doesn’t have to be difficult. When you dig into the basics of the what, where, and why of the t-shirt in addition to curating the creative elements, you’re already more than halfway there to a stunning t-shirt that wearers will rock for years to come.

 T-shirt design is a hugely popular outlet for creatives. Whether you're an illustrator, graphic designer or typographer, putting your designs onto T-shirts can be fun, and a great way to sell your designs online).

 However, the process can be daunting if you're new to it. Here, we'll walk you through our top tips for successful custom T-shirt design, from what to consider with the design itself to the practicalities of printing your designs onto T-shirts.