Artwork & file prep
Logo Digitizing & Artwork Preparation
A logo drawn for a website rarely works untouched on a garment. Thread cannot hold a hairline, and a pale gray that reads on screen disappears on a light shirt. We prepare the file properly, and we tell you when a design needs simplifying rather than pushing it through and hoping.
We work with businesses and organizations nationwide and ship anywhere in the country. Businesses in central North Carolina and Southern Virginia get free delivery.
What we do with your file
Digitizing for Embroidery, Separations for Printing
Embroidery needs your logo converted into a stitch file, which decides the path the needle travels, the direction of each fill, and where fine detail has to be reworked to stitch cleanly at the size you want. That conversion is done once. We keep the file, so a reorder of the same mark at the same size does not repeat the work or the charge.
Printing needs clean edges and colors chosen against the actual garment. Screen printing is separated into one screen per color; DTF handles full color, gradients, and photographic detail without that step.
Send whatever you have. A vector file is ideal. A photograph of an old shirt is a workable starting point, and we will say what we would change before you commit to anything.
- Vector preferred — AI, EPS, PDF, or SVG gives the cleanest result
- Raster accepted — PNG, JPG, or a photograph of an existing garment
- Digitizing charged once — $24 standard, $45 complex, $10 if you own the file; kept on hand for exact reorders
- Honest advice on detail — we tell you when small text or fine lines will not hold
- Proof before production — your artwork on your garment color, approved by you
Common questions
Artwork Questions
I only have a JPG of my logo. Is that a problem?
Usually not. We can work from a raster file, and for embroidery the file is being redrawn as stitches anyway. Very low-resolution files limit how large the mark can go, and we will tell you if that is the case.
Do I own the digitized file?
The stitch file is created for your mark and kept on hand for your reorders. Ask us if you need a copy for your records.
Will small text in my logo work?
In thread there is a practical floor below which letters close up. We will show you the size where your type still reads and suggest an alternative arrangement if it does not.
Can you redraw a logo I have lost the original of?
Often, from a printed piece or a photograph. Send what exists and we will tell you what is recoverable.