How To Prepare Artwork For Clothing Tags And Woven Labels
This article covers artwork requirements for getting great results for your custom woven labels.
Woven Label Size
The total size of a woven label cannot be larger than 4 square inches. We offer a
variety of standard sizes that work with horizontal, square, and vertical logo orientations.
File Resolution
- Recommend: 300 dpi
- Acceptable: 150 dpi
- Not acceptable: less than 150 dpi
File Types
We recommend uploading your artwork to the website as a .png. The website also accepts .jpg, .gif, .bmp, or svg. We are happy to accept higher resolution artwork via email. Please email your order # and high resolution artwork to
artist@apliiq.com.
Files Size
Files must be provided at the size you need woven label. If you need 2" x 2" woven label, your artwork should also be set to 2" x 2" at 300 dpi.
Files Size & Resolution Examples
- A 1" X 1" woven label @ 300 dpi is a 300 X 300 pixel image
- A 2" X 2" woven label @ 300 dpi is a 600 X 600 pixel image
Woven Label Design Templates
You can use the following templates to further prepare your artwork files and achieve more precise control over your woven label design. Using the templates are not required, if you prefer to upload your artwork and design with the online design tools, an Apliiq production artist will help you finalize your woven label design.
Tips & Tricks for Folded Woven Labels
- You have two areas to put artwork, the front and the back of the woven label! Twice the marketing power.
- You can add the same artwork or different artwork, but we generally recommend using the same artwork.
Apliiq's Recommendation - Use the Same Artwork on the Front & Back of Woven Labels
- When using the same artwork on the front and the back, it allows your label to be used in almost any label position.
- For example, you can use the label on the top edge of a beanie! Normally if you have your artwork only on one side of the folded label, when we sew your label onto the top edge of the beanie, it will be upside down.
- For your artwork to appear right-side-up and legible on the beanie, the artwork must be right side up on the front and upside down on the back when folded. (When looking at your label flat, the artwork will appear to be facing the same direction, as seen in the Recommended Option in the diagram below
In the example above, the recommended option shows that when the label is unfolded and flat, the artwork is the same direction on the label. In this case, it is actually more versatile and can be used on both positions for the beanie without being upside down. This same case applies to outside hem on the back of the neck for example.
We know - it seems like an optical illusion. You can test this yourself by cutting out a piece of paper, writing a word on both sides of the label and testing it on different label locations. Or simply trust us to keep the artwork in the recommended option layout, we're here to help!
Level Of Detail Within Artwork
Woven labels can be used to create detailed shapes, text, and artwork. However, because custom woven labels create your artwork by weaving threads together, there are physical limits to how intricate details can be within your artwork. The smallest a single stitch can be is 1mm or ~.03". This means that the smallest level of detail within your artwork must be at least 1mm. If your artwork contains details smaller than 1mm our artist will update your file to ensure your artwork can be created as a woven label, this may alter the look of your design.
Artwork Effects Not Supported
Due to the fact woven labels are created from woven threads, not all types of artwork possible in a digital medium can be supported in a woven label.
- Label artwork must use flat colors without gradients.
- No highlights or drop shadows.
- No inner glows or outer glows.
- Any other effects that create or utilize gradients.
Guidance For Fonts & Text
Remember, your text and fonts will be created out of thread so you want to take precautions to ensure your text is legible.
Font Height
In order for text to be legible it must have a minimum height:
- Recommended Minimum Height: 10pt font
- Acceptable Minimum Height: 9pt font if spaced out enough
- Not Acceptable Height: less than 9 pt
Please note that different fonts may have different height requirements.
Letter Spacing & Legibility
You should also give additional thought and care to letter spacing, or tracking, to ensure your text is legible. Generally speaking, the best fonts for woven labels are cursive letters where each letter is connected in script. The thread will continue between each letter and be more legible. The next best fonts are san-serif fonts because there are less pieces to each letter and are more easily legible. Serif fonts are not recommended at small scales, but if you intend to use one, we recommend adding additional space between each letter for visibility and clarity around each letter.
Woven Label Colors
We offer a variety of thread colors to achieve the most accurate color representation for woven labels. The
apliiq color chart shows our available thread colors. If your art requires specific thread colors, please send an email them to
cs@apliiq.com to request a quote for custom woven label colors.
When your design comes to life as a woven label, the colors may not match exactly what you see on your screen. Unfortunately, there are differences between how colors are rendered on a computer or phone screen and how they appear in real life.
Maximum number of colors
Woven labels can have up to 5 colors. If your artwork requires more than 5 colors you can request an estimate by emailing
cs@apliiq.com.
Seam Allowance (empty space around your logo)
We typically recommend no less than ⅛” setback for stitch allowance. That means that we require a border around your artwork so that we may sew your label onto the garment without stitching through your artwork. The stitch is set in about 1/16”, so ⅛” border gives plenty of space for your artwork to be the focus of the label!
What to do if your file is too small
Sometimes you may need to use existing design element to create your artwork. If your file is too small you still have options to make amazing happen:
- Try locating a larger version of your file.
- Our artists can vectorize your artwork for you so it can be properly scaled up. We are happy to do this free of charge, in most cases the artwork will be altered slightly.
Please Note: In most cases you cannot simply "resize" an existing small file to increase it's size. You need to find the original larger file or recreate the artwork at the appropriate size.
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