DRESS SHIRT TIPS
Successful digitizing and embroidery
WHEN TO CHOOSE EMBROIDERY
The “business casual” environment that led to relaxed dress codes for
the workplace starting in the 90’s has changed the way America shows up
for work. Jeans and sweatshirts are not unusual. However, the pendulum
appears to be swinging back toward a more polished, upscale appearance
in business apparel, especially since confidence in corporations has
slipped recently with the trade scandals and folding dot-coms. With this
change, the dress shirt, a traditional “dress for success” item in a
man’s closet, is enjoying a resurgence of popularity. It tops the charts
when a professional image is important. The addition of an embroidered
logo provides upscale corporate identity and with a little forethought
can add style and interest as well.
The classic dress shirt is a long-sleeved, front-button shirt with
tails. It is available in some luxurious fabrics and fun colors today.
However, it is best to think “conservative” when a shirt is to include
an embroidered logo or design. Collar styles include: Straight, Spread
or British Spread, Button-down, Curved, Tab and Banded. Your choice of
style may depend on your customer’s preferences, but the best bet is to
stick with a straight collar (the standard for business today) and a
solid, basic color. Long sleeves with button cuffs complete the look and
provide more creative opportunities for embroidery. For hotel uniforms
or other functional work wear that will be worn in hot, humid climates,
short sleeves, of course, are the logical choice.
LOCATION
Left and Right Chest - A company logo is normally embroidered on the
left chest pocket of a dress shirt. Personalization, such as an employee
name, is embroidered on the right. Keep designs small enough to fit
comfortably in the space provided. Smaller is better, especially on a
shirt pocket. (Be aware that as the logo or design is reduced in size,
text size will be reduced and may become too small to digitize properly.
Re-designing the logo may be necessary to keep text no less than 3/16”
or ¼” in height.)
Collar – The left front of the collar presents a stylish opportunity to
add a unique design or message on a dress shirt. It is being used by
private schools today to embellish children’s uniforms when sweaters and
vests can potentially conceal a left chest application.
Back – Beneath the collar (in the yoke area) can add variety to design
placement. One consideration for this area is to avoid designs that
could be irritating for the wearer due to backing included on the inside
of the garment. Certain designs that require heavy backing may not be
advisable.
Cuff – A tone-on-tone logo or stylized initials on a shirt cuff can
provide another subtle, classy form of corporate identity.
FABRIC
When we think of a dress shirt fabric, we generally think of woven
cotton (such as that found in an oxford shirt) or a cotton polyester
blend. However, dress shirts also come in blends of polyester and cotton
twill (common for industrial and commercial work wear), silk, the newer
micro fiber fabrics and a polyester/rayon that looks and drapes like
silk (this fabric was introduced in women’s shirts and has recently been
incorporated into men’s shirts).
Some dress shirts worn by industrial and commercial work staff are being
produced in wickable fabrics with a high synthetic fabric content.
Wickable fabrics originated in clothing designed for extreme sporting
events like mountain climbing and has moved into the shirts designed for
work wear. The fabric transfers moisture from the skin to the outside of
the cloth where it can evaporate. This feature helps the wearer to
maintain a more even body temperature, thus reducing discomfort and
improving performance.
The key here is to select fabric that will support the function and
image your customer is looking for. Thinner fabrics may cost less, but
they don’t maintain their fit and shape as well as higher quality
fabrics You will pay a bit more for a quality fabric, but it will also
last longer and provide a polished, professional appearance that keeps
your customers coming back for more.
THREAD
With its vibrant colors and high sheen, the preferred choice of thread
for dress shirts that will make their appearance in the boardroom or
sales office is rayon. Keep in mind that a cooler temperature with
color-safe bleach will be needed to safeguard its color and sheen.
When shirts will be washed frequently in hot water or with large amounts
of chlorine bleach (as for staff at a restaurant or hotel), the best
choice, with its strength and resistance to fading, is polyester.
DESIGN ELEMENTS
For industrial or commercial uniforms, the trend is moving away from the
use of name tags and patches toward embroidering direct on the fabric.
The result is a less clinical, more personalized, professional image.
One thing to keep in mind, however, is when shirts are acquired
offshore, they may have pocket placements angled incorrectly or offset
to left or right. Lining up a logo is difficult in such a case. We
suggest ordering a shirt sample from an offshore vendor prior to placing
your order. Hold off showing a catalog image of the shirt to your
customer, if at all possible, until you receive an actual sample. If you
find yourself in a situation where shirts have been delivered with
pockets misaligned or offset, find an embroiderer who will work with you
to compensate for the misalignment by modifying the angle or placement
of the embroidery.
Letter size is always an important consideration when creating a design
for the embroidery process. Script or serif fonts are not advisable for
small text. For best results, use capitalized letters in a sans serif
font such as Arial. The minimum letter heights listed below are for sans
serif, block letters, sewn in a satin stitch.
Suggested minimum Letter Height by Fabric:
Pique, Terry cloth, Fleece .…. 1/ 4”
Twill, Most other fabrics …… 3/16”
MARKETING IDEAS
When the protocol for business attire relaxed, the door opened for new
and creative ways to embellish promotional business apparel. Take
advantage of that opportunity by thinking outside the box with creative
solutions to a company’s identification challenges. In cooler
temperatures where sweaters and vests are a mainstay during the winter
months, you could suggest a coordinating shirt and sweater or vest
combination. A stylish version of the company logo can be added to the
left front collar of a dress shirt and a standard left chest version
embroidered on the sweater or vest. This ensures a visual display of the
corporate logo with or without the sweater or vest.
Another idea is to add a vendor logo to a secondary location, such as
beneath the back collar, on the cuff or upper sleeve (on a short-sleeved
shirt). A company may be able to attain coop dollars to help fund the
cost of a company shirt with this arrangement. A shirt retailer, for
example, could have the logo of a primary shirt provider embroidered on
their staff’s sleeve or cuff and their own logo embroidered on the left
chest pocket.
Copyright 2005. Unauthorized Duplication Prohibited. Contact Fast Embroidery Tapes for permission.
