Impressions - September 2015 - 65

surface and the detail the garment can hold.
Many name-brand hoodies have an acceptable printing
surface, but careful reviewing, testing and inspection
of prints on several different
brands will reveal a significant
variation in final quality. This
consideration always should
be weighed equally with the
design's complexity because
using a more expensive hoodie
on a simple graphic doesn't
make sense, and the hoodies
that have better printing surfaces typically cost more.
A good way to evaluate
hoodie print quality is to get
several samples of each style
and discuss with a garment
supplier what you plan to
print on them. Always remember to ask for testable
suggestions.
Figure 2. Revising a design to fit better with a hoodie.
Also, you can contact
several experienced printers
that do high-quality printing on hoodies to see if they will share the up with multiple sets of screens.
The biggest issues on the front of hoodnames of some of their preferred brands.
ies are the shoulder seams (assuming they
ART ADJUSTMENT
are not set-in sleeves) and the top of the
The first major hurdle of hoodie print- pocket seam. With the annoying decreased
ing is defining the design and location on vertical print area on hoodie jobs with a
the garment. You can start by getting the large size spread, it is common to choose
largest and smallest hoodie sizes and all re- designs that have a strong horizontal
spective styles that will be printed in the format rather than a significant vertical
same run. If you haven't printed on these graphic (see Figure 1).
garments before, it is critical to acquire
If you have a diagonal or vertical design,
samples before you define your print area. you can offer a variation in a horizontal
Hoodies are notorious for having a dra- format or the client may wish to minimatic print area difference between sizes. mize the size in the order to control the
A design that fits on a 2XL likely will not costs. Be ready to show digital examples
fit on a medium or small size. Some allow- of your revised artwork to your clients. It
ances will need to be made or you will end is common for customers to have a hard
impressionsmag.com

time envisioning artwork
changes without a visual
reference. If you provide
a new layout, the odds of
them selecting a solution
that saves money and time
will increase considerably.
The second problematic
issue on these garments is
how the hood tends to cover
the top part of a design on
the back. This is a significant
problem if a design has a critical name element or identification in the upper portion.
Not every client seems to be
bothered by this issue, but it
is important to address it upfront so that your garments
don't get returned due to
dissatisfaction with logos or
team names being obscured
from view.
One solution is to minimize the design so the hood
doesn't cover any important
elements. Occasionally, this
isn't possible or the design
won't look good using this option. In these
cases, the design can be slightly altered so
the hood doesn't cover anything critical
(see Figure 2).

COMPLEX ARTWORK
Some hoodies have fabric surfaces that
are similar to those of T-shirts, but the substrate still is thicker and tends to be more
difficult for highly detailed printing. Most
standard hoodies have a coarser woven
fabric than T-shirts, and the spongy surface is a challenge if you are attempting
to print a design with many complex halftones, gradients or fine line work.
Many printers specialize in high-detail
designs on hoodies, but this can take a lot
September 2015 | Impressions

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Impressions - September 2015

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