On Tuesday, Piper Weiss of Yahoo's Shine Staff wrote a blog post drawing attention to the unfortunate grammatical error printed on hundreds of thousands of Old Navy T-shirts.


Source: oldnavy.gap.com

Ouch.

As Weiss points out, the missing apostrophe is particularly damaging given the number and nature of the parties involved. Sure, the mistake reflects poorly on Old Navy, but what about the universities? An institute of higher learning whose students struggle with simple contractions? I'm sure they really appreciate the irony.

If there weren't egos and hundreds of thousands of dollars at stake, I'm sure the little error would be hilarious. Kind of like Cake Wrecks.
East Coast readers, I highly recommend skimming Wednesday's post for a good laugh!

The mistake is being investigated, but the reality is that no single person deserves the blame.

The lesson we can all learn from this- check and recheck your proofs. If an apostrophe can escape dozens of sets of eyes on a large-scale retail project, imagine the potential for error on smaller jobs.

Old Navy, if it's any consolation, at least your you're not the only one.


Source: wetseal.com

We're seeing a trend lately- our clients are all about vintage-style T-shirts. If you've ever committed to a DIY project to distress your kitchen cabinet doors or scuff up a pair of jeans, you'll appreciate the amount of effort that goes into making a new item look old. Read through our tips and suggestions below for a behind-the-scenes look at the process.

Interested in creating a custom vintage tee for your organization's next event? Contact us and we'll help you pull it all together.

1. Start with a good base. What would you say is the best part about a vintage T-shirt? In my opinion, it's the soft material. A true vintage tee achieves that feel with years of wear, but thankfully manufacturers have figured out how to get the same texture in a brand new shirt. I recommend American Apparel, Next Level and Eva tees for a soft, lightweight and lived-in feel.

Be selective too with your color selection. Avoid vibrant colors, as they scream "brand new". Neutral tones, heathers and color-washed hues will lend authenticity to your vintage tee.

2. Distress the art. Part of the vintage look is printing-related (we'll get to that next), and part has to do with the art itself. Just as you did with the T-shirt, choose subdued PMS colors for the art design. Next, get creative with the tools in your graphic design program. If using Adobe Illustrator, we recommend exploring your brush library and artistic texture options. Throw a splatter of ink on top of your design and lift it off. This will help you achieve a distressed design.

Don't forget other elements of retro appeal. If appropriate, consider using an outdated version of your organization's logo or a tagline from years past. Incorporate a date or year to recognize your company's history.

3. Break the rules of screen-printing. Typically, a good screen print is vibrant, sharp and delineated. The ink is evenly laid, usually on top of a white flash under base to prevent the color of the material from distorting the colors of the imprint. With vintage styling, you want the exact opposite effect- essentially you're looking for a "bad" screen print.

Screen printers use a variety of techniques to achieve an aged and worn look. For starters, they omit the flash under base to reduce the ink's vibrancy. Next, measures are taken to lessen the amount of ink that gets transferred to the shirt's surface. This can either be achieved by pushing the ink through a fine mesh screen, or by thinning the ink's consistency with a soft-based additive. Both techniques result in a smoother hand feel. Finally, if you're looking for a tone-on-tone design, printing with clear ink is an easy solution.

Since the creation of a vintage tee involves straying from standard procedure, you should expect some variation and inconsistencies in the end product. Just as it is with antique home décor, the beauty of a vintage t-shirt is that it's one of a kind.

If you’ve never been the one to organize a T-shirt order for your high school debate team, senior class, fraternity, office kickball team, or family reunion, you might be surprised at the number of decisions there are to make.

Though there will still be several questions to answer, working with a promotional products consultant can make the process immensely easier. To help you better prepare for your next order and simplify the process, review the checklist of items below.

1. Pick a T-shirt Model

Style: Are you looking for a generic T-shirt, or are you hoping for something with extra details? V-neck, scoop neck, cap sleeve, ringer, distressed, raglan, ribbed… the choices are endless.

Brand: Just like with most things in life, you pay more for a brand name. In some cases, the difference in quality is enough to justify the higher price tag- American Apparel tees are fabulous, and they should cost more than a Hanes tee. But if you’re looking for something more standard, the difference between a Hanes 100% cotton 6.1oz tee and a Gildan 100% cotton 6.1oz tee is nearly imperceptible.

Color: Short and sweet- whites are less expensive than heathers, and heathers are less expensive than colors.

Material: 100% cotton and 50/50 cotton/poly blend are two very common material choices, the former being the less expensive selection. Your options certainly don’t end there, however. Where and how will the shirt be worn? If you intend to wear them during exercise or at an outdoors event, you might consider a material with moisture-wicking or odor-resistant qualities. Are you organizing a green event? Think about organic cotton or a bamboo blend.

Weight: When comparing apples to apples (for example, a Gildan 100% cotton T-shirt compared to a Gildan 100% cotton T-shirt), the option with the lighter weight will be the least expensive, by rule of thumb. The least expensive option may not always be the best choice, however. It’s best to think about where and how the shirt will be worn. Your black, lightweight and lived-in ‘vintage’ concert tee might be your favorite weekend uniform, but you’d be wise to avoid this weight when your boss puts you in charge of ordering white T-shirts for the company picnic. On a sunny day, white, lightweight tees will leave little to the imagination when it comes to your coworkers’ undergarments.

Size: Who will be wearing the shirt? Are generic adult sizes sufficient, or will you need youth sizing or a fitted ladies cut? Keep in mind too that plus sizes (2XL and up) are generally at least $2.00 more expensive than sizes S-XL.

2. Decide on the Order Quantity

The price of a T-shirt will always be lower per piece at high quantities than at low quantities. Inquire about price breaks- if the nearest price break is just a few shirts away from the number you expect you’ll need, bump up the quantity. You can find other smart ways to increase your quantity in our blog post: How to Get to the Next Column.

3. Create the Artwork/Imprint

Design: Do you have a design prepared or will you require the assistance of a graphic artist? If you have art to submit, is it camera-ready? Screen-printing requires vectored artwork for optimal print quality. Are you unfamiliar with “vectored” art? Our art spec sheet will help explain.

Number of colors: How many colors will be used in your design? Is the design composed of solid color blocks, or is it more photographic in nature, with shadows and gradations? Decide which elements of your design are essential, and which elements could be modified if necessary. Between digital process, spot color printing and digital transfer, you can really print just about anything these days if you’re willing to pay for it. Generally speaking, the more colorful the artwork, the higher the price tag will be.

For more printing advice, be sure to check out our Print This, Not That series.

Print method: As I wrote above, there are several different printing techniques offered today that can give you the look you’re hoping for. Consult your promotional products consultant to learn more about your options and the associated costs.

I must admit that after typing this list up even I feel a bit overwhelmed, and I make these decisions for clients every single day. The most important thing you can do is to have a clear budget in mind when you approach the task. Your rep will advise you on everything else and guide you to the best possible product for your dollar.

It's no secret that buying in bulk lowers the price per item. Anyone who has joyously departed Costco with a hundred rolls of toilet paper or a 2-gallon bottle of ketchup can attest to this. Bargain shoppers, unite! Quantity price breaks are often summarized in a price grid, frequently with the minimum quantity listed in the left-most column. For many small businesses, the left column is a familiar place to be. If your average order generally leans to the left, read on to learn a few tricks that can help you reach preferred price breaks.

Request a copy change. A copy change is just that- a change to the copy/written text of a design. With many promotional products like screen-printed T-shirts, magnets and awards, you have the ability to change a portion of the imprint on some of the order for a small charge. Keep in mind that there may be some restrictions- you will likely need to order at least the minimum quantity for each imprint, and the imprints may need to use the same color ink(s).





Organize a group buy. Another way to use copy changes to your advantage? Consider group buying.

Many organizations have multiple branches/offices, and they all require marketing materials. Unfortunately, more often than not each branch makes their own ordering and purchasing decisions. A smarter strategy would be to organize a group buy with copy changes. Not only do you achieve a higher total quantity and thus better price break, you also ensure consistent branding. 

For a great example of a group purchasing program, read more about the J-SERVE T-shirts here.

Consolidate your orders. Many of our clients order promotional items several times throughout the year. A couple hundred T-shirts for a spring clean-up event, another couple hundred for a company picnic, and a few dozen for summer kickball on the National Mall or in the park. With a little advance planning, it's relatively easy and very cost-effective to consolidate those three orders into one order with two copy changes. Even if you save just $0.75 per shirt, across 400 shirts that's $300 left to spend on other marketing projects throughout the year!

Spend some time reviewing your promotional plans for the year, and consider where you might be able to save a few dollars. If you need additional guidance- 301.869.7800- we are here to help. 

The problem with the cutting edge is that someone has to bleed.
- Zalman Stern

In promotional marketing, your materials can stay on the cutting edge when you make them bleed. Fully.



A "full bleed" might sound somewhat disturbing in every day conversation, but in the printing world it refers to color that goes beyond the border of a final image. During the printing process, sometimes items shift almost imperceptibly as colors are added. Well, the shift will seem imperceptible when the item's border includes a full bleed. If the color ends before the edge of the item, leaving a contrasting border, the human eye can almost always see the slight narrowing of color around the edge, making the entire piece seem a bit off-center.