Customized maternity shirts can be heartwarming or hilarious. The designs are unique because you have control over the finished project. When preprinted maternity shirts with sayings aren't doing your pregnancy experience justice, it may be time to create your own maternity t-shirt.
Customized Maternity Shirts
There are a handful of options to consider when developing a personalized maternity shirt. You can create a personalized tee from scratch using creative techniques like tie dye or you can start with a quick visit to a t-shirt print shop. Online resources are also available for the project.
Online Custom Clothing
Many online options are available for creating customized maternity shirts. It helps to look for certain features to ensure that the process runs smoothly. The websites, Got baby! and Cafe Press are great example of companies that offer helpful features.
- Use onsite designs
- Upload your own photographs
- Upload your own graphics
- Design choices
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- Design on chest
- Design on belly
- Lettering choices
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- Text size
- Text color
- Type of font
The company alters the text to fit the shirt but it helps to have a good idea of how the words and images should be centered. The company should use quality materials for their shirts to ensure that they keep their shape and color after repeated washes.
Tee Shirt Supplies
Making a personalized maternity tee shirt can be simple, depending on the approach you select. Iron on transfers can make the process go very quickly but many of these products won't stand up to repeated washing. Since the maternity shirt is only going to be worn for a few months, this issue may not be of great concern. Supplies for making custom maternity shirts include:
- A maternity tee
- Fabric paint, markers, or crayons
- Iron-on transfers
- Stencils
- Scissors
Maternity Shirt Design Tips
Whether you choose to make your own personalized tee or you opt for customized maternity shirts made by a professional, it helps to follow certain guidelines to ensure that the final product looks polished. This is especially important if you are creating your own shirt.
Color and Font
- Color - Getting creative with color combinations is a great way to ensure a one-of-a-kind look. It's important to have enough contrast between the letters and the color of the tee shirt so the message is easy to read.
- Size - The size of the font is important, too. Letters that are too large can take up too much space, creating an awkward appearance. Letters that are too small are simply too hard to read.
- Font type - The type of font you choose makes a big difference. When it doubt, stick with clean fonts that are not too ornate. Intricate fonts can be difficult to read.
- Placement - Choose your focus according to the message you are sending. For example, maternity shirts with sayings that come from the baby's perspective are best placed on the belly while the mother's words are best placed on the chest. Placement of some phrases and images are completely up to your discretion.
Shakespeare wrote that brevity is the soul of wit and this holds true in the realm of custom tee shirt designs. Try to put together a witty slogan in a handful of words.
Images
Photographs are wonderful for creating ultra-personal designs, but it is important to choose your image wisely. The photograph should have very little clutter and it should be centered properly. Blurry images are not going to translate well onto the shirt. Original drawings are excellent choices but many of the details in delicate lines can be lost in the process of transferring the image onto the material. Charcoal and pencil sketches can be very difficult to translate on to fabric.
Copyright Considerations
Copyright is a complex area when it comes to creating novelty maternity shirts. If you aren't planning to mass produce the clothing, there appears to be no harm in copying witty phrases, images, and photographs. Your maternity shirt design may be clever enough for you to be inspired to copyright the design. In order to do this, you have to register the design with the United States Copyright Office. This is especially important if you plan to market the tee shirts.
