A lot has to be put into consideration when it comes to t-shirt printing and vinyl stickers. It is not like walking into a store and coming out with a bunch of t-shirts or a couple of stickers.
With this in mind, we have compiled some of the most frequently asked questions and answers to make our customer experience better, faster, simpler, and more informative.
What kind of artwork do you accept?
For vinyl signage and small t-shirt printing orders of a simple single color design, we need crisp images to trace from. If downloading images from the internet, we suggest you search for your images as silhouette PNG files. Please put the word “sihloutte” at the end of whatever image you are searching for in Google images, meaning that, for example, instead of searching for “jumping kangaroo”, please type “jumping kangaroo silhoutte” and you will see that you will only be left with outline designs which we can easily use for single color small order prints. No matter what color you provide the picture in, we can print it in any color you like, but we prefer it if you could supply black images as they are way easier to trace from.
The following instruction applies to the above as well as to vinyl stickers and full color occasional (birthday) t-shirt printing :
Please do NOT download your images on a page which has multiple images if you are searching on Google images. Rather click on the image you like once, you will see the image would then open on your right, then right click and save the image from there as it would have a much better quality than if you were to save it from the page with many other images.
Please bear in mind that garbage in – garbage out, meaning what you provide is exactly what we print, so if you provide a poor quality blurred image, we would rather not print it as we like to keep our clean reputation of only providing quality prints. If you insist on your poor quality image then we would have to redesign it from scratch and standard artwork fees apply at R250 per hour.
As for permanent full-color t-shirt printing, as well as for screen printing in general, we only accept high-resolution PDF or PNG files. Corel Draw, Photoshop, or Illustrator softwares are used to design the image and then it is saved as either of the two previously mentioned formats. The artwork should be in Pantone print colors or CMYK. We do not accept RGB colors as they represent reflective light, and hence due to different computer screen resolutions, the way an image appears on your screen may be very different from the color we actually print out.
We may waive the design fee for slight adjustments but if there are major changes to be done then standard artwork charges apply.
How much do you charge for t-shirt printing and vinyl stickers?
We have attempted to answer the most commonly asked questions about clothing branding and vinyl signage below.
Pricing for vinyl signage
Your design is the starting basis for a quotation. No two designs are the same, one design of the same color and size may have much more detail (hence more work required on that particular order) than another order/ design.
Before we can quote, please send your images and specify the dimensions in cm for the length, width, and/ or diameter. In most instances a price can be given over the phone for cutting out text, but if it is a design, we need to see what it looks like so we can determine the amount of work required.The only instance when we can give generic pricing is for text, but then again, in such a case, we need the specific size of the whole set, the number of letters, and the font to be used. The detail in the design determines the cutting involved and how difficult it would be to weed out the vinyl.
Please provide your location for us to charge our call out fees for vinyl application, as well as, the size of the area where the vinyl will be applied, as well as your location.
To find out more about vinyl sticker decals, please click here
What if I want a refund?
Kindly refer to our refund policy page by clicking this link
Pricing for tshirt printing
T-shirt printing is just as ambigous. Since we provide all the major clothing branding methods under one roof, there is no one size fits all approach for quoting. Ultimately, your design is the one that determines which print method to use, how long it will take to print, and how much it would cost. The quantity also plays a factor as the price for printing 1 t-shirt is completely different to the unit cost of printing 500 items. The price for printing certain colors, eg, metallic colors, neon, and glow in the dark colors would also be different from printing ordinary full color prints.
Before we quote you for t-shirt printing, please answer the following:
How many t-shirts would you like printed?
Are we to supply the t-shirts or you supply?
Also, may you please specify the size of the print area, that is, A4 size, A5 size, pocket size etc.
How many colours would be in the print? If possible please send through the artwork.
For full color prints, what color(s) would the t-shirts be?
For more on small order t-shirt printing click here .
If you are interested in pricing, please respond to the above t-shirt printing questions, and most importantly, please provide the artwork before we supply you with a quote.
A screen print would be the most suitable option for large t-shirt orders, that is, anything above 50 t-shirts. There are high fixed set up costs for screen printing but the per unit cost goes significantly low as more items are printed. Multi-color screen printing takes longer as each color has to be printed separately. We can print up to 4 colors for screen printing. Anything more than that would require a Direct To Garment print, which is not very ideal for large quantities, as the unit print costs remain the same.
For more information about screen printing, please click here.
What sizes can you print when it comes to t-shirt printing and vinyl stickers?
For t-shirt printing our common sizes for the front are:
- pocket size, for the front left on the left side for the chest, or onto tshirt sleeves
- A4 size, on the front or back of the tshirt . A4 page size is the size of your “normal” everyday exercise books used in high school. Whether you hold an A4 page across your chest or along your torso, the price is still the same.
- DL size, on the shoulder blades at the back of the tshirt
- A3 size, on either the front or the back of the t-shirt. Usually we refer to this if we mean any size bigger than A4, but less than 40cm by 60cm
We do NOT do ALL OVER T-shirt printing as that is something that does not exist. If you see a t-shirt with all-over printing, please do not mistake it for being branded as a tshirt. If you want such printing, please rather search for textile printers as the fabric is printed first before before it is stitched into a tshirt, hoody, or golfer. . There is no tshirt printing or clothing branding company in the world has a facility to print an already stitched tshirt all over from the collar to the bottom hem. Rather, please rethink your design if you cannot find a textile printer.
As for vinyl signage decals, we can cut any shape and color of vinyl from a 2mm high letter up to a maximum size of 1360mm width by any length. Meaning we can create vinyl signage of basically any size to fit any substrate you have up to billboard size.
What are your opening times?
Our offices (and telephone lines) are open from 9am to 7pm weekdays. During weekends we are only open for payments and t-shirt drop offs/ collections. No actual work takes place on weekends.
Nevertheless, email correspondence is on a 24/7 basis, but there may be delays here and there if you send your emails during weekends or after hours.
What is the expiration on an estimate?
All of our estimates are binding for fourteen days. If we don’t receive your order within that time, we may request a review of your project and may provide a slightly different estimate according to the availability of raw materials.
When do you start working on my order?
As soon as we receive proof of 50% deposit payment to ensure commitment from your end.
We then start working on your design/ setting up the artwork, and processing your order.
How do I pay for my order/ Which methods of payment does Ideal Design & Print accept?
We only get started working on your order upon receiving the proof of deposit payment. You can do an EFT, or ATM deposit then send us proof via Whatsapp (+27 74 525 6059) or email (sales@idealdesignandprint.co.za)
You are also able to pay cash in person when dropping off your tshirts to be printed or when collecting your already made tshirts.
We DO have card facilities so you can also tap, swipe or insert your card to pay for your order(s). Please let us know in advance if you want to use a card machine as only one person operates the machine.
What are your turnaround times?
We provide the fastest turnaround time for vinyl signage as an order which is paid for in the morning would usually be ready for fitting before the end of the business day, latest the following working day.
For vinyl T-shirt printing and full-color transfer prints it takes 1-2 working days from deposit payment provided the tshirts/hoodies/golfers are already available. We prefer if customers can supply their own t-shirts for small orders, otherwise, we can source them from local retailers, only for generic colors sizes large or smaller. For sizes XL or larger, or for a wider color range, or for orders of 10 or more units, then we are able to use our usual suppliers, and they are guarenteed to have all sizes for all colors they do stock from kiddies t-shirts up to size 5XL. The only downside is we must wait 2-3 working days after ording stock from them before we can collect, hence it is always faster to supply your own t-shirts for rush jobs.
Do you do deliveries for t-shirt printing and vinyl stickers?
We use a 3rd party courier company and if you are in Western Cape they usually take 1-2 working days from shipping, until you receive your package. For orders below 5kgs, we can courier to anywhere in Cape Town for only R130. For other areas, weights and sizes please inquire.
Sometimes we deliver the items personally, only in Cape Town, for the same price, as soon as the order is complete or the following business day.
Postnet to Postnet
For those not in the Western Cape, or if you are in the area but are willing to have the extra hussle in exchange for saving R30, you are welcome to collect your packages at any of the 400 Postnet branches Nationwide. We charge R110 for Postnet to Postnet delivery, and your package will be arrive in 3-5 working days.
Do I pay the balance before delivery?
Sadly, yes. We are afraid you are just going to have to trust us. We post on our social media accounts on almost a daily basis, so please trust that we will not run away with your money at the expense of ruining our business reputation which we have worked so hard to build. For peace of mind though, we will send pictures of your completed products first, before we ask for the balance payment.
Where are you located/ where can I collect my order?
We are located in Brackenfell, Western Cape. To be more precise, at Central Square Court, number 1 Tiny Naude Street in Springbok Park. This is where collections and drop offs are made.
Please bear in mind that we are a WEB-BASED business, where we operate in a printing workshop/office – it is NOT a walk-in shop and we are not a print while you wait service.
Can I just come to your shop?
Visits are strictly by appointment in order to collect or drop off your tshirts, or to check print quality, or to check tshirt sizes and/ or quality.
Appointments are also necessary as we usually have some screen printing chemicals and inks all over the place which might damage/ stain your clothing (you are wearing) and we will not be held liable for this. An apointment allows us to prepare the environment for you.
Otherwise, everything else can be handled on-line, through our different platforms.
To see our previous work, please refer to our Facebook, Instagram or Twitter pages where we post on almost a daily basis.
What is the turnaround time for a quote on t-shirt printing and vinyl stickers?
After we have received your quotation request, depending on the nature of your print order, an estimate can be given within a few minutes to a few hours, one working day, at most. Most estimates can be provided during your initial phone call or within a few minutes of your request.
