Custom Hats: Patch Guide
Artwork: Before & After
See how accurate your artwork will look when it becomes a patch! We want to make sure you are confident in the custom patch hats you will receive. There are two options we offer for adhering the patch to your hats:
1. Heat seal: (Most Common!) Patches are sealed with our heat press at various temperatures and lengths of time to ensure that the patch stays on your hats and looks great.
Keep in mind, even if the edges/border are loose, the patch itself is super sealed to the hat so it will not come off.
2. Stitched on: We use a stitching machine to stitch your patches to the hats.
Woven Patch Examples
When it comes to popularity, a woven patch is the most requested! You can capture finite detail and small text that will result in a clean, crisp and vibrant logo.. The woven patch is a great choice if your logo has fine details, vibrant colors and smaller text + numbers.
1.8"H x 3.2"W
2.5"H x 1.68"W
Embroidered Patch Examples
Embroidered patch hats are the closest to “regular” embroidered hats.
The embroidered patch adds a contrasting border edge to really make your logo stand out. With embroidered patches, you can use either a twill or fully embroidered background. (both examples below are twill backgrounds.)
You can typically capture more details on a patch than you can with regular embroidery, but some smaller, more intricate details may not show well on this option.
2.5"H x 2.91"W
2"H x 3.66"W
Leather Patch Examples
Leather patches lend themselves to a more basic + simple logo, although smaller details can be achieved. For the leather patch, there are two choices of materials: genuine or faux leather. From there, there is a variety of base colors to choose from. These leather patches are a little different because we will etch your logo onto the leather material and then apply that to the cap. With that being said, for this type of leather patch to work for you, your logo will need to be able to be converted into a single-color version. If it is not already, we can help you create that.
2.25"H x 4"W
2.5" Diameter
Sublimated Patch Examples
Sublimated patch hats are the choice for you if your logo has intricate, small details or gradient colors. This type of patch is similar to the screen-printing process, so we are able to replicate almost any detail and color on the patch. *Colors tend to be more matte and do not have as much contrast. Black, for example, does not show up as true black. If you have mostly neutral colors, we recommend any of the other patch options shown above. Sublimated patches are the way to go if you have detail or gradients in your logo.
PVC Patch Examples
Our high quality PVC patches will give your cap a very bold and technical look. This decoration method adds an amazing level of dimension to any design. Ideal for multi-colored logos with a moderate level of detail. The texture of the patch is like rubber but with a lot more stability. Your design can be 2D or 3D.
PATCH SIZES & SHAPES
We can create any patch shape desired! The most common is to use simple shapes - square, rectangle, oval, circle, etc - these shapes work best for a merrowed edge border (which is what most people want) - and we can size the shape however is needed to best fit the logo. We use rectangles a lot, but often it's dictated by the shape/layout of the customer's logo and what will make it look best. Often, customers have some specific ideas as well and we can almost always accommodate. We can create detailed patch shapes as well - usually on these we have to do an embroidered edge as too much detail in shape won't work for merrowed edge.
We can go up to 2.4" tall for patches. It's larger than what we can do with direct embroidery. "Standard width" is still 4" wide like normal decoration but we can go wider up to 5" if needed. 4" W x 2.25" H is kind of the "sweet spot" we live in - but we usually recommend sizing based on what we think your logo needs (a more vertical oriented logo, a circle, etc - often will go right to the max 2.4" height. Most people generally like a little larger patch, but sometimes people want something a little smaller, which we can do no problem, just something to identify in the ordering process.
PATCH BORDERS
Merrowed Border
This patch edge is the most common. We use it for about 90% of custom patches. The stitch is tight but has a thicker look, which makes the patch edges looked raised.
Merrowed Border
The glue may not go all the way from the back of the patch to the border, so the edges might seem like they are coming off, but customers actually prefer this look and we guarantee it won't come off. Merrowed has a very wide variety of color options, you can tie it into the color of your logo or you can match it to your hat mesh color.
Stitched Border
This patch border is mostly used if the shape of your patch requires it (we will tell you) or you want the flatter, tighter, more subtle look with your patch.
Stitched Border
Stitched borders also have the same wide variety of merrowed borders, and as you can see we can match it very well to any part of the hat or color in your logo.
LASER CUT EDGE
No separate stitch for a border is used here. Just a clean cut of the patch. This option is the least popular.
A FEW MORE NOTES ON LEATHER PATCHES
Welcome to the leather patch section! If you're thinking about getting a leather patch, the information below will help you tremendously!
There are two types of leather patches: faux and genuine. These both look very similar but with faux we have a range of colors that the actual leather can be, NOT your logo. With real leather, there is light, medium, and dark brown.
Everything about size and shape above is the same for leather patches, but the great thing about leather patches is that we don't have to choose a border for them. Two options we do is an outline around the edge or a real stitch. Both options are heat sealed to the hat, so there is no actual stitching of the patch to the hat, it just depends on the look you are going for. We recommend the stitch option a lot to customers, so I'll drop an example down below!
Here are a few more examples of leather patch hats with a regular border outline with no stitching. Notice the shape, sizes, and different styles of logos that can be done on a leather patch.
