Guide · Methods
Screen vs embroidery vs promo
Use this before you tap Website on a card. The method should follow the object and the count — not the shop’s homepage slogan.
Start with screen printing when
You need a stack of the same cotton shirt, the art is bold, and you can live with setup time. Each color is usually its own screen. Reprints of the same job get easier; a brand-new six-color mark does not.
Start with embroidery when
The piece is a polo, jacket, or cap with a small mark. Thread reads as more formal and survives years of wash. Tiny type and photo art are the wrong brief. California T’s lists embroidery in its name; the other pack shops are listed as screen printers.
You are in promo when
The item is not apparel — pens, tumblers, totes, lanyards. Some of that can be decorated in Lubbock; much of it ships from a catalog. Ask where the imprint actually happens, and order the slowest piece first.
A one-line chooser
Cotton shirts in dozens: screen. Left-chest on a polo or hat: embroidery. Not a garment: promo. If you need all three, treat them as three timelines that share a logo.