Sublimation prints anything you can draw onto a polyester jersey, edge to edge. That freedom is why a brief helps. Here are ten directions, and the rules that make any of them work.
Ten directions
1. Two colours, one diagonal. A band from shoulder to hip in your second colour. Simple, bold, readable from the boundary. 2. Gradient. One colour fading into another from chest to hem, or from the body into the sleeves. 3. Pinstripes. Thin vertical or diagonal lines on the chest only, with plain sleeves. Smart on a collared jersey. 4. Shoulder yoke. A contrasting panel across the shoulders and upper sleeves. 5. Your city. A skyline, a landmark or a map line in a tone close to the body colour, so it reads as texture. 6. Your crest, big and faint. The crest enlarged across the body at low contrast, with the real crest on the chest. 7. Geometric. Triangles, chevrons or hexagons building from the hem upwards. 8. Heritage. Plain body, a contrasting collar and cuffs, a small crest. Looks good for years. 9. Number-led. A plain body that lets a large number and name do the work. 10. Sponsor-led. If a sponsor pays, design around its colours rather than fighting them.
Rules that keep a design readable
- Number and name first. Keep the area behind them calm: no pattern under the number.
- Two or three colours. More than that turns to noise from a distance.
- Contrast. Dark on light or light on dark for anything that must be read.
- Think in a set. If the company fields several teams, keep the design and change the colour.
- Check in a photograph. Shrink the mockup to thumbnail size. If you can still tell the team, it works.
From idea to mockup
Send a sketch, a reference, or just the colours and crest. A mockup of the set comes back, changes to it are free, and nothing is made until you approve it. Start on custom cricket jerseys or design your jersey online.
