Custom Christmas shirts are one of the coolest ways to show off your family spirit. Families, businesses, sports teams, and other groups all enjoy making custom t-shirts for their members to wear during the holidays.

But creating a Christmas shirt design is more complicated than you might think. There are many different factors that you have to consider if you want to design a custom t-shirt.

Fortunately, we’re here to teach you everything that you need to know about t-shirt design. Read on for the complete guide to everything that you need to consider when designing custom Christmas shirts.

Consider Who Will Wear Your Tee Shirts

When making a custom tee shirt design, the first thing you should think about is who is going to be wearing your shirts? If you are making custom family Christmas shirts, then your family is your target market.

Think about the kind of designs that your family might like. Would they like a simple design that features the family name? Or would they prefer something a little more complex?

If you’re short on inspiration, ask your family for custom t-shirt design ideas. That way, you’ll be able to get a good sense of what everyone is interested in.

Write down all of your ideas in a single place and go through them. If you’re designing the shirt, you can mix and match ideas that you like to create a final design. You can even come up with a few different options and have your family vote on them.

Keep It Simple

This is the golden rule of custom shirt design. Keep it simple.

Custom designs on t-shirts that are too busy look cluttered and can be hard to read. No one wants to be stared at while strangers are trying to figure out what your shirt says. Plus, shirt designs that are too complicated often have issues during printing.

When designing custom Christmas shirts, think of a single message or image that you want to create. Pare down all of your ideas to their essence and create a design based on that.

Strip out any unnecessary design elements. It can be hard to throw out a complex concept that you love. But at the end of the day, simplifying your ideas will help your shirt come out much better.

You can also try creating a black and white design to add simplicity to a more complex one. Plus, you can always add color in later if you want more pop.

Choosing Colors

Before you get too far into your custom design, make sure you consider the actual color of the t-shirt. Then, think about how many ink colors you want to use in the imprint.

Remember, the more colors you use, the more expensive the shirts will be. Shirt color also tends to have a big impact on the final cost.

Think about using one to three colors of ink in your design. This will help keep it simple and help you save on printing costs.

Colorful designs pop better on white or black t-shirts. Vibrantly colored shirts are better for monochromatic prints.

Think About Graphic Placement

Once you’ve figured out what your design will be, the next step is deciding where on the shirt it will go.

The most common graphic placements on t-shirts include the front center and back center. Sometimes smaller designs will be placed where a pocket would be on the front. Small designs can also be printed on the top back center or on a sleeve.

Consider also if there will be any other designs or logos on the shirt. Make sure that your design complements these additions.

Fabric Matters

There’s nothing worse than getting a shirt that you love, washing it, and then never wearing it again because it shrunk or developed pills. If you want to make a shirt that you and your family enjoy wearing more than once, you need to ensure that it’s printed on quality fabric.

If you’re making custom Christmas shirts, consider going with long-sleeved tees, fleeces, or sweatshirts. These will keep you and your family warm during the cold winter months.

Make sure you’re also printing on good, thick fabric. Fabric that is too thin gets heavy, lays funny, and irritates the skin if it is saturated with too much ink.

Don’t Forget About Copyright Laws

When thinking about custom t-shirt design ideas, don’t forget about copyright laws.

There are many images, characters, and quotes that are protected by copyright. Mickey Mouse is one popular example.

That doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t use copyrighted content on a custom shirt design. But it does mean that you cannot sell those shirts.

For example, if you want to make custom Disney Christmas shirts and give them to your family for free, you are not in violation of any laws. However, selling those shirts gets into sketchy territory and you may get in trouble for it.

The rule of thumb for using copyrighted content is this: if you’re not profiting off of it, you’re in the clear. It’s fine to put your child’s favorite Disney princess on your custom shirt. But it’s not okay to sell those shirts to other parents.

If you’re confused or nervous about violating copyright laws, our amazing team of designers can help. They can assist with perfecting your designs so that you’ll end up with custom t-shirts that you and your family will enjoy for years to come.

Design Your Custom Christmas Shirts Today

Custom Christmas shirts are a fun way to show your holiday spirit. Whether you’re designing shirts for your family, friends, coworkers, or any other group, Awesomized Tees can help you create outstanding designs.

If you’re ready to get started, head over to our user-friendly design studio today. Browse our design ideas, or upload your own. It’s never been easier to design your own custom shirts.