Beyond the Printer: Essential Knowledge for Garment Printing and Custom Merchandise

Mar 18, 2025by Gus Altmann

So, you've got your shiny new DTG or Dye-Sub printer and a computer—you're all set to start printing custom designs, right? Not quite. While having the right equipment is crucial, understanding colour profiles, artwork dimensions, and pixel resolution is just as important to ensure high-quality prints. If you've ever wondered why your Canva design doesn't print the way it looks on your screen, this guide is for you!

Why Won’t My Canva Image Print the Same as I See It on My Laptop?

One of the biggest surprises for beginners is that colours on a screen often don’t match printed output. Your laptop screen uses RGB (Red, Green, Blue) colours that are emitted as light, while printers use CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) inks. When converting from one to the other, colours can shift, and some vibrancy may be lost. Canva defaults to sRGB, which isn’t always optimised for printing.

What’s the Difference Between sRGB, Adobe RGB (1998), and CMYK?

sRGB – A smaller colour space designed for screens, commonly used for web graphics.
Adobe RGB (1998) – A broader colour space used by professionals, covering a wider range of colours than sRGB, making it better for print.
CMYK – The colour space for printers, using ink rather than light. Any artwork intended for printing should ideally be converted to CMYK for a more accurate preview of the final result.

What Happens If I Convert Adobe RGB (1998) to sRGB and Back?

When you save an Adobe RGB (1998) file to sRGB, you are reducing the colour range because sRGB has a smaller gamut. Any colours that fall outside sRGB’s range get clipped or approximated. If you then convert back to Adobe RGB (1998), those lost colours cannot be recovered—the data is permanently lost, and you are left with an sRGB version inside a larger colour space. This is why it’s best to work in Adobe RGB (1998) or CMYK from the start if your goal is high-quality prints.

Gamut? Are You Swearing at Me?

Not at all! Gamut simply refers to the range of colours a device (like a printer or screen) can reproduce. Some bright, neon, or deep colours in RGB mode might not be printable because they fall outside the printer’s CMYK gamut. This means the printer has to approximate those colours, often leading to duller results.

Why Is My Image Pixelated and Blurry When Printed?

Low-resolution images are a common cause of disappointment in garment printing. Digital images are made up of pixels, and if an image is too small (low DPI), it will appear pixelated when enlarged.

For printing, images should be at least 300 DPI (dots per inch) for crisp results.
Web images are often 72 DPI, which looks fine on a screen but will appear blurry in print.
Always check your artwork dimensions in pixels before printing to ensure they match the required size for your garment.

Understanding Artwork Dimensions and DPI for Printing

When preparing artwork for garment printing, it's important to ensure the image dimensions are large enough to maintain quality.

T-Shirt Printing: A standard print size for the front of a t-shirt is around 305mm x 355mm (3600 x 4200 pixels at 300 DPI).
Hoodies: Due to larger print areas, consider at least 355mm x 406mm (4200 x 4800 pixels at 300 DPI).
Small prints (pockets, caps, sleeves): Even smaller prints should maintain 300 DPI and be at least 152mm x 152mm (1800 x 1800 pixels).
Large format printing: If printing oversized designs, ensure the image is scaled correctly. Enlarging low-resolution images leads to blurriness and loss of detail.

Always design at the intended print size with 300 DPI to ensure sharp results. Avoid stretching small images to fit larger prints, as this leads to pixelation.

I’m Using Free AI Art Programs – Why Don’t My Prints Match the Screen Colours?

AI-generated images often look great on your monitor but may not print as expected. Some reasons include:

AI programs might generate images in RGB mode, which must be converted to CMYK for accurate printing.
Colour shifts can occur due to limited ink ranges.
AI-generated images may not have the correct resolution for garment printing, leading to quality loss.

I Don’t Need a Graphic Designer—I Get All My Images for Free on the Internet.

Using images from the internet can lead to several problems:

Copyright Issues – Many images are protected by copyright, and using them without permission can result in legal trouble.
Low Quality – Most images found online are optimised for web use (low DPI), not for print.
Transparency Issues – Many web images have backgrounds that may not print correctly on garments.

If you're serious about quality, investing in professional artwork, hiring a designer, or learning basic graphic design skills can save you a lot of frustration.

Adobe Is Too Expensive and I Don’t Know How to Use It!

Yes, Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator are industry standards, but there are alternatives:

Affinity Designer & Affinity Photo – One-time purchase, powerful features.
GIMP – Free and open-source alternative to Photoshop.
Inkscape – Free vector design tool similar to Illustrator.

Conclusion: Knowledge is Key

Printing isn’t just about having the right hardware—it’s about understanding how digital artwork translates to physical prints. By mastering colour profiles, resolution, and file preparation, you’ll avoid common pitfalls and create vibrant, professional-quality garments.

Ready to level up your garment printing skills? Stay tuned for more expert tips!