subject: Creating Your Own T-Shirt with a Unique Design [print this page] Creating Your Own T-Shirt with a Unique Design
Have you ever thought that it might be nice to have a t-shirt with a graphic of a ninja pirate riding atop two dolphins as though they were water skis? Maybe not, but chances are that you've wanted a unique t-shirt that you just couldn't find. Fortunately, you don't have to dream about having a unique shirt any longer. Technology today makes it possible to create any type of design your mind can imagine. Of course, you are going to have to have the right tools in order create your own t-shirt.
In addition to an active imagination, it helps to have good design sense. However, it isn't necessary. Since you are going to create your own t-shirt to your specifications, you don't have to follow all of those "good design" rules they teach in art and graphic design school. As long as you have the drive to create a shirt, you will be able to. It might not be quite as you envisioned it, but a little tweaking and patience can go a long way.
Something else that you are going to need is software. Photoshop is probably the simplest to use, but it also happens to be the most expensive. If you can't afford the Adobe software, don't worry. You can try one of the freeware programs such as GIMP. It isn't quite as intuitive as Photoshop is and it doesn't have all of the fancy functions and plug-ins. However, once you acquaint yourself with the tool, you will see how powerful it is.
If you are using any images in the shirt that you didn't create, you need to make sure that you have the rights to use them. Most artwork and photos are copyrighted, and that means you should use royalty free stock photos that you buy, or use photos that you've taken yourself. If you can draw, you can also scan in your artwork and use the tools in the program to clean it up and get it ready to print.
Once you learn your way around the tools and have a design that you like, it's time to find a company that makes and prints the shirts so you can create your own t-shirt.
There are many companies out there, but you need to make sure that you choose one that offers good service, good prices and many options. As soon as you find that company, you can create your own T-shirt and have anything that you want on it, even if it does happen to be a ninja pirate riding atop two dolphins as though they were water skis!
