Custom Printed Fabric Start to Finish

Hey there! I recently talked on my Instagram about custom printing fabric and how some people think I should share where I get my fabric. If it's for a specific race, I'm making something exclusively for that purpose. If it's a fabric that isn't specifically for a race but I think it would make a great skirt, I don't mind sharing how I got it made.

I asked for help naming custom skirts in the Bolder Buddies Group and had a few questions about a couple of the fabrics. I messaged a few people and am now trying to make the information easily accessible for everyone. I'm happy to help you get your own custom-printed fabric! This post is from the beginning to when the finished fabric arrives at Bolder Athletic Wear.

The first thing you need to understand is seamless and repeating patterns. Knowing how to resize images in Photoshop or Corel is also important. I usually find most of my files on Etsy and Shutterstock. Today, for example, I used an image from an Etsy shop. These options are cost-effective and the files are already in jpg or png format. You can purchase your files and save them to your computer. Remember to resize your file to 2400 px by 2400 px and save it with a different name. 

Just wanted to add that some fabric designers may have their files smaller that 2400x2400, like Sophie Rae.  You will not be able to resize them up to 2400x2400.  If you do, the DPI decreases and the fabric will lose it's details.  It will be a 6.83 inch repeat and it looks great.  The scale is still fantastic for skirts and other Bolder Athletic Wear items.

When you are ready to print your file, you will go to Raspberry Creek Fabrics website.

Click on the CUSTOM PRINTING tab.   Take some time to view their videos.  It is very helpful.  You will click on the Upload and print your own designs.

Next... it will pop up and you will find the file on your computer.

I am going to look for my Manatee file.  Here you can see my original file and my resized file.  Click on your resized file.

When it uploads, it will look large.  I have my Preview Zoom set at 12 inches.  This will give me the best idea for my size small skirts.  Look at the scale.  It shows up large and the DPI is only 150.  This is way too small to print nicely.

You will have need to change the scale, down to 8 inch by 8 inch.  Then you will see the DPI change to 300.  I change the view to see how it will look.

Looks good to me.  Time to choose the fabric.  It defaults to Cotton Spandex.  You will need to click on the dropdown box.  Scroll down to Synthetic Fabric and choose Swim Knit.

Now...the amazing thing about Raspberry Creek Fabric is that they sell in Half Yard Increments.  Which means if you need one yard, you will have to add TWO to your cart.  If you need two yards for your skirts, then add FOUR.

You can continue to shop and add more files/fabric to your cart.  Since I am done, it is time to check out.

I am having this order sent directly to Bolder, so I put their zip code in for the shipping calculator.

I have my home address saved as my default because sometimes I hit a large sale and need more time to order all my skirts and tops.  I also have Bolder's Address saved in my address book.  The people receiving and opening the mail at Bolder must know whose fabric it is.  

The easiest way for me is in the "First Name" section, put in Individual Custom, and then in the "Last Name" section, I put my name.  This order included personal fabric for Sherry, I put her name in the "First Name" section.  I wanted to make sure that she had a chance to open the package and take out her fabric and put it in her stash/orders.

Complete my order and wait for the shipping notification.  I do track it to see when it was delivered.  After that, it is in safe hands. 

I do not bug them to see if they received it.  Be patient.....You will get an email with your shorts options when your order is ready to process.  The more you message, email, or call them, you are taking the employees away from their jobs.  They are trying as hard as they can to get caught up.  Please be kind, they are working with a tiny staff.

The Manatee fabric arrived safely and Sherry sent a picture so I could use it in this post.  Now to patiently wait for the shorts options and the mesh color for the tank.

Again, if you ever need my help, I am just a message away.

Road trip with a large custom order

What do you do when you place a large Bolder Athletic Wear order and all the fabric won’t fit in one large USPS Flat Rate box?  You could split it up into two boxes or you can take a road trip and still spend less on gas than shipping.  You take a road trip!

Miss V and I headed up to Bolder Athletic Wear on April 9th.  Here is what we ordered and our shorts options.

First was our swings for the Margaritaville Race.  Miss V chose Dark Purple shorts and I picked baby blue.

Second was a FunkiFabric in Zenith.  I had this printed to match the Crowned Athletic Changed Fate Athletic Top.  I am hoping to be able to register for the Princess 10k next year and going to wear Merida.  I chose Golden Shorts.  Since my last order of FunkiFabrics didn’t feel as though it had as much stretch, I chose to go with a medium skirt with small shorts.

Third up is my Alien Fabric from MissMac Fabric (the shop closed suddenly this year)  I chose Moss Green Shorts.

Fourth is also a MissMac Fabric of Goofy.  Goofy is my favorite Disney Character.  I chose Ultra Royal Blue shorts. 

Fifth is a Friendship skirt and Raglan Tank.  I chose Space Blue shorts and white piping.  For the tank, I chose a white mesh body and mix and match the “Fetti” print for the neckline, armholes, and the the shoulders.  This fabric is from Purple Dragon Fabric.

Sixth was tropical flowers and I chose Fuchsia shorts.  The fabric is from Oh So Pretty.

Seventh was the pineapple print and chose Grass Green shorts.  The fabric is from Oh So Pretty.

Eighth was the fabric for Miss V’s WRC Triple Champion shirt.  It was from Kammie Lou Lou.  This was one of those easy choices.  Lime shorts!

Next up was an Orange Bird fabric from Oh So Pretty.  This one was a bit more difficult.  I kept going back and forth between tangerine and sunflower.  I finally decided on Sunflower.

Next up is another Oh So Pretty fabric.  This one is another LP inspired called Castle Mouse.  I chose Tangerine shorts.

I also decided to bring up my Minion Giggle Scrap to have a shirt made.  I chose to have an Anthracite mesh body.

The morning of our trip, I quickly added one more order and that was the Madam Leota fabric from Wonderground. (They don’t sell fabric like they used to, so this has been sitting in a bin for a couple of years)  I chose dark purple shorts and purple mesh for the tank.

While there, I decided to order a White Criss Cross Flutter with Lime piping and shorts to go with the Crowned Athletic Pixie Flyer Athletic Tank.

Yes, this was a very large order.  I had sold the majority of another brand's skorts.  I have also been saving points for a very long time and turned them into two free items.  I am also a Bolder Insider so I receive double points on orders.  They do add up.  

Friendship Style

I have recently discovered the Friendship style skirt, which has become one of my favorite types of skirts. I love the fact that I can create an individual custom with two different fabrics. 

Miss V, and I can customize our skirts to match each other. Sometimes we use the same fabrics on the main part of the skirt, like on our Santa skirts, while other times we mix and match, like on our Nightmare Before Christmas skirts. 

Another option we have is adding coordinating piping. Sometimes we add the same color, while other times we pick different colors for our skirts. 

I am currently in the process of making a purple and white Mickey "Fetti" Friendship skirt. This one is particularly fun to create since purples can be difficult to match. So, I picked Space Blue shorts and white piping. I am also having an individual custom raglan tank made. The body will be white mesh, and I will mix and match the neckline, armholes, and shoulders.

Custom - Raglan Tops

Today, I want to share my experience of ordering custom raglan tops.

I love having the option to choose from different styles, but most of the time, I prefer the tank version. However, for our Santa tops, Miss V decided to try the short sleeve while I chose the ¾ sleeve. One of the options available is the hem length, which you can choose based on your preference. It is measured from the armpit to the hem.

If you take a look at a few of our tops, you'll notice that some were made with two different swim materials for the collar and sleeves. Miss V and I love having mesh for the body of the shirt, and there are multiple colors to choose from.

For the Monsters tank, I requested that Mike & Sully be prominently featured on the front of the sleeves, and I love the way it turned out. The collar is made from a coordinating fabric from my flutter skirt.

Matching our custom skirts with tops is something Miss V and I absolutely love doing, and we have so many options to choose from.