How to · 3 min read · updated

How to make a custom text t-shirt that looks designed

Most homemade text shirts look homemade for the same three reasons: too many words, one font at one size, and ink that disappears on the shirt.

The short answer

Keep it to one idea in two to four short lines, let a layout set the type (big words big, small words small), pick an ink with real contrast against the shirt colour, and choose the blank before you fall in love with a colour that isn't stocked in your size.

Write less than you think

Two or three short lines; put the punchline last. On Shirt Says each line takes up to 60 characters, and short lines print bigger.

Put the joke where the eye lands last. "Fully booked / emotionally / until spring" works because the last line turns it.

Pick a look, not a font

The difference between a designed shirt and a typed one is hierarchy: one line big, the rest small, everything lined up. Shirt Says has eight looks that do that for you, each with three fonts to swap between:

  • Big Block: heavy capitals stretched to the full chest width, every other line in an optional second ink.
  • Echo: your top line five times, alternating solid and outline.
  • Retro: an arched top line over one big script word, with stars.
  • Typewriter: small lowercase, centred, quiet.
  • Varsity: an arched line over a big collegiate word.
  • Pocket: a few small words on the left chest.
  • Blackletter and Label Maker (each line on its own strip of label tape).

Check the ink against the shirt

Navy on black and yellow on white are the classic mistakes. The ink picker greys out any colour that won't show on the shirt you picked and flags the ones that will only read quietly (tone on tone is a look, but it should be a choice).

Light shirts take dark ink and dark shirts take light ink. Heathers and mid-tones are where the picker earns its keep: on Athletic Heather or Heather Dust, white and pale inks won't show.

Choose the blank, then the size

Every text shirt on Made Up Merch comes on the same six blanks: a classic tee (Bella+Canvas 3001), a heavyweight garment-dyed tee (Comfort Colors 1717), a ringer tee, a long sleeve, a crewneck sweatshirt and a hoodie. The print goes on the front, up to about 11 inches wide, kept shorter on the hoodie so it sits above the pouch.

Sizes that are out of stock in a colour are crossed out, and each blank has its size guide (measured flat, in inches) right under the size buttons.

Or start from a format

If a blank page is the problem, start from a format people already recognise and change the words: a nutrition label for a person, a dictionary entry for a word, a safety sign for a habit, a quote with the receipt, merch from a local business that doesn't exist, or a college sweatshirt from a school that doesn't exist.

Questions people ask

Can I swear on a custom text shirt?

Yes. Mild swearing prints. Slurs, sexual terms and hate references don't, and neither do big brand names or famous people's names. The page flags it as you type, before checkout.

Can I put a brand, a team or a famous quote on it?

Please don't. Big brands, leagues, famous people's names and the best-known slogans and catchphrases are refused. The lists don't catch everything, but anything that belongs to someone else isn't yours to print. Write your own line; it's funnier when it's about someone you know.

What does the print look like up close?

It's printed directly into the fabric (DTG) from a 300 DPI file, so text stays sharp. The preview on the page is drawn by the same code that makes the print file, with the same fonts.

Can it go on the back too?

Not yet. Every text shirt here is a front print.