How long will the print or embroidery last?
Properly cared for, longer than the garment. Decoration fails because of heat — hot washes and tumble drying — and abrasion, not age. Embroidery outlasts the garment under any care. Screen print, DTF and DTG last its life washed cold, inside out and line dried. Sublimation cannot crack, peel or fade faster than the fabric, because the dye is in the fibre rather than on it.
Care by decoration method
| Method | Washing | Drying | Ironing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Embroidery | Cold, inside out, gentle cycle | Line dry or low tumble | Around the stitching, never over it |
| Screen printing | Cold, inside out | Line dry | Inside out, low heat |
| DTF | Cold, inside out, no bleach | Line dry, avoid high heat | Never directly on the print |
| DTG | Cold, inside out | Line dry | Inside out, low heat |
| Sublimation | Normal wash — the dye is in the fibre | Any | Safe; there is no surface layer |
| Vinyl | Cold, inside out | Line dry, no tumble | Never over the vinyl |
The four rules that cover almost everything
Wash cold — thirty degrees or below will not shorten the life of any decoration we produce; heat is what breaks down adhesion and fades dye. Turn it inside out — it stops the printed face abrading against the drum for the whole cycle, and it is the single most effective thing you can do. Skip the tumble dryer, or use the lowest heat. No bleach and no fabric softener — bleach attacks the print, softener leaves a coating that dulls it.
And leave a new decorated garment 24 hours before its first wash. Inks and adhesives continue curing after they leave the press, and a wash inside that window is the most common cause of an early failure.
Uniforms and industrial laundering
Industrial wash cycles at 60–75°C are far harsher than domestic ones. Tell us at quote stage how the garments will be laundered and we specify decoration that survives it — usually embroidery rather than print, on poly-cotton rather than pure cotton. Every care label we sew in carries the instructions for the method on that garment.
Related questions
- Will the colour fade?
- Slowly, as with any garment. Washing cold and drying out of direct sun make the largest difference.
- Can I iron over a print?
- No — on any method except sublimation. Iron the reverse, or press around the design.
- Why did a print crack?
- Almost always hot washing or tumble drying, or a first wash inside 24 hours of printing. Cured correctly and washed cold, it does not.
- Which decoration is most durable?
- Embroidery, then screen print, then DTF. Sublimation is in a category of its own — nothing on the surface to fail.
Where to go next
More questions on decoration
Which decoration method should I use?
It depends on your artwork, your fabric and your quantity. Embroidery for logos and a premium, durable feel on polos, caps and fleece.…
Can you print on dark garments?
Yes. DTF, screen printing, DTG and embroidery all work on dark and black garments. Sublimation is the exception — it only works on…
Can I have embroidery and printing on the same garment?
Yes, and it is common: an embroidered chest logo with a printed back, a puff-print wordmark with a flat embroidered detail, a sublimated…
Ask us the rest
Send the garment, the quantity and any date you are working to. A real price and a mockup come back, usually within a working day.
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