8 Best Creative Software to Design T-Shirts

Currently, the apparel industry is one of the most advanced industries. Currently, artists are also starting to take an interest in the design of apparel, following the demands that exist in the community. The following is a discussion of some software to design t-shirts that are highly recommended for graphic designers.

Design T-Shirts

As previously mentioned, the apparel industry that sells t-shirts is one of the most popular and growing industries in this era. The number of companies that have emerged in this business sector causes very tight competition in making the best t-shirt designs that can be attractive to the public.

The design t-shirt process itself cannot be underestimated. This is the main selling point of the t-shirts that are sold from the apparel brand. Of course, there will be lots of businesses or brands that provide t-shirts with high-quality t-shirts. However, the design of t-shirts is a form of art that cannot be offered by other brands and is exclusive to only one brand.

Therefore, this is what makes the design of t-shirts a very important thing. People will want to buy a t-shirt from an apparel brand if the design is good and also unique so that it cannot be found in other brands. To create a good t-shirt design, graphic designers need not only a unique idea but also software to design t-shirts that can make the design a reality.

How To Design T-shirts in The Most Effective Way

All design processes are certainly not easy, regardless of the basic material. But designing a t-shirt that will be sold to the public certainly requires more attention to things that may escape the attention of many people.

When designing t-shirts, you as a graphic designer not only have to think of an extraordinary design concept, but you also have to be able to implement the design to match the material of the t-shirts you will use. This is something that many designers often forget when designing t-shirts.

The following are some tips that can be done to design t-shirts so that the design process runs more effectively and the t-shirts produced are of high quality:

1. Pay Attention To What The T-shirts Will be Worn For

There are many types of t-shirts. There are t-shirts for group uniforms, there are t-shirts for personal use, and there are t-shirts that are used for commercial sale. 

The various types of t-shirts needed, of course, greatly affect the type of design you have to make as a graphic designer.

These types of t-shirts also serve as your brief and instructions on what type of t-shirt design you should implement. If you design t-shirts that are used for group events as a uniform, then, of course, the resulting design will be more formal and also flexible for all groups.

Meanwhile, if you have to design t-shirts to be sold commercially, then you don't have to adapt the design to your own target market. Design t-shirts must also implement a trendy design style that is in demand by many people.

A good t-shirt design is a design that is not only attractive in the eyes but also in accordance with the purpose and use of the t-shirts. Therefore, before you start the t-shirt design process, know in advance who and what the t-shirts will be used for.

2. Adjust The Design With the Printing Options You Choose

When you print a design that you have made onto a t-shirt, there are lots of options for you to choose from. There are various printing options with different inks and materials, which of course, will produce different results.

There is a printing method that will produce a t-shirt design that is glossy and looks shiny, so it may be suitable for use on t-shirts that have a large design that makes them stand out.

Or there is also a t-shirts printing method that will make the design look like it blends with the fabric, so it's also suitable for use on t-shirts with natural and unobtrusive designs.

If you want to use a certain t-shirt printing method, make sure the design you make is appropriate and compatible with the printing method so that the t-shirts produced are of high quality.

3. Find A Great and High-Quality Printer

T-shirts design printing services will certainly be very influential in the quality of the final design appearance. Printing services will greatly determine the color contrast and also the quality of the printing on t-shirts.

If you choose a printing service that multiplies, later the t-shirt design will match what you have designed. The colors in the design and display details will also match what you expect so that the results can be satisfactory.

In addition, good printing will also produce t-shirt designs that have a smooth texture, so it will not affect the appearance of the t-shirts.

On the other hand, if you choose a bad or low-quality printing service, then the t-shirts will not look what you want. It could be that the color of the t-shirt is faded or not in accordance with the design you have made. Or there is a rough texture in the print that causes the appearance of the t-shirt to be affected.

The Importance of Choosing The Right Software to Design T-Shirts

When you, as a graphic designer, think about a t-shirt design concept, you probably have lots of killer ideas that you think will be interesting and liked by many people. The design of the t-shirts that you create is certainly unique and has been made in such a way to be of high quality and attractive.

But of course, you need a tool to turn the idea into a reality and not just in your head. To channel these t-shirt designs into a reality, you need software to be able to directly design the t-shirts you want to make.

Now there are many platforms and software that you can use to help you design t-shirts in a very easy and effective way. These various software and design platforms certainly have many weaknesses and strengths, each of which makes you have to be smart in choosing software that is suitable for you to help you design t-shirts.

For more details, here are some reasons why you should choose good software to design t-shirts that suits your needs:

1. Different Software Has Different Features

Of course, the features offered by each design software vary depending on the software itself. Although basically most software still offers the main features for a similar design, there are many additional features that you might get if you choose the right software.

These additional features will really help you in completing the design of the t-shirts that you make. Designing t-shirts are a pretty difficult thing to do. You need a lot of special features so that your idea can be realized perfectly.

There is software that offers a full range of features that will be very helpful for graphic designers to design t-shirts. But sometimes software that has too many features may be difficult for some graphic designers who are beginners.

On the other hand, there is also some software to design t-shirts that only have a limited number of features. This may be very painful for you if you want to load more complex t-shirt designs.

Therefore, you must carefully research which design software will suit you. If you choose software with the features you need and is also comfortable for you to use, then it will make it very easy for you to design t-shirts.

2. Budget

Be aware that most good-quality design software is usually quite pricey. Of course, this is in accordance with the quality of the features offered in the software. 

But if you have to use a lot of software at once, of course, it will cost you more money than it should. So the best thing you can do is to look and find out which application or software suits your needs.

The needs of each designer, of course, vary according to the work they do. When designing t-shirts, there may be designers who only need simple software because their art style is simple. Or there are designers who need very complex software to design t-shirts to realize their dream t-shirt designs.

Instead of going back and forth to change software for every need, you should find software that can cover all your t-shirt design needs, so it doesn't cost you more money.

The Best Recommended Software to Design T-Shirts for Graphic Designers

After discussing various important information about t-shirts design, of course, you are already curious about what applications or software are most recommended to help you design t-shirts.

Actually, there are lots of software to design t-shirts available, and graphic designers can use it to help with their work. However, some of the applications that will be mentioned in this list are some applications that are already well known and approved by many graphic designers for the design of t-shirts.

The following are some of the software along with a brief explanation:

1. Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop is one of the most popular software to design t-shirts in the graphic design industry. Not only used to design t-shirts, this application or design software has been used by various graphic designers to design their various needs.

This software is one of the superior products from Adobe, where most of the software from Adobe has been proven by graphic designers. In this Adobe Photoshop software, various interesting and complete features are provided that graphic designers can use to design their dream t-shirts.

By using this design software, graphic designers can freely express and explore various design styles they want because it is assisted by the complete tools provided by Adobe.

However, because of the complete features offered by this software, graphic designers, both beginners, and professionals, may find it a little difficult to use this software for the first time. There are a lot of features that can confuse users if they are not used to them.

The price of this software is also quite pricey when compared to other more affordable software to design t-shirts. However, it is guaranteed that this price is certainly worth the quality of features offered by Adobe Photoshop.

Source: Adobe

2. Adobe Illustrator

The second list is also occupied by other adobe products. This time there is adobe illustrator, a t-shirt design software that might be more suitable for graphic designers who want to use their own illustration as a design for their t-shirts.

Adobe Illustrator itself is software that is specifically for illustrators to create their own illustrations freely. This software can be used to design t-shirts with simple to complex illustration designs.

Just like with adobe photoshop, adobe illustrator may also be a little confusing for users who are beginners. This is because of the many features offered, so that this software is very complex.

Source: Adobe

3. Ink Scape

If earlier we discussed software to design t-shirts which is quite pricey, this time there is InkScape software that can be used for free by designers to create their dream t-shirt designs.

Ink Scape is often associated with Adobe Illustrator because of its similarity in function and arrangement. Similar to adobe illustrator, this software to design t-shirts may also be a little confusing for users.

But don't worry, there has been a special community formed to provide education and assistance to graphic designers who are confused about how to use this Inkscape software.

Source: Inkscape

4. Canva

Canva is software to design t-shirts that is simple and free to use. In software ii, there are already mockups of t-shirts that you can design by adding fonts or other elements.

However, this software has quite limited features and may only be suitable for simple t-shirt designs. Not only to design t-shirts but this software can also be used to design various other products such as mugs, canvas, prints, etc.

Source: Canva

5. GraffixPro Studio

For those of you who are beginners in t-shirt design, you can use this software as your choice. This software to design t-shirts offers a variety of templates with various themes for its users.

In addition, GraffixPro Studio is also very easy to use and not as complex as other software that has been mentioned earlier. This software will be suitable for designing t-shirts with a simple and on-budget appearance.

Even so, this software has a price that is quite pricey when compared to the features they provide. Given that the features they provide are very limited, this price is relatively high. 

However, this software is still recommended for beginners who want to have design software with a simple appearance and also easy to use to make work easier.

Source: GraffixPro Studio

6. Corel Draw

For those of you who have been in the graphic design world for a long time, surely you are already familiar with this one design software, right? Corel Draw software has been used by many graphic designers to create attractive and stunning designs.

Corel Draw is suitable for designing t-shirts because this software provides many complete supporting elements. In Corel Draw, there are various choices of unique fonts as well as cute design elements that can make your t-shirt designs even more interesting.

Unfortunately, this application is usually more devoted to making designs in general and not specifically designed for t-shirts. There are many features that may not be available in Corel Draw, which may hinder your design process.

Source: Corel Draw

7. Rush Order Tees

Rush Order Tees is software that is specifically made to design a t-shirt instantly. In this software, various elements and features related to t-shirts are available. There are mock-ups, font choices, t-shirt color choices, and many others.

In this way, designers can design a t-shirt more easily and quickly. This software also provides a variety of clipart that can be used to make t-shirts look more unique and attractive.

Source: Rush Order Tees

8. GIMP

If you can't afford Adobe Photoshop to design a t-shirt, you can use GIMP as your alternative software. This software is often used as an alternative to Photoshop because of the similarities in its functions and features. In addition, GIMP can be obtained at a much lower price when compared to Adobe Photoshop.

In GIMP, there are many features that can be used to create a t-shirt with a stunning design. Although the price is lower when compared to Adobe Photoshop, the quality can not be underestimated.

GIMP has been used and approved by many graphic designers to help with their design matters. If you are confused about using the features in GIMP, there are many communities and video tutorials on the internet that are ready to help you understand how GIMP works.

Source: Gimp

Conclusion

The design of t-shirts is a very influential thing in attracting customers to buy the t-shirts that are being offered. Software for designing is needed by graphic designers to realize a good and attractive t-shirt design. 

Choose a software design that fits your needs and comfort. The design software that you use can be one of the main factors that will greatly affect the design process that you do.