Part 1: Flats (Left Chest)

• What it is: Polo shirts, tote bags, aprons.
• How it sews: Standard Left-to-Right pathing. The fabric is flat, so the machine “reads” it like a book.

Part 2: Hats (The Curve)

• The Challenge: A hat is a curved surface. If you sew from Left-to-Right, the pushing force of the needle will cause the fabric to bunch up at the end, creating a ripple or pucker.
• The Rule: Hats must be digitized to sew Center-Out (from the middle moving outwards).
• Warning: Never use a “Flat” file on a Hat. It will look crooked and puckered.

Part 3: Fleece (The Sponge)

• The Challenge: Fleece (like a North Face jacket) is fluffy. It acts like a sponge. If you sew a normal logo onto it, the stitches sink deep into the fur and disappear.
• The Solution: We need Underlay (grid-like foundation stitches) to mat down the fur before the logo is sewn on top.

Part 4: The “Gatekeeper” Rule

Sales reps often forget to tell you what garment the logo is for.

• The Rule: If a request comes in saying “Digitize this” without a garment specified, STOP and ASK.
• Ask: “Is this for a Cap, Flat, or Fleece?”

Part 5: Video Resource

Watch: Ricoma: How to Digitize Flats vs Caps

(Note: Watch only the first 2 mins then skip ahead to the 5:50 mark. You will not need to learn HOW to digitize artwork. This is just to show you why it is important to request a separate digitized file for flats vs. caps.)