Embroidery on headwear: what works, what doesn't

The short answer

A smooth, mid-weight face is what the needle wants. Headwear with a tight weave and solid colour embroider cleanly; fleece, super-stretch and heavy textures fight the stitch.

What to check before you stitch

• Fabric weight — mid-weight holds a stitch without puckering.
• Colour contrast — the thread has to read against the garment.
• If the headwear is hi-vis, keep embroidery away from the reflective bands.

The headwear we'd start with

• adidas® 6-panel core cap from £15.50
• adidas® Golf performance crested cap from £16.50
• Beechfield 5-panel contrast snapback from £8.50
• Beechfield 5-panel snapback rapper cap from £8.50

The finish

We run embroidery in-house — send the garments, we'll quote the run. A standard chest logo is the sweet spot for cost per unit on bulk.