Status of printing shirts and stickers on demand, 2017

August 1, 2017 12:30 PM

I've been thinking about making silly, simple t-shirts and stickers for a while, after seeing the (flooded) marketplaces like Society6 and RedBubble. Is any platform considered better than others, or is it more of a standard practice to upload your artwork to multiple platforms? And are any better suited to (or less critical of) fandoms?

I'm not looking to make any money, rather for an outlet for my silly little design ideas. I'd like a physical copy of the things I design, and maybe someone else would, too, but I don't want to manage inventory and whatnot, so print on demand sounds great.

Also, some of my designs are related to fandoms or quotes I particularly like and would like to stick on something (but aren't available through formal outlets, or I would have already bought them). Are any platforms more supportive (or less likely to take down) of "derivative works"?

posted by filthy light thief to Shopping (3 answers total)

I used printfection until they changed their business model and kicked off "personal stores". But now I use redbubble for my very-niche silly t-shirts and accessories. Very happy with them.
And they haven't kicked me off for my Doctor Who homage.
posted by jozxyqk at 12:48 PM on August 1, 2017

Response by poster: Not to thread-sit, but I'd also like to hear about what folks from the UK, EU and other locations like, as it seems silly to have someone spend a ton of money to ship a sticker or shirt from the US, when a local printer can get the same digital file and print it more locally.
posted by filthy light thief at 2:14 PM on August 1, 2017

I have no idea about Society6 since I've never used it, but Redbubble has region-specific printers:

Our printing partners each manufacture specific products and service particular parts of the world. We ensure your goodies will be printed in the most convenient location for your delivery address, ensuring fast and affordable shipping services!

A word of warning on design: Redbubble stickers are printed on white, so anything white in the design won't show against the background unless you give it a border.

Also, each sticker is automatically cut with a border all the same thickness around it. If your design has specks on the edges or the edges are just plain irregular, you can end up with really wonkily shaped stickers. If that's a concern, you can deliberately add white to your design to get a more regular border. (Alternatively, it's nothing a pair of scissors can't fix, but...)
posted by sailoreagle at 2:49 PM on August 1, 2017 [1 favorite]