Save money on your embroidery

When you have your company logo (or any other artwork) digitized for embroidery, we can use that one file to produce different looks. The same embroidery file was used to render the above two garments. By changing the thread color and of course by the different fabric colors of the garment, we can achieve different appearances.

We are always here to answer your questions and give you suggestions on your embroidery and garment printing projects.

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Embroidery machines whirring

It's a beautiful crisp autumn day here in Salem, Oregon and the embroidery machines are whirring away.

Here is a beautiful rendition of an elk Jolene did for the McKenzie River Ranger District. Did you know that we use macro photography when we show you these embroidery samples because most of them are so small in real life. You'd have to use a magnifying glass to see them in real life this up close and personal.

Photography this close shows off every eensy-weensy imperfection, which at some level may not be a smart thing to do. But if you don't see other companies show you the zoomed in shots, it might be because they're afraid to show their quality. We aren't afraid because we strive for the best quality.

Embroidery machines humming

Our machines hummed with activity getting these embroidered polo shirts out for the realtors from Windermere Pacific West Properties who are showing people the great new condominiums at 295 Church Street in downtown Salem.

How do we embroider a bag?

Jolene thought you might like to see what embroidering a bag looks like on one of our embroidery machines. In this case the red bag has been loaded on the Tajima machine.

We do various types of duffel bags, tote bags, backpacks, and so on. Often these are requested by companies seeking to outfit their employees with cool embroidered stuff. It's particularly classy for business travel, trade shows, and anywhere else where promoting company image is a high priority.

Of course, we also provide resellers, company stores, and gift stores with these kinds of items. They often make good sellers and are very classy.

Event Shirts from Creativity On

It's been nine months since we acquired our direct-to-garment printer. We initially got it because we liked what we heard about how it differed from screen printing and we wanted to be able to offer our embroidery clients a printing option.

We've discovered this to be a lovely combination. Some clients like having their event shirts both embroidered and printed. It gives them great flexibility in getting exactly the product and the look they want.

In the example above, the client wanted an embroidered logo shirt with the word STAFF printed on the back. You can't tell it from the photo but the printing measures 12 inches wide by five inches tall. The embroidered logo is 3.5 inches wide. (The fabric color looks different here because I took one photo with a flash and the other without a flash, resulting in a darker yellow on the top photo.)

If you're wanting to put together a shirt for an event, give us a call. We can talk to you about different options with embroidery, printing, or both.

Hats, Hats, Hats

Hats have been the order of the last couple of days here at Creativity On. One order featured 96 hats with two-location embroidery, which means 192 runs. That's a lot of stitching!

Yes, we provide puff stitch embroidery

One of the fun things about embroidery is how fun it is to touch. It gives your fingers something to do during boring conversations or meditative moments. Texture also looks great and adds another dimension to clothing.

Puff stitch is a type of embroidery that is even, as the name implies, puffier. It gives a very classy 3-D appearance to the stitching as shown on the cap above. The texture is more defined than other embroidery stitching.

Puff stitch demands more labor and requires professional digitizing. It's not a great candidate for rush jobs. If you're looking for something like this, plan for some lead time.

We are always happy to discuss your ideas or make product suggestions. We've been in the business for over ten years and are happy to pass on information.

Cheers for the Cheerleaders

Embroidery on pockets of things is sometimes quite challenging and takes a lot of savvy, but when Jolene puts her mind to it, she can produce results like this beautiful duffel bag for McNary Cheer.

If you're interested in something like this for your group or business, give Jolene a call and see what magic she can perform for you.

Embroidered hoodies for stylin'

On such a scorching day as it is today it is hard to imagine that not that far away it'll be hoodie weather. You can plan ahead for the chillier weather and be stylin'.

If you don't have one of our printed catalogs and want a quick idea of the different kinds of apparel that we can supply you with, head on over here.

We've got you covered

At Creativity On we've got you covered with both embroidery and garment printing.

As you can see in the photo, using the different media, we can achieve different looks for your group or business. You can take advantage of the durability and beauty of embroidery. Or you can take advantage of the flexibility to cover large fabric areas with direct-to-garment printing, which is also more durable than screen printing.

Let us know what you are looking for and we'll tell you (or show you) what we can do for you. Of course, maybe you don't know what you're looking for yet--just that you want something for your group. We can help guide you with suggestions. There's never any pressure. (We don't do landscaping, but we're very down to earth!)

Embroidered blankets

Blankets make great promotional gifts or products to sell in gift stores when they are embroidered with an attractive logo or graphic. An embroidered blanket is classy and useful.

They are priced right to give as thank-you gifts, such as to clients in real estate, home loans, investments, and so on.

Please give us a call if you are interested in seeing what you might give as a promotional gift in your business or if you would like to discuss wholesale pricing for your retail business.

What's creatin' today at Creativity On!

Another busy day is unfolding at Creativity On in Salem, Oregon! Jolene is in the workshop making embroidered shirts happen for Historic Fish Lake. I got a nice photo of the machine in action.

Joshua is in his office composing a real estate flyer for the new 295 Church Street Condominiums. (Yes, it is true, he is taking a short break from that to post this!)

Teddi is taking a nap. Well, she looks as if she is taking a nap, but I often believe that during their snooze time kitty-cats are controlling world events through telepathy. They just look like they're lazing to fool us.

Humming and whirring

Today the embroidery machines (and Jolene) are humming and whirring with a hat order from the McKenzie River Ranger District.

Josh is doing some final touches on a graphic for a big t-shirt print order. Stay tuned for details.

Teddi is taking another nap.

On Monday's Work Table

Jolene is doing a bunch of embroidered shirts for South Seattle Frito-Lay.

Josh is experimenting with different artistic effects for a new t-shirt for one of our clients.

Teddi is taking a nap.

Embroidering sling totes

Jolene does some amazing things with embroidery. Here is an example of an embroidered sling tote bag that she did for Play for the Cure, a softball fundraiser for the Linda L. Vladyka Breast Wellness Foundation.

Speaking of which, congratulations to Play for the Cure for already signing up a full roster of teams to play in the August 14-16 tournament held at Wallace Marine Park in Salem, Oregon. Way to go!

We'll be showing some other items we are producing for Play for the Cure. They have used both our embroidery and direct to garment printing services.

The Mad Hatter is at it again

Our embroidery machines are humming away today on baseball caps for South Salem Little League.

We're always happy to answer any of your questions about embroidery or garment printng. Check out our website for more information.

Two hats are better than one

Here is another example of how we can achieve different looks from one digitized-for-embroidery file. By changing the thread colors and by changing the surface that a file is embroidered upon, we can get some very different results.

To find out more about what digitizing is and why we need it for embroidery, go here.

If you already have a digitized embroidery file, we can customize it to suit your new needs. We can also add to it, such as putting in more text.

When we have digitized files created for ew clients or new graphics, we like to anticipate how the file might be used in the future. For instance, if you order polo shirts, we think ahead to if you might order hats, which require a special technique over flat surfaces.

For any questions about embroidery, please give Jolene a call at (503) 365-1955.

A New Look at Advisors

Here's a new way to look at advisors. Ad visors. Visors that bear your business name.

At Creativity On we have found that embroidered caps or visors make great promotional giveaways. It's one of the best values in advertising, primarily because these are things people use. They don't toss them into the recycle bin. People like wearing hats and visors, and if your business name is emblazoned on them, each cap is out there promoting your identity.

Pricing on hats and visors depends on many factors such as hat quality, complexity of the graphic, single or multi-location embroidery, and quantity ordered. Our experience is that if you invested $500 in hats, you'd get more bang for your advertising buck than $500 invested in print advertising. And if you wanted to you could sell the hats and in effect end up getting your advertising for free!

Today on the work table at Creativity On!

Yes we do hats! This embroidery is based on the logo chosen by the group raising funds for the Lebanon Skate Park (that would be Lebanon, Oregon.) We also printed a bunch of t-shirts based on a similar graphic.

The skateboarder is taken from a photo a student took. They then made a silhouette of the image in Photoshop. Text was added. One version of the graphic was used to print shirts while this silhouette version was digitized for embroidery. Once the file was readied for embroidery, Jolene can change thread colors and hat colors to come up with different looks and options. For instance, she can morph the yellow into red or silver or gold or whatever thread color the client wants.