Before You Start
Key Designer Concepts
A few things to understand before you start designing that will help everything make sense.
- Decorations may only be applied within the decoration area — shown as a visible box on the product. Anything outside this area will be cropped.
- Decorations are applied in layers, exactly like common graphics programs. Whatever is on top covers what's underneath.
- Effects can be applied to graphic designs and text to change their appearance — for example shadow, glow, and gradients.
Getting Oriented
Designer Screen Layout
The designer interface is made up of several toolbars and panels. Here's an overview of what you'll see when you open it.
Make sure the Product button is selected in the Designer Toolbar.
Click the Change Product button in the Product panel to open the Select Product popup.
Click on a product in the Select Product popup to select it and load it into the designer.
Typography
Adding Text
Add custom text to any product. Text can be styled with fonts, colours, effects, and positioned anywhere within the decoration area.
Click the Add Text button in the Designer Toolbar.
Choose the decoration process for the text in the Select Type of Text popup. Only processes supported by the selected product will appear.
Type your text and click Add Text. The text will appear inside the decoration area with sizing handles, rotate handles, and a delete control.
Text Properties
To adjust text properties, click the View and Organize Layers button in the View Toolbar, then click the text object. The Text Properties panel will appear on the left.
| Control | What it does |
|---|
| Font | Change the font via the Select A Font popup. |
| Font colour | Change the text colour via the colour popup. |
| Bold / Italic | Apply bold or italic styling to the text. |
| Alignment | Left, centre, or right — mainly used for multi-line text. |
| Outline | Apply an outline to the text. Slider controls thickness. Set colour separately. |
| Resize Proportionally | When ticked, text keeps its original proportions when resized. |
| Position controls | Move the text around the decoration area using directional arrows. |
| Size controls | Increase or decrease the text size using up/down arrows. |
| Rotation controls | Rotate the text 5 degrees left or right per click, or specify an exact angle. |
| Horizontal/Vertical centering | Centers the text within the decoration area. |
| Layering controls | Change the layer position relative to other decorations. |
Effects for text — Shadow, Glow, Gradient, and Text Shape warps are available under the Effects tab in the Text Properties panel. Effects are only available for the DTG (direct-to-garment) decoration process.
Your Artwork
Adding Designs
You can add designs using the Add Design button or by dragging and dropping a file directly into the decoration area.
Using the Add Design button
Click Add Design in the Designer Toolbar.
Choose the decoration process in the Select Type of Design popup. Only options supported by the selected product will be enabled.
Browse to your design in the Select a Design popup. You can choose from:
- Upload a new design — click Upload Image to upload from your device
- My Uploads — your previously uploaded designs
- Store Designs — designs exclusive to the Snappy Printz store
- Stock Designs — third-party designs available in DecoNetwork
Your design will appear inside the decoration area with sizing handles, rotate handles, and a delete control.
Supported file types
PNG
Raster — recommended for designs with transparency
JPG/JPEG
Raster — photos and images without transparency
GIF
Raster — limited colour range
TIF
Raster — high quality, larger file size
PDF
Vector — scalable, preferred for logos
SVG
Vector — infinitely scalable
EPS/PS
Vector — professional format
EMB
Embroidery file format
Vector files (PDF, SVG, EPS) have modifiable elements such as text and colours that can be edited directly in the designer. Use vector format for logos whenever possible.
Adding by drag and drop
Drag a design file from your computer directly into the decoration area. The area will highlight when your mouse pointer is within its boundaries.
Release the mouse to drop the design. Select the decoration process from the popup that appears.
Tick the I hereby declare I own the rights to print this image checkbox in the Confirm Copyright Permission popup, then click OK.
Filename length: Uploaded design filenames are limited to 100 characters. Filenames longer than this will be automatically trimmed.
Fine Tuning
Adjusting Design Properties
Once a design is on the product, click the View and Organize Layers button in the View Toolbar, then click the design to open the Image Properties panel.
| Control | What it does |
|---|
| Quality | Shows how clearly the image will print. If it drops below a threshold, you'll be warned that print quality will be compromised. Raster designs only. |
| Colours | Shows the colours used in the design. Click Edit to modify colours (if allowed for that design). |
| Resize Proportionally | Keeps original proportions when resizing. Not available for embroidery, transfer, and rhinestone designs. |
| Ungroup | Ungroups a vector design into its component elements for individual editing. Vector designs only. |
| Position controls | Move the design within the decoration area using directional arrows. |
| Size controls | Increase or decrease the design size. |
| Rotation controls | Rotate 5 degrees per click, or specify an exact angle. |
| Horizontal/Vertical centering | Centers the design within the decoration area. |
| Layering controls | Change the layer position relative to other decorations. |
| Effects | Apply special visual effects to the design (raster designs only). |
| Border | Apply a decorative border to the boundary of the design (raster designs only). |
Organisation
Arranging Layers
Every text and design element sits on its own layer. Use the Layers panel to control the order elements appear and to delete individual elements.
Click the View and Organize Layers button in the View Toolbar. The Layers panel will display all text and design objects in the decoration area.
Use the up and down arrows to move layers to a new position in the list. Click the cross icon to delete a layer.
Re-grouping elements: If you've ungrouped a vector design, you can re-group the elements by holding Ctrl, clicking each layer you want to group, then clicking the Group Selected Items button in the View Toolbar.
Ordering
Sizes & Quantities
Select your sizes and quantities before adding to cart. You can order multiple sizes of the same design in one go.
Click the Product button in the Designer Toolbar to open the Product panel.
Select a size from the Size dropdown and enter the quantity required.
Click Add Another Size to specify quantities for additional sizes. Repeat for each size required.
Viewing your cart and checking out
Click the View your cart and checkout icon in the Extra Options Toolbar. You must have already added products to the cart using the BUY button.
The Your Cart popup shows all items. You can Remove, Duplicate, or Edit products from here. Click Start New Design to add another product.
Click Check Out when ready. You'll be taken to the Shopping Cart page where you can still click Edit beside any item to go back and make changes in the designer.
Come Back Later
Saving & Sharing Your Design
You can save your design to your account to use at a later time, or share it with others via social media or email.
Saving for later
Click the Save your design for later use icon in the Extra Options Toolbar. If you're not logged in, you'll be prompted to log in or register first.
Enter a name for your design and click OK. Your saved designs can be accessed from the Saved Layouts page in the My Account area.
Sharing your design
Click the Email or share your design icon in the Extra Options Toolbar.
Share to Pinterest, Twitter, or Facebook, or send an email with a preview and link to your design. Only the recipient email address and subject line are required for email sharing.
Before You Order
Best-Practice Tips
A few things worth checking before you submit your order to get the best possible result.
- Upload the highest resolution version of your image. The designer scales down automatically but cannot add detail that isn't there.
- Use PNG format with a transparent background for any design that shouldn't have a white box around it.
- Keep an eye on the quality indicator in the Image Properties panel — if it drops too low, reduce the design size or upload a higher resolution file.
- Use vector files (PDF, SVG, EPS) for logos and text-based designs wherever possible — they scale to any size without quality loss.
- Proofread all text carefully before submitting. We print exactly what we receive and cannot make changes once production has started.
- If your design contains very thin lines or small text, consider thickening them slightly — fine details can be lost in printing.
- Save your design before adding to cart so you can easily reorder or make changes in the future.
- Use the Preview Design icon to see a watermark-free mockup of all decorated product views before you buy.
- If you have a deadline, let us know at checkout. We'll do our best to accommodate.
Still have questions? Reach out before you order and we'll help you get it right. It's much easier to fix a file before production than after.
Ready to start designing?
Jump into the designer and bring your idea to life. If you get stuck, we're here to help.
Open the Designer
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