Choose a Type of Patch Based Upon Your Design

At American Patch, many of our customers aren’t sure which type of patch they should use for their artwork which is why we’ve put together this helpful guide. It is meant to help navigate you through the different types of custom made patches that are available. They include embroidered patches, woven patches, dye sublimation patches (photo or print) and more! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to us today.

Quick Comparison of Custom Made Patches

Embroidered Patches vs. Woven Patches

Embroidered Patches vs. Dye Sublimation Patches

Embroidered Patches vs. Felt Patches

Learn More About Our Custom Made Patches to Decide Which is Best for You

Embroidered Patches

Embroidered patches are best for clean-lined artwork with lettering at least ¼” tall or more. We would not recommend including gradients, small fine lines, or intricate detail.  Embroidered patches give a raised traditional look to your patch. At American Patch we offer three types of borders for our embroidered patches, a traditional merrowed edge which is 1/8” thick. A laser-cut edge is best for intricate shapes, and the stitched edge which is also ideal for images cut to shape.

People often ask, how small can I make an embroidered patch? The answer is it depends on the amount of detail on the patch. The smaller you want to go, the less detail, wording, and color we recommend.  We offer 8 thread colors in our base pricing but can include up to 12 thread colors. Backings offered for our embroidered patches include unbacked, heat seal, hook and loop, plastic, and pin.

Woven Patches

Woven patches are best for designs with fine lines, small lettering, and detail in a small area. We do not recommend gradients on these designs either.  Woven patches provide a clean flat image and look.  They’re known for much more modern look than more traditional custom made patches (such as embroidered.)

At American Patch, we offer a merrowed edge and a laser-cut edge for our woven patches. There is a limit to 10 colors on this kind of patch. Backings offered include unbacked, heat seal, hook and loop, plastic, and pin.

Dye Sublimation Patches

Dye sublimation patches are perfect for designs that have small detail, gradients, and more than 12 colors in them. They are the best option if you are trying to recreate a design that is photographic in nature. The dye sublimation process is a literal exact replication of the image provided. With that being said, we need a 300 dpi image for the best possible replication of your image on your custom made patches.

Dye sublimation patches are a base twill that the image is sublimated onto. So, again, this provides a clean flat look similar to a woven patch. The borders offered are the same as woven as well, a traditional merrowed edge and a laser cut border. At American Patch, we offer unlimited colors on our dye sublimation patches. You can choose from a variety of backings including unbacked, heat seal, hook and loop, and plastic.

Felt Patches

Felt patches have many of the same qualities of embroidered patches. They’re also ideal for clean lined artwork with lettering that’s at least ¼” tall. We’d recommend avoiding elaborate details, small fine lines, and gradients.  Felt patches offer a classic look for your custom made patches.

We offer three types of borders for our felt patches including stitched or laser cut which is best for images cut in unique shapes and a traditional merrowed edge which is 1/8” thick. We offer eight thread colors in our base pricing for felt patches but can only include up to 12 thread colors. You can choose from unbacked, heat seal, hook and loop, plastic, and pin backings.

Bullion Crest Patches

Bullion crest patches are meant for very simple designs. Because they are handmade they are larger in size. The bullion wire used is hand sewn into felt or backings. Since bullion crest patches are more of a specialty product, traditional borders are not offered.

At American Patch, we would recommend keeping the number of colors at around eight to help ensure clean and crisp looking custom made patches. You can select unbacked, heat seal, pin backed, and magnetic backings.

Combination Patches

Our combination patches are best for designs that only have minimal parts that would not translate well to embroidery. Often, the background would be sublimated with wording or an image embroidered on top of the sublimated image. Combination patches provide a 3D look.

For combination patches, the traditional borders of merrowed, laser-cut, or stitched edge would apply. The amount of colors is unlimited because of the sublimation aspect. The traditional backings would also apply including unbacked, heat seal, hook and loop, and plastic.