FAQs
These Q&As have been inspired by questions we've had on social media recently.
Q. How good is the print quality and will the colours match the digital design?
A. We believe our finished products have excellent print quality, it is why we're doing what we're doing. Technology has come on so much and with the equipment we've invested in, we're pleased and excited by the results. However, there will always be differences with the colour you seen on a device and what you see on your product. That is because your screen uses RGB (red, green, blue) and our printer will use CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow and black - we also have light cyan and light magenta to improve gradient and picture quality). We aim to reproduce your design as close as possible and our customers have been delighted with the results.
Q. How long do personalised items take to make?
A. This depends on what product you buy and whether we're designing it for you, or you're buying a design from the PODIUM collection.
- PODIUM deigns on fabric products - Our aim is to dispatch your finished product within 10 working days from order
- For any item that we are recreating your digital design, or creating a design from your mood board/drawing, will take longer. We will require your input and approval during the design phase. However, once final approval has been given, the same timescales as above apply. Average time so far has been about a week of design time.
Please remember: we are a small business and so we will always do our best to get orders out as quickly as possible. We also welcome our customers contacting us if orders need to be worked on urgently to meet important dates such as birthdays/anniversaries etc.
Q. Can you do bodysuits? I am not a gymnast but would wear one of these designs out
A. We would love to extend our range to include bodysuits. We just need a few poppers and a bit of time! Seriously though, we are really keen to get bodysuits added, so we will be looking at adjusting our template slightly and testing them in future. Keep your eyes peeled.
Q Are you interested in offering bespoke printing services? I have lots of ideas and would love to work on projects where you print my ideas on fabric and then I will make my own clothing and accessories for events.
A. This sounds really interesting and we'd love to hear from you! So, please reach out using the contact us or emailing becky@soyourown.com and we can get our heads together.
Q. Are your products really machine washable, even after they are printed on?
A. YES 100%. We are not scientists, but dye sublimation is a really cool process. The fabric is heated and the ink turns into a gas and sublimates, or fuses, into the fabric. The dye then essentially becomes embedded in the actual fibres. It's like they open their little fibre hands when hot to welcome in the ink with open arms (that's how we like to think of it!). The end result is that the dye is permanent print. Which means that sublimated designs will last a lifetime without cracking or peeling.
Our performance leotards are recommended to be hand washed, see our caring for your leotards page
Q. Are all of your products handmade?
A. We make all fabric based products at our small studio. We create the design and send that to the printer. Once printed we cut it off the roll and cut the same size fabric ready to press the design onto. Once printed it is back to the cutting table to be cut out perfectly and either clipped together ready for sewing, or cyrstalled ahead of sewing. Everything is currently done within a studio in Somerset, England.
Q. Do you have any items in stock ready to buy?
A. We occasionally make up leotards that we love, just because we love to get creative and to see our ideas come to life too. These leotards often come up for sell. These leotards will feature on Instragram so keep your eyes peeled.