How to Hire Someone for Custom Embroidery in the UK

To hire someone for custom embroidery, decide what you want stitched and on what, gather your artwork, then send a clear request to a few embroidery makers with the placement, size, thread colours, garment sizes, quantity and deadline. Ask each maker for a price, a timescale and a proof before stitching starts. This guide walks you through each step, whether you want one personalised hoodie or a small run of club polos.

Step 1: Work out what you need

Start with three simple questions: what design, on what item, and how many.

• The design: a name, initials, club crest, business logo or simple drawing.
• The item: hoodies, polos, workwear, caps, bags, towels or baby clothes.
• The quantity: a single gift or a set for a team or staff.

If you want badges to sew or iron onto jackets and kit, embroidered patches may suit you better than stitching directly onto each garment. Our guide to custom embroidered patches explains the options. For background on how machine embroidery works and what stitches well, read the custom embroidery guide.

Step 2: Decide who supplies the garments

You have two routes:

• You supply the items. Handy for a favourite jacket, a gift you have already bought, or uniforms you already own. Many makers are happy with this.
• The maker sources them. Easier for team or staff clothing, as the maker can order matching garments in the sizes you need and choose fabrics that take embroidery well.

Say which route you prefer in your request so each maker can confirm. If you supply your own, stable, reasonably thick fabrics stitch best, so check with the maker before sending stretchy or very thin items.

Step 3: Get your artwork ready

Before a design can be stitched, the maker converts it into an embroidery file. This is called digitising, and it maps out every stitch, direction and colour change.

Many makers charge a one-off setup or digitising fee for this. As a rough guide, it is often somewhere around £15 to £50 for a simple logo, and more for large or detailed designs. Once the file exists it can usually be reused, so repeat orders of the same design often cost less. Ask whether the fee is charged once or on every order.

To help your design stitch cleanly:

• Send the best file you have, ideally a vector file (such as PDF, SVG or AI) or a large, sharp image.
• Keep colours to a sensible number and shapes bold.
• Make text large enough to read when stitched, as very fine lettering can blur.

The maker will suggest changes if a design needs simplifying. Makers need permission to reproduce someone else's brand, logo or characters, so use your own artwork or ask for an original design.

Step 4: Find embroidery makers

When people search for "embroidery near me", they usually want someone local. Local and postal makers both work well:

• Local makers suit you if you want to drop off garments or collect in person.
• Makers who post UK-wide give you a wider choice, and embroidered items post easily by Royal Mail or courier.

Look at photos of previous work similar to yours. Independent makers often take the one-off and small orders that larger custom embroidery services may not, including logo embroidery for local clubs and businesses. You can browse embroidery makers by craft and location, or visit the custom embroidery page to see what makers offer.

Step 5: Write a clear request

A complete brief gets you accurate quotes first time. Include:

• Artwork: attach your logo, sketch or a photo of the style you like.
• Placement: left chest, centre back, sleeve, cap front, towel corner and so on.
• Size: the rough width of the design in cm, such as about 8 cm wide on the left chest.
• Thread colours: list them, and mention if they need to match your brand colours.
• Garment type and colour: for example, navy hoodies or black polos.
• Sizes and quantities: a simple breakdown, such as 4 x M, 6 x L, 2 x XL.
• Names or text: write out every name exactly as it should appear.
• Deadline: your "needed by" date, and whether it is fixed for an event.
• Budget: an honest range helps makers suggest the best option.

Our guide on how to brief a maker has more tips and an example of a strong request.

Step 6: Ask for a proof or stitch-out photo

Before your full order is stitched, ask the maker for a proof. This is usually a digital mock-up showing the design on the garment at the agreed size and position. For larger orders or tricky designs, many makers can also send a photo of a test stitch-out on spare fabric.

Check spelling, names, colours, size and placement carefully, then approve it in writing. Stitched embroidery is hard to change, so this step protects you both.

Step 7: Compare replies and ask questions

Put replies side by side and check what each one covers:

What to check	Why it matters
Setup or digitising fee	One-off cost that may not apply to reorders
Price per item	Usually falls as quantity rises
Garments included or not	Changes the total a great deal
Proof or stitch-out	Shows you the result before production
Timescale and delivery	Confirms it arrives before your date

Useful questions to ask:

• Can I see examples of similar work?
• Do you keep my design file for future orders?
• What care instructions should I follow for washing?

Makers set their own prices. Cost is mainly driven by stitch count (bigger, denser designs take longer), the number of thread colours, the number of positions on each item, the garment itself and the quantity.

Step 8: Agree price, payment and delivery

Once you choose a maker, confirm the final design, price, quantity, sizes and delivery date in writing, for example in your message thread. Timescales depend on the maker's workload and the order size, and sourcing garments adds time, so give as much notice as you can for events.

Price, payment and delivery are agreed directly between you and the maker. Settle how and when you pay before work starts.

How Hire a Maker helps you find an embroiderer

You can post a request free and sign in with a link sent to your email. Describe your job in your own words, add up to 4 optional photos or sketches, choose embroidery as the craft, and enter your town and postcode (makers only see the town and the first half of your postcode). Say whether you are happy for items to be posted or want local makers only, and add an optional budget and "needed by" date.

Makers who do embroidery and cover your area, or post UK-wide, get an email alert and reply through on-site messages with ideas, prices and timings. Your email address is never shown to other users. Hire a Maker does not take payments, take a commission or take part in the agreement. See how it works for the full picture.

Questions people ask

Can I get just one item embroidered?

Yes. Many independent makers happily take one-off orders, such as a name on a single hoodie or a personalised towel. A setup fee may make a single logo item cost more per piece than a larger order.

How long does custom embroidery take?

It depends on the maker's workload, the design and whether garments need ordering, so ask each maker for a date and allow extra time before events.

Can I reuse my embroidery file with another maker?

Often, yes. Ask the maker whether they can share the stitch file and in which format, as different machines use different file types.

Is embroidery or printing better for my logo?

Embroidery gives a raised, hard-wearing finish suited to workwear and caps, while printing handles photos and fine detail better. Our t-shirt printing methods compared guide covers the options.

Ready to get started? Post a free request with your artwork, garment details and deadline, and let embroidery makers come to you with ideas and prices.