Custom Apparel Printing in Denver, Colorado
Custom apparel does something no other printed product does: people choose to wear it. A good shirt gets pulled out of the drawer for years and turns your customers and staff into walking advertising. A bad one becomes a rag by month two.
The difference almost always comes down to two things — the blank you print on, and how the print is applied. CO Print Press prints custom apparel for Denver businesses, teams, events, and brands, and we're opinionated about both.
Garments we print on
- Bella + Canvas — soft hand feel, modern fitted cut, and the blank people actually want to wear. This is our go-to for merch, customer giveaways, startups, breweries, and anything customer-facing where the shirt represents your brand.
- Gildan — the reliable classic. Heavier, durable, and budget-friendly. Hard to beat for large runs, staff shirts, crew workwear, and events where you're printing a lot of units.
- Gildan hoodies — warm, well-priced, and dependable for Colorado's temperature swings.
- Hanes hoodies — another solid, comfortable option at a practical price point.
- Port & Company hoodies — a clean mid-range choice that looks better than its cost suggests.
We also offer DTF (direct-to-film) printing on its own if you're supplying your own garments or want transfers to apply yourself.
Bella + Canvas vs. Gildan: which should you pick?
This is the question we get most, so here's the honest answer.
Choose Bella + Canvas when someone is going to choose to wear the shirt. Merch you're selling. Team pride shirts. Customer giveaways. Anything where the shirt represents your brand out in the world. The softer fabric and modern cut make a real, noticeable difference in whether it gets worn or shoved in a drawer — and a shirt nobody wears is money wasted no matter how cheap it was.
Choose Gildan when durability and cost per unit matter most. Uniforms and staff shirts that get washed constantly. Crew shirts for trades and construction. Large-volume events where you're handing out hundreds. Gildan holds up to hard use and stretches your budget further.
Both are quality blanks. It's genuinely about the job, not one being "better."
What is DTF printing?
Direct-to-film printing transfers your design onto the garment using a printed film. It handles full color and fine detail well, works across a range of fabric types, and doesn't require the per-color setup that some traditional methods do.
Practically, that means small runs and multi-color designs are much more affordable than they'd be with methods that charge setup per color. If you've got a detailed logo or a full-color design and you only need a couple dozen shirts, DTF is usually the right call.
What Denver customers order
Staff uniforms for restaurants, retail shops, salons, and trades. Team and league jerseys for adult and youth sports. Company merch and swag for conferences and events. Nonprofit fundraisers and awareness campaigns. Family reunions, bachelor and bachelorette weekends, birthdays, and group trips. Bands, breweries, coffee shops, and small brands selling merch to customers. Construction and service crews who need branded, visible workwear.
How ordering works
- Pick your garment. Tell us the use and the vibe — soft and fitted, classic and durable, hooded, budget-focused — and we'll point you to the right blank. Include your size breakdown.
- Handle the artwork. Design in our online tool, upload your own file, or hire our designer. Apparel art has its own considerations — print dimensions, placement, how colors sit on the garment color — and we'll guide you through them.
- Approve your digital proof. You confirm the design, size, and placement before anything is produced.
- Free Denver pickup or local delivery when it's ready.
Getting print placement right
Placement changes how a shirt reads more than most people expect. A few practical notes:
- Full front is bold and works for merch and statement designs.
- Left chest is the professional standard for uniforms and staff wear — understated and clean.
- Full back is ideal for crew shirts and event staff, since it's readable from a distance.
- Sleeve prints work well as a secondary mark alongside a chest logo.
Tell us how the shirt will be used and we'll recommend placement that fits.
Why order apparel locally
Apparel is the product where fit, feel, and color accuracy matter most — and those are exactly what you can't judge from a product photo on a national website. Ordering locally means you can ask which blank actually feels good, get real guidance on sizing spread for a team, and sort out a question with a conversation instead of a return shipment.
It also makes reorders painless. We keep your approved artwork on file, so the next run is quick.
Custom apparel questions
Is there a minimum order?
We're genuinely small-batch friendly. A dozen shirts for a team gets the same attention as a few hundred.
Can you do multiple sizes in one order?
Yes — send your size breakdown and we'll build the order around it. Mixed sizes are completely normal.
Can you match our brand colors?
Send your brand specs or files and we'll work to match them. The digital proof stage is where you confirm before production.
Can I supply my own shirts?
Ask us — we offer DTF print-only options depending on the garment and design.
How long does an apparel order take?
It depends on quantity and garment availability. Give us your deadline up front and we'll tell you honestly whether we can hit it.
What about dark garments?
DTF handles dark fabrics well. Send us your design and garment color and we'll advise on how it'll look.
Can we reorder later?
Yes, and it's easy — your approved artwork stays on file.
Order custom apparel in Denver
Start online and take 15% off your first order with code WELCOME15, or send us a quote request with your garment, quantity, sizes, and design idea. We'll reply the same day with options and honest pricing.
Make something people actually want to wear.