Vector graphics for T-Shirt Printing

[Britman]

Hi,
Well it's been a long time since I posted on here.

Anyway on to my problem. I want to get some designs I've done printed, the design are pretty simple block colours and shapes, Xara Xtreme 5 is brilliant for doing these designs. However the T-Shirt printers (spreadshirt) want to files a vectors graphics.
This is what they say on the site

Transforming objects into curves
Transform all design elements and text into curves. This is possible with Corel Draw: highlight the part of the design you want to convert. Click on 'set up' - 'transform into curves'.; You may run into a few problems when converting complex pixel graphics into curves. Try to convert as few individual objects and colours as possible. Note: vector graphics for plot printing can have up to three colours per design.

Check the minimum size of the object
After you've converted to curves, you'll have to check every element of the design to make sure that it has a minimum size of 1.5 mm. One trick for checking this: create a small circle with a diameter of 1.5 mm and lay it over the smallest parts of the design. If the area is smaller than the circle, it's too small for plot printing.

Save image as vector graphic
Unfortunately, you cannot just open a pixel graphic into a vector programme and save it in a vector format (.eps.) This is not enough. You have to manually make sure the pixel graphic has been converted into curves.

Can I just export as an .eps and it'll work, or do I need to convert to editable shapes then export?

This is bit different then my usual web graphics stuff.

Thank you.
Mark.

[gwpriester]

Hi Mark

The images you create in Xara are vectors unless you have shadows or bevel or have used bitmaps or bitmap fills.

I would prepare your graphics excluding the exceptions I noted above.

Convert any text to editable shapes (Arrange > Convert to Editable Shapes).

Then export your file as PDF > High Quality.

This creates a PDF file which the printer should be able to open and which will be a vector file.

The other option is to export as Adobe Illustrator (*.ai or *.eps). You need to append one of these extensions to your file name, for example, myfile.eps or myfile.ai

.ai is intended for editing while .eps is intended to be placed in an output program.

[Britman]

Thanks Gary. seems simple now Will that save any transparency I have set? On some of the designs I want the colour of the T-Shirt to be seen.

[Albacore]

When wxport a transparency it does not matter which export filter that you use unless it is a very simple trans. it will be rendered as a bitmap. If there is any text involved please put the text in the top of the stack in your drawing. Better still is to have the Text in a layer by itself and put this layer on top.