Sending an embroidery proof: what the mockup should show and how to get a clear yes

An embroidery proof is a picture of the design on the garment. Under the picture you write the exact wording, the thread colors, the design size, and where the design sits. You send it before you stitch. Nothing goes on the machine until the customer answers it with a clear yes in writing.

The picture matters less than people think. A proof is a short list of facts the customer is agreeing to. The picture is there so they actually read the list.

This guide is about the proof itself. For the questions that fill it in, start with what to ask before you stitch. For what happens when a proof was approved and the piece still comes out wrong, read who pays for a remake.

What the proof should show

Five things, every time, written out under the picture:

1. 1The exact wording, letter for letter, with the capitals the way they will stitch. Never "the name you sent." Type the name out.
2. 2The thread colors, by name and by the number on the cone. The number is what you both can check later. It is also what makes a reorder match. Keeping thread color records covers how to save it.
3. 3The design size in inches, width by height.
4. 4The placement, as a spot on the garment and a measurement. "Left chest, center of the design 7.5 inches down from the shoulder point and 4.5 inches over from the placket" is a placement. Those are my numbers for a men's medium polo. "On the front" is not. The placement measurements guide has the standard numbers.
5. 5The garment and its color, including the size if the order has several.

Bigger decoration shops list nearly the same things. Lead Apparel's proof page says its embroidery proofs include a product mockup, a sew-out preview, logo sizing, and thread color names. It tells customers to look closely at small text and fine details before approving.

If the order is for a group, the proof is the list. One picture of the design plus every name and size, in the order you will stitch them, is easier to check than twenty separate pictures. The group orders guide covers how to collect that list in the first place.

Say what the picture is not

A digital mockup is not a photo of the finished piece. Lead Apparel's proof page warns its own customers that because embroidery uses physical thread, the stitched piece may look slightly different from the artwork.

So put one sentence on every proof that says it: "This is a mockup of the design and where it goes. The thread colors will look slightly different in person." Then the approval covers what it should cover: the words, the colors by name, the size, and where it sits. Nobody can later say the blue looked brighter on their phone.

The message that goes with it

Ask one question, and make the answer a yes or a list of changes. This is the message I send:

Here is the proof for your sweatshirt! Please check every letter of the name, the thread colors, and where it sits. If it all looks right, reply "approved" and I'll put it on the schedule. If anything needs to change, tell me exactly what.

That message asks for a specific word. It names the three things people skim past. It tells them what happens after the yes. It also makes "what needs to change" their job to spell out, so you do not get "hmm, can it be bigger?" with no number.

What does not count as approval: a heart on the message, a thumbs-up emoji, "looks cute!", or "sure." Any of those can mean "I saw it." Reply once and ask for the word: "Just to make sure, is that an approved? I stitch exactly what's on the proof." It takes ten seconds. The word "approved" decides who pays if the spelling turns out wrong.

How many changes are free

Include one round of changes in your price, and say the price of each extra round before you send the first proof. Most proofs come back with one change or none. The customers who want five rounds are the ones who need to know about the fee before round two, not after round five.

There is no single industry number for this. Personal Graphics includes revisions until the artwork is approved but bills new artwork design at $65 an hour. SNAG Collective includes digital revisions at no extra cost. Pick a number you can live with, write it down, and use the same one for everyone.

A change round means the customer asked for something different from what they ordered: a new font, a bigger design, a different color. Fixing your own mistake on the proof is never a change round. If the name was spelled the way they typed it and you typed it wrong, the second proof is on you.

When a stitched sample makes sense

A digital proof is enough for most names, monograms, and logos you have stitched before. A stitched sample, often called a sew-out, is worth it for a brand-new logo with small text, a design going on an unusual fabric, or a large order where a mistake would cost you twenty blanks.

Shops handle the cost in different ways. SNAG Collective offers a physical sample on hats for a $29 sample fee plus shipping. Chef's Closet runs a test sew-out after digitizing, will send a picture of it on request, and charges more if more than one production sew-out is needed. A photo of a test stitch on scrap fabric is often all a customer needs to see. It costs you a few minutes and some stabilizer, not a blank.

If you stitch the test anyway to check a new file, take the photo and send it as the proof. The customer sees real thread. You get the approval on the version that matters.

When the customer goes quiet

Send one reminder two days after the proof, and make it easy to answer:

Just checking in on the proof for your sweatshirt! I'll start on it as soon as you reply "approved," or tell me what to change.

Your turnaround starts at the approval, not at the first message. Say so wherever you post your timeline, so a customer who sits on a proof for a week knows the date moved with them. The turnaround guide covers how to word that.

Never stitch a piece on a proof nobody answered, even when the date is close. A late piece can be explained. A wrong piece that nobody approved is a remake you pay for. The refund and cancellation guide explains why the approved proof is the thing that separates the two.

How Broidry handles the proof

In Broidry, you make the mockup in the Mockup Studio and send the customer a link. The page they open shows the picture, the design size, and a version number. It also tells the customer the mockup is computer-generated and is not a photo of the finished piece. It says the finished colors can look slightly different in person. The customer has two buttons: "It looks perfect, approve this mockup," or a box that asks what should change and tells them to be specific about spelling, color, size, or placement. You can also send two versions side by side. The customer approves the one they want.

The approval is saved with the customer's name and the date. Once it is clicked, it is final. You get a notice when they approve and every time they ask for a change. The printed work sheet for the order says when the customer approved it.

If you stitch a test first, upload the photo to the order with "Upload a proof photo." The customer sees it on their order page with the line "Check every letter. This is exactly what gets stitched." They approve it from there.

You set your change policy once in Pricing & settings under Proof changes: how many change rounds are free and what each extra one costs. The customer sees that policy next to a proof photo on their order page. Two days after a proof photo goes out with no answer, the order shows up in your morning brief with a reminder already written. Machine Mode also tells you when a piece is about to be stitched before the customer has approved its proof photo.

The short version

Put five facts on every proof: the exact wording, the thread colors by number, the size in inches, the placement with a measurement, and which garment it goes on. Add one line saying it is a mockup and thread looks slightly different in person. Ask for the word "approved." Treat anything less as not yet. Include one free round of changes and say the price of the next one up front. Remind a quiet customer once after two days. Never stitch on a proof nobody answered.