Custom Printed Grosgrain Labels

On Monday I posted Liam's Quilt. In a corner I was able included a label that said "just for liam"-- thanks to Twill Tape Guy. Or maybe he's Grosgrain Ribbon Guy? No, let's just stick with the original.

Last year as I was packing up to cross an ocean and reestablish myself in America, Twill Tape Guy (TTG) sent a few samples for us to see, including this, a swatch of grosgrain ribbon, on which he'd printed "this is something else we can print on. Any ideas how this might be put to use?" In a word, YES! But... I had a whole lot of other stuff to get done first. It went in a box for later.

Now it's finally later. When I finally dug this out of said box I cut it in half and pinned the left half to a garment and washed it with the rest of a load of laundry, half expecting all of the ink to disappear. As you can see, you can barely tell the difference. Very little fading, and no shrinking that I can tell. I got to work on a few designs to send to TTG for more experimentation.

I know that there are lots of types of custom labels. There are woven ones you can order by the hundred, for example. But I have a hard time picturing myself using a hundred of anything before I'm bored to tears. (Granted, I'm not mass-producing anything.) Here's what TTG sent me to try out. I think I counted 17 images in one yard. I gave him my specs as far as how much space I needed between the images for seam allowances.

I used a cardboard scrap to help me press nice creases in the ribbon for cutting.

There are two different ribbon widths, 1 1/4", above, and 3/4", below. With this one I created a square image and asked him to print it in alternating directions so that I could stitch it at either top/bottom or side/side. Or just fold it once and stitch it at the top like a t-shirt tag, inside a seam.

I tried out tags for Liam's projects, for a project for myself, and tags for clothes for my girls, because I'm already having trouble remembering which garment is which size as I'm folding the pile that the dryer spits out. And it helps the girls figure out which side is the back.

I like to stare at the whole pile of 'em, ready to be put to work. And they make me think about what else I'd like to put on a label. Since these are digitally printed, you can print a full-color photograph, your blog header, any sort of clip art... or print a design on the ribbon to match the project. You could lay out your design so that there's a date on the flip side, or a project number, or a phone number, or... you get the idea.

If you'd like to check them out, you'll find the printing options here. In the next few days I'll be able to tell you more about the other ribbon color options that are about to be available, and a little friendly competition you might enjoy. In the meantime, what would you print on 'em? And what would you attach 'em to?