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How to Hire a Kornit Operator

7/29/2022

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​The day has finally come, and your all-star Kornit operator walks into your office and gives you his two-week notice. You are speechless as your stomach turns and your forehead sweats; what will you do now? I know this feeling since it has happened to me just in the past and just recently. Here are some suggestions on what to do when your operator quits.

All the Kornit Information is in the Operators Head

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​Kornit printers are glitchy, and trying to write a complete manual on all the little problems would turn into a 500-page novel. There is no way to cover every Kornit operating hiccup. The scary thing is all this knowledge is stuck in the operator's head and not documented anywhere. Once the all-star person leaves, you start over from scratch like a company that has never used a Kornit before. 

Have the printer operator train you
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​The way to make a basic operating manual is to have the operator train you as if you had never used a Kornit before. You start by documenting the machine turn-on process and cleaning the printheads at the start of the day. If you are busy running your business, try to go back and do 30 minutes of daily training. I suggest making simple videos showing the steps and then going back and watching the videos and typing out the steps. 

Create a job description for hiring
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​Here is the job description I use when hiring a Kornit Operator. The one thing I can't stress enough is, "Do not hire a screen printer." They are never computer and tech-savvy. 
​Direct to Garment Operator Job Duties
A local family-owned apparel printing company of 45 years is seeking to hire a direct-to-garment printer operator for this fast-growing industry. Are you computer savvy, have an eye for detail, and are willing to learn new skills and grow with the company?
 
We will teach you to become a printer operator using Kornit, the finest direct-to-garment printer in the world. Direct-to-garment prints full-color designs on t-shirts and sweatshirts using environmentally friendly water-based ink. The printer is the size of a Volkswagen Beetle, and the print heads look like a giant version of your desktop printer.
 
This job is an 8-hour per-day full-time job, and we would train you on-site. You must have computer proficiency, stand on your feet, and work at a steady pace for 8 hours daily. 
 
Understanding the basics of drawing programs like Photoshop or Corel Draw will benefit you tremendously. You should be able to use Windows 10 to drag around files and folders. The printers require maintenance and troubleshooting, so being mechanically inclined is a plus.
 
What we look for in a candidate
  • You have a love for graphics, artwork, and t-shirts.
  • Be a critical thinker and active listener who can learn the printer functions with a positive attitude.
  • Organized, self-motivated, and able to perform duties with minimal supervision.
  • You must be a team player with excellent attendance. 
Requirements
  • Computer skills are essential for running a direct-to-garment printer. You must be proficient at using Windows and comprehend moving files and folders. 
  • You understand basic graphic artwork and are familiar with Adobe Photoshop and different types of graphic files.
  • You are comfortable working in a fast-moving production-type environment. 
  • You can regularly lift and move up to a 40 lb box.
  • You can stand for 8 hours day-to-day while using your hands to load and offload t-shirts from the printer.
  • You should have strong math and counting skills. All orders require counting, folding t-shirts, and filling out paperwork.
  • You can learn how to troubleshoot printer errors and malfunctions and perform daily maintenance.




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Custom Embroidered Trucker Caps

7/28/2022

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​Embroidered trucker caps are the number 1 selling hat in 2022. They are a great marketing and advertising tool to promote your business. Erik Mickelson believes that when it comes to logoed headwear, less is more. Erik says, "keep it simple, stupid" by limiting detail and letters smaller than 1/4" in your embroidery. You can ensure legible embroidery by tracing your logo with a Sharpie felt tip pen. 

​Embroidered Trucker Caps for Your Business

​Custom embroidered trucker caps bring you the best of both worlds. Marketing and human resource departments use custom logoed caps as giveaways and employee morale boosters—construction companies giveaway caps to current and potential customers as a thank you for their business. Construction company owners purchase trucker caps due to the lightweight mesh breathability for their employees during the warm, humid summer days. The trucker cap is essential in states like California, Arizona, and Eastern Washington, where daytime temperatures soar to 100 degrees. 
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​Custom Patches make Trucker caps Unique.

​Embroidered patches have been our specialty since we started with two embroidery machines in 1977. Custom patches are sewn or heat pressed to the front of a trucker cap creating a 3D effect that makes your design quickly read from a distance. The outer border of the patch looks like a thick thread and is called patch merrow. It is sewn on by a specialty sewing machine called a merrow machine that has been used for 100 years. It takes practice to become an expert using the merrow machine. We have skilled staff that knows how to merrow a crisp and tight border to the patch, making it a prestige piece of artwork. 
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​Embroidered Trucker Hats Wholesale

​Trucker caps can be purchased in bulk wholesale, and you will save a considerable amount of money. Trucker caps come in cartons of 144 caps or sleeves with 24 caps. The best savings will be purchasing your caps in cartons since the supplier doesn't have to break out the caps in individual sleeves. The carton contains the same style and color cap; you can't mix or match to receive the savings. The caps will come blank with no logo, and you will need to locate an embroidery shop for your decoration. Northwest Custom Apparel specializes in embroidery decorating trucker caps with four dedicated Tajima cap machines. 
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​The reason trucker caps have mesh.

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​Trucker caps earned their name from the long-haul truck drivers in the mid-1970s. Big rigs rarely had air conditioning, and truckers needed a way to keep their heads cool in the swelting months in Georgia. Wearing a traditional wool baseball cap would be like sticking your head into a sauna. Cledus Snow, a long-haul truck driver from Texarkana, complained about his head sweating while making his beer run from Texas to Georgia. When Cledus returned home, he ripped a screen from his window and sewed it to the back of his baseball cap, creating the first known trucker cap.

Author

​Erik Mickelson (right) is a 2nd generation embroider and grew up in his family's embroidery shop. Erik has 25 years in the industry and is happy to answer any questions regarding custom embroidered trucker caps. You ca reach Erik at Northwest Custom Apparel by telephone at 800-851-3671 or on his personal mobile number at 253-229-9214 (feel free to text)

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Jim Mickelson (left) started Northwest Embroidery in 1977 followed by his son, Erik J. Mickelson, in 1997.
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Intro to my Kornit Blog

7/21/2022

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Kornit Blog Introduction

My name is Erik Mickelson, and I am the Operations Manager with our family-owned embroidery and direct-to-garment company. We are celebrating our 45th year in business, 1977-2022. We have been loyal Kornit owners since September 2011, when we purchased our first Kornit Storm 2 printer. 

As you all know, the Kornit printers have glitches and can be very frustrating. I have searched the internet for blogs or tech tips regarding Kornit's problems and issues and haven't found one that was any good. The best so far is probably the Kornit Facebook group, where you can see posts about printer errors and general Kornit feedback. 

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The Kornit community is a small select group that should work together to better the Kornit ecosystem and the direct-to-garment industry. I will create a blog about our trial and tribulations with our Kornit Storm Hexas to better other Kornit owners worldwide. Today will be my first blog, and I hope you find it informative and helpful on your Kornit journey.


What is a FIFO queue using a bank line as an example

​A queue is a FIFO Data structure (First, in-First out). It is also known as FCFS (First, come-First served). A real-life example of a queue is a line in a bank where the teller serves the first person in line. New people entering the bank will stand at the end of the queue (line). We add new elements at the end of the queue and remove them from the front of the line. 
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FIFO Error
Today we received a FIFO error on both our Kornit Storm Hexas. The error caused the design to print out of registration. This glitch is a FIFO error, which means First In and First Out. The printer isn't receiving all the design data, and possible data corruption. 
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Check data transfer from the server to the printer.
The first thing you need to check is the connection from your server to the Kornit printer. The data from the server to the Kornit can become corrupted on large designs. The way to test this is by copying the design to a USB thumb drive and transferring the design directly to the printer to rule out any ethernet cable connection issues. 

Check the size of the design.
The size of the design file may cause issues. If the design file is big, like a Photoshop file, it will cause a FIFO error. We tried different file types; .png, .tiff, and .jpg and found out the .png worked the best and solved our FIFO issue. ​

Update on the Kornit FIFO Errors as of August 23, 2022

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I may have spoken too soon about the FIFO error fix. Today we are experiencing additional FIFO errors, so I had to create a new case with Kornit Tech Support at $150.00 per hour. Here is our situation and what I have tried before the Kornit techs have a look. 
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  1. I replaced the Kornit controller card on the computer. We had another card that we swamped out
  2. Added four gigs of RAM. The computer has a total of 8 gigs
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Some things recently that happened with the computer.
  1. IDS upgrade in March 2022
  2. We upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10.
Software Issues:
  1. In a few months, we had to reinstall the Kornit program. We booted up one day, and it didn’t recognize our Storm Hexa software. We had to reload the entire program, and I think there are possibly ongoing issues.
  2. When we open the Kornit software for the first time, it shows 5000 prints. We just hit the reset button.
  3. The software doesn’t drop the tray during turn-on. We manually must get underneath and press the tray drop button.
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Kornit owners, please help me with my blog.
The hardest thing about writing a blog is finding interesting and essential content. I need other Kornit owners to help me with topics, interviews, videos, and tech tips to better the Kornit Universe. 
Topics I would like to interview Kornit owners.
  • Tips and Tricks to keep your Kornit running.
  • How to market your Kornit shirts? 
  • How do you price your shirts?
  • Keep your comments POSITIVE. 
  • Anything else you can think of

Please reach out and lets chat ideas
​ Erik Mickelson at [email protected] or call 253-922-5793. ​

Author

Erik Mickelson is a 2nd generation embroider who has been in the industry for 25 years. Feel free to reach out to Erik at [email protected] 

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Price of Embroidered Trucker Caps in Washington State by Zipcode

7/18/2022

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​​I created a zip code search for custom embroidered trucker caps and their average price based on the Washington State zip code, county, and city. The price is for a standard mesh snap-back, high-profile cap with an 8,000 stitch embroidered logo with an order quantity of 24 caps. As of July 2022, these prices should have another 5% increase before year-end due to inflation. 

The trucker cap prices range from $13.50 to $13.85 in some cities due to the higher cost of living, and the median cost is $13.60. A buying tip is if you can order more than 72 caps, you will receive a quantity discount, so always check with your embroidery shop before ordering the minimum-sized order. 
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Choose a reputable embroidery shop
There is over 1,000 embroidery shops in Washington State, but you aren't comparing apples to apples, so do your research before deciding on the shop that will embroider your trucker caps, so you don't end up being disappointed. 
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Tips to selecting an embroidery shop
  • How many years has the embroidery shop been in business?
  • Read their online reviews
  • Checkout their social media: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
  • Turnaround time should average 2-3 weeks
  • Ask for a tour of the shop to view the embroidery machines and cleanliness

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Embroidered Trucker Cap Pricing for Washington Zipcodes

Author

Erik Mickelson is a 2nd Generation embroider and is currently the Operations Manager at his family's embroidery shop Northwest Embroidery

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Everything you need to know about embroidery

7/15/2022

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Embroidery benefits customers and operators

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​The benefits of embroidery are that it gives an elegant finish and screams quality when stitching a company's logo. Embroidery operators find personal satisfaction while stitching a clean, crisp logo and seeing the customer smile. Embroidery operators must possess hand-eye coordination to take a thread and insert it through the embroidery needle. Our operators find stitching healing and allow them to relax and get their minds off of everyday stress. Operators have also mentioned it builds confidence, improves eyesight, and reduces anxiety. 

What can be embroidered?

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​Embroidery is applied with a needle and thread, limiting the design's small detail. Owner Jim Mickelson says, "If you can draw it with a Sharpie felt tip pen, we can embroider it." The left chest logo position is the most popular embroidery location. It is on the left chest because when shaking hands with a customer, they will be able to read your logo. The left chest design is usually 2" tall and 4" wide, making it able to be viewed from 3 to 5 feet away. Embroidery isn't the best option for items you can't frame a circular embroidery hoop. Troublesome embroidery items include backpacks with zippers, polo shirts with a pocket, jackets with seams running down the back, and any lightweight fabric, making securing a stitch impossible. 

How does embroidery pricing work?

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​Embroidery's pricing unit is based on the "stitch count" in a design. Generally, an embroidery machine can stitch 550 stitches per minute. Multi-head embroidery machines can have different heads, from one to 12 sewing heads, making larger embroidery machines more efficient and pricing lower. A typical left chest embroidery logo has 8,000 stitches and 3 thread colors and is the optimal design for an embroidery machine to be productive. Pricing embroidery is based on the number of stitches, machine speed, labor rate, and factory overhead. For example, if you know your factory rate is $100.00 per hour, use an 8-head embroidery machine and can produce 16 logos per hour. The calculation would be $100.00/16 = $6.25 per logo. I also suggest taking the worst-case production rate and dividing it into the factory costs, so you can factor in the operator's bathroom breaks, inefficiencies, and machine problems. To be safe on the above calculation, I would say the hourly rate is 12 units, which would increase the cost to $8.33 per logo

What should I charge for monogramming shirts?
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​Monogramming shirts using embroidery takes a lot of time since you can only do 1 personalized name at a time. I have seen so many shops price personalization too cheaply. You need to think hourly factory rate again at $100.00 per hour. Operators can stitch 6 monograms per hour on average, which is not a very good production rate. Once again, divide your $100.00 shop rate into your units per hour; $100.00/6 units = $16.66. You probably think, "I could never charge that to my customer."  When you have a loyal customer base and provide excellent service and products, the price doesn't even come up in discussion. 

Is embroidery profitable? ​

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​The question, "Is embroidery profitable?" is not a clear-cut answer due to many factors I will explain. Many people get into the embroidery business because they know many people and belong to organizations such as the PTA, churches, kid's baseball league, and civic groups. These organizations are a great starting place to sell your embroidery, but what happens when you are finished selling to them and need customers for the next 8 months? Newbies should create a business plan that consistently brings in monthly orders. I know your eyes are seeing dollar signs, but you need a solid marketing program to keep the embroidery orders rolling to stay profitable. An embroider starting out with a marketing plan, business fortitude, and doing everything correctly could see a $30,000 profit at year's end. 

How to purchase an embroidery machine

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​If I haven't yet scared you away about joining the embroidery industry, please keep reading about how to purchase an embroidery machine. Our factory at Northwest Custom Apparel uses 100% Tajima embroidery machines, and we have been using Tajima embroidery machines since 1977. When purchasing your first embroidery machine, you need to determine how many embroidery heads you need to be profitable. A single-head machine is for the hobbyist that works out of a bedroom and stitches for friends and family. I will focus on the multi-head embroidery machines with 4,6,8 and 12 embroidery heads that will make you profitable. There are several different manufacturers of embroidery machines, and the popular ones in the United States are Tajima and Barudan. I prefer Tajima due to its durability, uptime, and low maintenance costs. Hirsch is the distributor of Tajima in the United States, and I suggest you talk to Kris Janowski, the Vice-President, and remember to tell Kris, "Northwest Embroidery sent me." 

How do I digitize my own embroidery designs?

PictureJim Mickelson, owner Northwest Embroidery, punches a design in 1982 using a digitizing board.
​We started digitizing in 1977 using jacquard punch tapes and a digitizing board where an 8,000 stitch logo could take all day to punch. We have gone through the struggles in the early years of punching embroidery tapes. Technology has evolved, and digitizing is simple with the correct digitizing software. Our preferred digitizing software is Wilcom, which is user-friendly and has enough bells and whistles to keep the professional digitizer happy. Wilcom is worth its price with the increase in productivity and the quality of stitching and is a must-have for a beginner embroider. There are free copies of embroidery software out on the internet by just doing a Google search "Free embroidery software download." Due to the glitches and lack of technical support on the free digitizing software, I do not recommend this digitizing route. Another suggestion is contracting your digitized designs to a professional digitizing company with low cost, quick turnaround, and fantastic quality. You will then ask, "the digitizers are in India, and their quality is horrible," which is the opposite since they digitize 8-10 hours a day, 6 days a week, and are graded by their quality of work. The company we use for our digitizing is www.qdigitizing.com, and the contact is Steve Freeman, who has been a US digitizer for over 30 years. 

How to choose Embroidery Thread

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​Embroidery thread is available from a plethora of manufacturers all over the world. I suggest you pick a thread supplier that is US based and has longevity in the thread industry. Since 1977, Northwest Embroidery has used Robison Anton thread for its vast inventory of thread types and colors. Madeira embroidery thread is our second choice when Robison Anton doesn't offer what a customer is requesting. Once you pick a thread supplier, stick with the supplier and form a long-term business relationship because there will be a day you are in a pinch and need a special favor. 

Conclusion

​As people tell you, the embroidery industry is not always lucrative and easy; however, with a marketing plan, you will be more successful than 80% of the other embroiders. Keep your head up and chest back and always stay positive, and you will one day have a profitable embroidery business. Erik Mickelson is available to answer your questions about starting your new embroidery adventure, and feel free to reach out to me. 
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Operations Manager, Erik Mickelson, shows off his Mr. Rags Hoodie.

Author

Erik Mickelson is a contributing co-author for Northwest Custom Apparel and has over 25 years in the embroidery industry. Questions on how to start an embroidery company, please reach out to Erik at [email protected] 

Northwest Custom Apparel

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History of Carhartt Custom Embroidery

7/13/2022

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Little Known History of Carhartt Jackets

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​While you are on a construction site wearing a Carhartt hoodie or jacket and looking down at the Carhartt logo, you wonder what Carhartt's history was? You may think Carhartt is a brand for 20-30 years of age. Nope, you are almost 100 years off that guess. In 1889 Carhartt was founded by Hamilton Carhartt in Detroit, Michigan. Carhartt's started with two embroidery machines and six employees and was similar to Northwest Custom's beginning, but 100 years earlier. Old man Carhartt had a saying, "Honest value for an honest dollar." that resonated with many laborers in the Detroit area. 

The 1890s were booming for Carhartt, with the Trans Northern Railroad laying track only 2 miles from Carhartt's original manufacturing site. The site was perfect for Carhartt to sell jackets to the railway workers. Plus, being so close to the rail tracks, he could ship his jackets to the West Coast. Carhartt's expansion grew to 8 facilities around the country and continued growing until the Great Depression hit. 

The railroad opens up the West for Carhartt

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Carhartt in the Great Depression

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​The Great Depression did thousands of businesses to close down and send their workers packing. Carhartt wasn't immune to this either; however, they pivoted and refocused on new customers and products. Carhartt closed down its jacket manufacturing facilities and started to make canvas tents from the same fabric as their jackets. The tents were for the workers of Roosevelt's "New Deal" program, the WPA (Works Progress Administration). President Roosevelt executed the WPA in May of 1935 to lift the bludgeoned economy out of the Depression. The Carhartt and the "New Deal" put thousands of workers back into Carhartt's factories, weaving canvas and sewing together tents for the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corp). The CCC would cut trails in the newly formed National Park System. The CCC workers would again wear the Carhartt jacket and camp in the tents manufactured by Carhartt. It was a boom for Carhartt and its employees, who remained employed before leaving to fight in World War 2 in the early 1940s. 

World War II and Carhartt

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The boom of the Great Depression and Roosevelt's New Deal had Carhartt riding on cloud nine financially before World War II started and drafting many male employees. Luckily, Carhartt could retain many female seamstresses and hire additional "Sally the Seamstresses" to work while the men were fighting off Adolph Hitler. World War II was even a better deal for Carhartt than the Great Depression by sewing military uniforms, such as cold weather jackets for European battles in winter. The soldiers liked the Carhartt jacket for its warmth and durability during the battles. One soldier even claimed that the jacket was so durable that a German round bounced off the jacket, saving his life. When World Two was over, Hamilton Carhartt was in his mid-90s and resigned from the day-to-day operations by turning the reigns of Carhartt over to his eldest son, Vinny. 

Carhartt Custom Embroidery

PictureThe completion of the Alaskan Pipeline in 1977
​Custom embroidery on the Carhartt jacket craze started in 1977 when constructing the Trans Atlantic Pipeline in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. Nearly every pipeline worker demanded Carhartt embroidered jackets for employee identification and, more notably, staying warm in the sub-zero temperatures of Alaska. Northwest Custom Apparels founder, Jim Mickelson, started his company also in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. Jim initially worked for the Atlantic Richfield company as a project manager based out of Tacoma and worked two weeks per month in Prudhoe Bay. Jim would sell embroidered trucker caps to coworkers and other oil companies up north. Like Carhartt, the pipeline workers wanted a warm sturdy baseball cap to keep their heads warm in the arctic. 

Carhartt in the 2020s and beyond

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​Carhartt is known for its industrial embroidered work jackets that construction workers find a necessity to wear on the job sites. The popular colors of Carhartt jackets are the muted earth tone brown canvas jacket. The jackets are stiff, durable, and long-lasting but difficult to hoop and embroider. Embroidery companies must use special heavy-duty locking frames that are extremely expensive and only trained operators can use. Northwest Custom Apparel's staff is trained in using the Carhartt embroidery frames and is able to frame the stiffest jacket or bag. 

Author

Erik Mickelson is a 2nd generation embroider and has been in the industry since 1997.  Northwest Custom Apparel is a supplier of Embroidered Carhartt Jackets, t-shirts and caps. 

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Erik Mickelson is a 2nd generation embroider and has been with his family's embroidery shop since 1997. Erik's favorite jacket is an embroidered Carhartt Detroit Jacket.
Carhartt embroidery is a necessity for my HVAC employees during service calls to identify our company and address any safety concerns. 
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Embroidery Adventures: Episode 1

7/13/2022

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Factory Tour, Embroidery, Thread, Caps, and Showroom.

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​In my inaugural episode of "Embroidery Adventures," I haven't laid out a roadmap to how I will create embroidery adventure videos to keep the audience entertained. I started by giving a factory tour of our embroidery and cap departments and ending with an overview of our showroom.  I hope you enjoy the video and I would love to hear more comments about what you would like to see in upcoming "Embroidery Adventures". Stitching is in my blood and I am excited to share my embroidery adventure with you.  You can reach me at [email protected] 

Embroidery Machines

​Our embroidery factory has commercial, industrial machines that can stitch 8 items in synchronization, which allows us to keep the embroidery costs down. You can see why embroidering one thing is costly because you aren't utilizing the other 7 embroidery heads. 

The Japanese company, Tajima, manufactured our embroidery machines, and we have used this brand for nearly 40 years. The embroidery machines hold up to 10 different thread colors, giving you a pleasant color palette to make your design pop. The speed of the embroidery machines, on average, runs at about 550 stitches per minute to ensure quality and productivity. We ran the machines at nearly 900 stitches per minute, and they still produced crisp embroidery. The embroidery machine you see in the video is stitching polo shirts and fleece pullovers that are excellent choices for outfitting your employees.

Cap Embroidery

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​The difference between a baseball cap and garment embroidery is the frame used to mount the cap. The cap frame is circular, sits inside the cap, and then clicks into the embroidery machine. The machines are Tajima and can stitch 8 baseball caps at a time. Caps are a little trickier to get crisp embroidery due to the spherical layout of a cap crown. You are limited to the size of your embroidery logo to 4" wide by 2" tall. Anything more significant, the embroidery needle would strike the cap bill, causing damage to the cap and machine.  

Showroom Tour

​As you can see in the video, we have a fully stocked showroom with sample caps, promo items, workwear, t-shirts, polos, and much more. We specialize in workwear such as safety hoodies, vests, Carhartt jackets, and t-shirts.

Notable Customers

​The video hits a panoramic shot featuring some of our notable customers over our 45-year history. The embroidered logos collages include football teams, fire departments, tribal, plumbing, Starbucks, and city and municipalities. Suppose you are familiar with the Discovery Channel and the show "Deadliest Catch." In that case, you will notice Captain Phil Harris and his son in front of our employee group photo. We stitched Phil's jackets for his boat, the Cornelia Marie. 

Production Crew hits 20,000 caps embroidered.

​On June 5th, 2008, our embroidery production crew hit a production record by stitching 20,000 caps within 7 days. This embroider feat hasn't been broken since then and may stay in the Northwest Custom Apparel record books for many more years. The order was for the release of Microsoft's "Halo" video game that year. Microsoft gave out a Halo cap to the first 20,000 customers who purchased the game. Our production manager at the time, Mongkon Ham, worked the crew for 12 hours per day, 7 days per week, to complete this order on time. 

What's the next "Embroidery Adventure"?

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​In the following embroidery adventure, only time will tell what we will have in store for the audience. We are flying by the seat of our pants when creating these adventures. We would appreciate your comment and give us ideas on what you would like to see for the next adventure. I see embroidery daily and need your comments to keep the videos going. 

Author

Erik Mickelson is a 2nd generation embroider, with over 25 years in the embroidery industry. 

Embroidery is the bond between employees and their boss"
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Pet of the Month Update

7/11/2022

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We are into our 2nd week of taking nominations for Milton's Pet of the Month. So far, we have had over 30 pets submitted and posted on our outdoor electronic readerboard. Owner Jim Mickelson says, "I never thought I would see so many cute pets on our readerboard. It is fun when I am stopped at the light to see the new pets flip through." Operations Manager, Erik Mickelson, envisioned the idea of "Pet of the Month" after seeing all the happy pet owners and pets at Milton's Triangle park earlier in the spring. 
We want to highlight some of the recent nominations that come through for the week of July 4th to 10th, 2022.
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Boo the Horse
Boo is a lot sweet and goofy with a bit of sass. Loves: His girl (my daughter), rolling in the dirt, scratches, treats, jumping. Dislikes: Other horses/ponies, water, fireworks Name Meaning: Boo got his name because his birthday is Halloween. Fun Fact: Boo looks like a different pony from winter to summer. He grows a really thick, furry, dark coat in the winter. After he sheds (a lot!), his coat becomes sleek with reddish tones and adorable dapples in the summer. ​

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Charlotte "The Pirate"
Charlotte is the sweetest 1-eyed pirate dog that enjoys walks around the neighborhood, car rides, frolicking in the yard, and snuggling. She prefers to snuggle with a pillow, with a kid's stuffed animal, under the blankets. She is the very best!

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Momo "The mischievous Kitty."
Momo is a mischievous and playful little guy who's more intelligent than you're an average cat, but only when he wants to be. He knows how to shake for treats and is good at getting his owners out of bed at 3am for an early breakfast. They happily oblige, though, because it's hard to say no to his cute face and mannerisms. 

How to Submit Your pets to Pet of the Month

We want you to submit your pet as pet of the month. We will feature you on our Northwest Custom Apparel Facebook Page and your pet's photo will be on our outside reader board, so all everybody in Milton can see. Fill out this form.
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Friday Factory Fun

7/8/2022

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Factory Friday Fun Video
It's a summer Friday at Northwest Custom Apparel, and we are filled to capacity with t-shirts, caps, and embroidered vests today. I decided to get out my GoPro and make a quick, fun video that flies through the factory, showing what we are doing today. In the first clip, Brian and Joe are printing t-shirts with our Kornit direct-to-garment printer. Brian says, "We are full to capacity, so stop selling orders!" Don't worry; they will be working overtime to put some extra money in their wallets. We really appreciate Brian and Joe for keeping the printers pumping out t-shirts. We do a GoPro fly by the t-shirts and sweatshirts the guys printed today. 
Stitching Caps
Nai in our cap department is stitching some trucker caps with an Alaskan Lodge in a scarlet and snow-white thread. This trucker cap is one of our more popular caps, and Nai loves to embroider them. 

Seattle Children's Hospital Embroidery
Theavy, our embroidery operator showing off an embroidered vest for the Seattle Children's Hospital. This is the same hospital Russell Wilson visited each Monday before being traded to the Denver Broncos. 
I wanted to use my selfie stick to get a birds' eye view of the staff loading a new embroidery design into the computer. Our 8-head Tajima embroidery machine runs the Seattle Children's Hospital job that ordered 100 fleece pullovers and jackets for their nursing staff. My wife is a nurse and loves her pullovers from Cutter and Buck. 

Thank you to our Awesome Staff
Antonio and Alicia are folding and preparing the completed shirts for shipment or customer pickup. Antonio has been a great help since he started last month. The kid's banner at the end of the video is from Little Giggles Daycare in Edgewood. If you remember, in our other Facebook videos of the daycare and the graduation t-shirts. This is the daycare we helped out with. 

It's late Friday afternoon and about an hour before I head home, so I need to cut this blog short and start shutting up shop to enjoy a warm and sunny weekend. 

See you guys next week, Erik

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The Story of Chuck Knox's 200 Seahawk Caps

7/1/2022

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1 hat's off limits to Seahawk fans

By Don Fair 
P-I Reporter (1987)
PictureHead Seahawk Coach, Chuck Knox wears his custom made cap from Northwest Embroidery

Some football fanatics will pay scalpers' prices to watch Sunday's American Conference championship game in the Los Angeles Coliseum, but the cap protecting the scalp of Seattle Coach Chuck Knox is not for
sale.
​​
​Not even for the $100 offered yesterday by one Seahawks caller.

​Knox favors a simple, navy-blue baseball-type model with the words "Seattle Seahawks" printed in white across the front crown.

​And while several different Seahawk hats are on general sale, you need good friends on the team, not money, to wear a cap like the coach's.
​
​The hat was designed by Walt Loeffler, the Seahawks' equipment manager, who has turned down a number of offers to mass market it.

​"I've been fighting it," says Loeffler. "I don't want 6.5,000 fans wearing the same hat worn by Coach Knox. I want it to be something a little special.

200 Special Caps
"I knew Knox liked hats. I didn't like the one our coaches used to wear (blue with a Seahawks logo patched on the front), so I designed this one," Loeffler said.

More than 92,000 tickets were printed for Sunday's game but Walt Loeffler, the Seahawks' equipment manager, ordered only just over 200 of these special Knox caps. Members of the coaching staff wear them.

One fan, an admirer of Knox's headgear, telephoned Seahawks headquarters yesterday and offered to pay $100 for the head coach's hat.

When told it wasn't for sale and that none is available for public purchase, the fan yelled "Go Hawks!" and hung up.

Three Seattle assistant coaches  join Knox in wearing the cap during games. They are assistant head coach Tom Prohaska, offensive coordinator Tom Catlin and backfield coach Chick Harris.

​There are five different styles of Seahawks caps available to the public. The most popular model for sale has a blue brim, a gray crown, and the team logo running along either side of the crown.

3,500 tickets gone

​Meanwhile, only 150 tickets to Sunday's game against the Raiders at home in Los Angeles are still available in the Seattle area. They are at Doug Fox Travel, and they are expected to be gone later today.




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    Erik Mickelson ,the Operations Manager since 1996  is a 2nd generation embroider. Erik started fulltime in his family's company after is graduation from Washington State University in 1996.

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