Custom Embroidered Patches
Wholesale Custom Embroidered & Woven Patches
A patch is the cheapest way to add a crest to something you already own. It goes onto a cap, a blazer, a marshal vest, a race-day jacket or a team bag without re-cutting the garment, and it can be swapped, re-used or collected. Sinoawards makes embroidered patches, woven patches and printed patches in any outline, with merrowed or laser-cut edges and a choice of sew-on, iron-on, hook-and-loop or peel-and-stick backing.
Most of our patch orders are part of a larger event or team order: a running club that needs crest patches for its kit, a race series that patches its volunteer vests, a school that badges its sports teams. Because the medals, ribbons, lanyards and bags are made in the same house, the patch, the medal and the ribbon are matched to one colour reference and shipped together.
Key Features
- Three constructions — embroidered, woven and printed, chosen from the artwork rather than the other way round
- Any outline — circles, squares, shields, mascots and cut-out silhouettes
- Merrowed or laser-cut edge, matched to the shape
- Four backings — sew-on, iron-on, hook-and-loop, peel-and-stick
- Pantone-matched thread, so the patch matches the ribbon and the medal
- Digital proof of the stitch or weave before the machine runs
- Optional loop panel supplied with hook-and-loop patches
- Packed per patch or bulk for distribution at a venue
Patch Specifications
| Construction | Embroidered (twill base, satin and fill stitches); woven (loom-woven polyester); printed (heat transfer) |
|---|---|
| Standard sizes | 50 x 50, 75 x 75, 90 x 90, 100 x 100 mm; rectangles from 100 x 60 mm; custom outlines |
| Edge | Merrowed overlock, or laser-cut with a heat-sealed edge |
| Backing | Sew-on, iron-on heat seal, hook-and-loop (with optional loop panel), peel-and-stick |
| Thread colours | Matched to Pantone references; colour count quoted per design |
| Base fabric | Polyester twill for embroidery; woven polyester for woven patches |
| Design and logo | Your own design and logo; artwork redraw and digital proof |
| Minimum order | Quoted per design — minimums depend on patch type, stitch count and colour count |
| Packing | Individually poly-bagged, or bulk packed for event distribution |
| Shipping | Worldwide by air express or sea freight; freight quoted with the order |
Embroidered, Woven and Printed Patches
The construction is chosen from the artwork. A crest with six thread colours and no fine lettering is an embroidery job. A badge with small text, thin rules or a photograph becomes a woven or printed patch, because no amount of stitch density will hold lettering that small.
Embroidered
Coloured thread stitched onto a twill base: the design is built from satin columns and fill stitches, so it stands proud of the fabric and catches the light. The traditional look for caps, blazers, sports kit and club crests.
Woven
Fine threads woven on a loom, like the dots of a printed image. The surface stays flat and smooth, so small lettering, thin lines and detailed artwork reproduce far better than in embroidery, usually at a lower cost per patch.
Printed
Heat-transfer printing for photographic or gradient artwork, where neither stitching nor weaving can carry the detail. Best for full-colour designs at small sizes, such as number tabs and event patches.
Which one holds your artwork
Send the design and the team will say which route holds it best: embroidery for bold shapes and few colours, woven for fine detail and small text, printed for photographs and gradients.
Edges and Backings
The edge and the backing decide how the patch behaves once it leaves the factory, so they are worth choosing deliberately rather than by default.
| Merrowed edge | Round, oval, shield and rectangular outlines; a thick wrapped border that resists fraying and looks traditional |
|---|---|
| Laser-cut edge | Complex silhouettes, thin spikes and cut-outs, where a wrapped border would round off the shape |
| Sew-on backing | Garments that will be washed hard: blazers, workwear, team kit that is stitched once and kept |
| Iron-on backing | Fast application at a venue or in a school hall; not for heat-sensitive fabrics or coated outerwear |
| Hook-and-loop backing | Uniforms, tactical vests, caps and bags where the patch is swapped for a different role or event |
| Peel-and-stick | Temporary badges for a single event, a press day or a photo shoot |
Sizes and Shapes
Sizes are quoted from the finished outline including the border, so the proof shows exactly what arrives. The table below pairs each standard size with the use it is normally bought for; the use column is guidance, not a limit.
| 50 x 50 mm (2 x 2 in) | Cap front, sleeve, small club badge |
|---|---|
| 75 x 75 mm (3 x 3 in) | Jacket chest, blazer pocket, workwear |
| 90 x 90 mm (3.5 x 3.5 in) | Team kit, marshal and volunteer uniforms |
| 100 x 100 mm (4 x 4 in) | Back of jacket, bags, display pieces |
| 100 x 60 mm (4 x 2.4 in) | Name and number patches, event tabs |
| Custom outline | Shields, mascots, state shapes, cut-outs |
Custom outlines cost nothing extra in themselves — the embroidery file is built from your vector line either way — but very narrow spikes and deep cut-outs on a merrowed edge will be softened by the border, which is why those shapes are normally laser-cut.
Where Patches Are Used
Running and Sports Clubs
Crest patches for kit, caps and jackets, and hook-and-loop badges for club coaches and officials. Usually ordered with the club's medals and lanyards.
Events and Volunteers
Marshal, crew and volunteer badges for race weekends — swap-in hook-and-loop patches for multi-day events, or iron-on patches applied at registration.
Schools and Universities
House colours, team badges, sports-day patches and achievement tabs for blazers and PE kit.
Corporate and Brand
Uniform badges for staff, event staff patches for brand activations, and branded patches supplied with caps and bags as a merchandise set.
Artwork and Stitch Guidance
Embroidery and weaving are built from shapes, so vector artwork is the fastest route: AI, PDF, EPS, SVG or CDR with fonts converted to outlines. Two pieces of guidance avoid most redraws:
- Lettering: keep text at 5 mm cap height or larger for embroidery, and 3 mm or larger for woven. Below that, letters fill in and close up.
- Detail: avoid thin outlines under 0.5 mm, gradients and drop shadows in an embroidered design; they cannot be stitched. Move them to a woven or printed patch instead.
If all you have is a logo from a website, a photograph of an old crest or a sketch on paper, the design team redraws it as a stitch file and sends a digital proof for approval. Nothing is run on the machine until that proof is signed off.
How to Order Custom Patches
Send the artwork, the finished size and the quantity to sales@sinoawards.com or via WhatsApp, and the team returns a quotation with a digital proof showing the patch type, edge, backing and colours.
- Choose the type, size and backing — tell us what the patch goes on and whether it will be washed, swapped or thrown away after one event.
- Send the artwork — vector files with fonts outlined, or the best image you have if there is no vector.
- Review the digital proof — outline, finished size, stitch or weave interpretation, edge and thread colours.
- Production and QC — digitising, stitching or weaving, edge finishing, backing application, trimming and inspection.
- Packing and shipping — bagged per patch or bulk, shipped alone or with the rest of the event kit.
Packaging and Shipping
Patches ship individually poly-bagged as standard, or bulk-packed in polybags and cartons when they are being handed out at a registration desk. Hook-and-loop patches can be supplied with the matching loop panel cut to size, so the uniform does not have to be sewn twice.
Freight is quoted against the packed weight and the packed volume together with the destination country and the method — air express for an event with a fixed date, sea freight where the date allows. Patches can travel in the same shipment as the event's medals, ribbons, lanyards and bags.
Why Order Patches From Sinoawards
Patches are a textile product and medals are a metal one, so most suppliers do one or the other. Sinoawards runs both: the crest on the blazer, the medal on the ribbon and the bag handed out at registration are produced to one colour reference, packed together and shipped on one invoice. Production is planned around a fixed event date, and the artwork team handles the redraw, colour separation and proof.
OEM and ODM work is available for distributors, event agencies and brands that resell the finished kit under their own label. Patches also pair naturally with our metal badges and emblems when a uniform needs both a textile crest and a metal pin.
Related Products
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between an embroidered patch and a woven patch?
An embroidered patch is built from satin and fill stitches on a twill base, so the design sits proud of the surface and has a visible, tactile stitch texture. A woven patch is produced on a loom: fine threads are woven together like the dots of a printed image, so the surface stays flat and smooth. Woven holds small lettering and very detailed artwork far better, while embroidery gives the traditional raised look buyers expect on caps, jackets and sports kit.
Which edge should I choose, merrowed or laser-cut?
Merrowed is the classic thick overlock border that wraps the whole outline; it suits round, oval, shield and rectangular shapes and gives a durable, traditional finish. Laser-cut follows any contour exactly, so it is the choice for complex silhouettes, thin spikes and cut-out shapes where a wrapped border would distort the outline. On shapes with fine detail we usually recommend laser-cut with a heat-sealed edge.
What backing options are available?
Four: sew-on (plain fabric back, stitched to the garment), iron-on (heat-seal adhesive film, applied with a household iron or a heat press), hook-and-loop (a Velcro-style hook backing so the patch can be swapped between uniforms, bags and hats), and peel-and-stick (a temporary adhesive for events and giveaways). The backing is chosen with the garment in mind — iron-on is not suitable for fabrics that cannot take heat.
What sizes and shapes can you make?
Squares and circles from about 50 x 50 mm up to 100 x 100 mm, rectangles from 100 x 60 mm, plus any custom outline you can draw: shields, badges, mascots, state and club shapes. The size is quoted from the artwork outline plus the border, so send the design and the intended finished size and the proof shows both.
How many thread colours can a patch use?
There is no hard rule: each colour is a separate thread and a separate set-up in the embroidery file, so simple designs with three to six colours are the most economical. Colours are matched to Pantone references, and where a design needs more colours than embroidery can carry economically we will suggest a woven patch or a printed patch instead.
Can patches be ordered with medals, ribbons and bags in one shipment?
Yes. Patches are usually bought as part of an event or team kit, so they are produced, packed and shipped with the medals, ribbons, lanyards and drawstring bags in the same order, using one colour reference across the whole set.
What artwork do you need?
Vector artwork is best — AI, PDF, EPS, SVG or CDR with fonts converted to outlines — because embroidery and weaving are built from shapes, not pixels. If all you have is a logo on a website or a photo of a crest, the design team redraws it and sends a digital proof showing the stitch or weave interpretation before production.
How are patches packed and shipped?
Individually poly-bagged, or bulk-packed for distribution at an event; hook-and-loop patches are usually supplied with the matching loop panel. Patches are light but bulky, so freight is quoted on the packed weight and volume together with the destination, and they can travel in the same carton as the rest of the event kit.
Get Patches for Your Club, Team or Event
Send the artwork, finished size and quantity for a quote and digital proof. Tell us what the patch goes on so the edge and backing can be matched to it.
Request a Quote See Metal Badges