Part of the Process: Road to the Reversible Jersey PART 2
In our last ‘Part of the Process’ post, we told you about stage 1 in our quest to create the best single layer reversible custom jersey. Our reversible tanks helped us nail some logistical issues we had to work through to move on to the next step of the process.
You might have seen our teaser of our locally-made fully sublimated single layer reversible jersey through Twitter, or you may have been lucky enough to have seen our new sample at CUC earlier this month. Well, we’re happy to announce it’s finally happening.
The best surprise of #cuc2018? A sneak peek at our fully sublimated single layer REVERSIBLE FlexLight jersey! RT if you want to hear more... #onlythebest pic.twitter.com/rFWwpsISz0
— VC Ultimate (@vcultimate) August 15, 2018
What used to be a farfetched idea has finally become a reality and we are excited to share it with you. After nailing the art requirements of a reversible jersey over the past year and creating the reversible tanks, we were ready to tackle a short sleeve reversible jersey.
Why was creating a single layer reversible jersey so important to us? Well, first of all, it’s super cool; we love pushing the envelope and this seemed like a perfect way to do it. Secondly, the benefits of two jerseys in one make it so worth it: a single reversible jersey creates less waste and thus is more environmentally sound* and the reversible jersey enables teams to save money—especially youth teams who LOVE designing new sublimated jerseys every year.
*Stay tuned for more REALLY exciting news about VC’s famous FlexLight fabric going green for 2019!*
Why has it been such a challenge? Well, for one, we didn't want to compromise the feeling and fit of our shirts by double-layering or going with a heavier material. As some of you might know, all sublimated jerseys start as white material. You've likely seen players flip their dark sublimated jerseys inside out to use as a light, right? Have you looked up close when you do that? You can definitely see part of the design from the dark side bleeding through to the inside. It took us hundreds of tests (and hours!) to figure out the ins-and-outs of designing and printing on both sides of the fabric.
Of course, there are still things we are working on to perfect the single layer reversible short sleeve jersey. The survey we administered at the start of the summer let us know fit and quality are extremely important factors to our customers, so we are aiming to perfect both the fitting and the construction of the jersey. We’re currently playing with two side seams versus one side seam, what type of stitching we should use, and how to get the collar to sit flat.
After nailing the fitting and construction of the jersey, the final steps will be pattern reviews and template creation. We want to simplify the designing process for you, so we are creating art guides to help customers design the best possible jersey on earth (or you can let us design it for you!).
Couple things to know: due to art complexities, and because of our commitment to transition to non-binary sizing, we’re creating this new jersey as a unisex style. We’ll be offering XXS to XXL (customers who are familiar with our tanks will likely want to order the same size in this style).
If you are as excited as us about the reversible jersey and you want to start talking designs, email us at info@vcultimate.com and we'll guide you through the process.
This is the future of ultimate jerseys; get ahead of the curve and be #OnlyTheBest
Related blog post:
PART OF THE PROCESS: ROAD TO THE REVERSIBLE JERSEY