Family reunions can be tricky to plan. Someone’s always complaining about the venue, the food choices, or why Aunt Linda brought her new boyfriend nobody’s met yet. But you know what brings everyone together without drama? Matching shirts that don’t look ridiculous.
Getting family get together t-shirts right isn’t rocket science, but plenty of families mess it up. Too much text crammed on there, colors that clash horribly, or designs so cheesy that teenagers refuse to wear them. Let’s figure out how to create shirts your whole family will actually put on without grumbling.
Start With a Design That Doesn’t Make People Cringe
Biggest mistake? Trying to fit your entire family tree onto a shirt. Names of every single person, dates going back to 1847, inside jokes only three people understand – it’s too much.
Keep it simple. Really simple. A family name with the year works perfectly. Maybe add a location if the reunion’s somewhere special. That’s honestly all you need.
Font choice matters more than people think. Avoid anything too fancy or hard to read. Comic Sans is obviously out – please don’t do that to your family. Clean, bold fonts work best because they’re visible in group photos and don’t look dated three years from now.
Color Choices That Won’t Start Arguments
This is where families get surprisingly heated. Someone hates orange. Another person refuses to wear yellow. Cousin Mike’s colorblind and won’t admit it.
Safest route? Stick with neutral colors most people can tolerate. Navy blue, grey, black, or even a nice forest green. These colors photograph well, hide stains better than white (because someone’s definitely spilling BBQ sauce), and work for different skin tones.
Bright colors can work too if the whole family skews younger or everyone’s generally agreeable. But test the waters first before ordering 50 neon pink shirts.
Some families do different colored shirts for different branches of the family tree. Sounds fun in theory but can get messy fast when people can’t remember which color they’re supposed to wear. Unless your family’s super organized, probably skip this idea.
Sizing Nightmares and How to Avoid Them
Nothing kills the vibe faster than shirts that don’t fit. Too small and people feel uncomfortable all day. Too big and it looks sloppy in photos.
Get sizes from everyone ahead of time. Yeah it’s annoying to track down 30 people’s shirt sizes, but way less annoying than dealing with complaints at the reunion. Send a group text, make a spreadsheet, bribe someone tech-savvy to create a Google form – whatever works.
Order a few extras in common sizes too. Someone will forget to respond, or they’ll show up with a surprise plus-one, or they gained weight and are too embarrassed to update their size. Having backup shirts saves the day.
Unisex sizing tends to fit weird on women sometimes. Consider ordering women’s cut shirts separately if budget allows. The fit looks better and people appreciate the option.
Graphics, Logos, and Getting Creative
Simple graphics beat complex ones almost every time. A mountain silhouette if you’re meeting at a cabin. Beach waves for a coastal reunion. A tree for symbolism – you get the idea.
Avoid clip art though. It screams “we didn’t try very hard.” Even basic custom graphics look more polished than generic images everyone’s seen a million times.
Some families create actual logos for their surname. Bit extra maybe, but if someone in the family has design skills, why not? Could become a cool tradition to update the logo design each year while keeping the core concept.
Photos on shirts rarely work well unless it’s a really clean, high-quality image. That grainy photo from 1992? Probably gonna look worse printed on fabric. Better to reference the photo in the design rather than actually printing it.
Accessories Beyond Just Shirts
Shirts are the main event, but sometimes mixing in other stuff makes it more interesting. Custom hats with my logo have become popular for outdoor reunions – sun protection plus matching gear. Way more practical than forcing everyone to wear long sleeves in July heat.
Bandanas work great for families with dogs who come to reunions. Yes, matching pet accessories are a thing now. Your call on whether that’s adorable or excessive.
Tote bags printed with the family name give everyone something useful to carry their stuff. Plus they’re cheaper than shirts if budget’s tight, so you can give them to extended family who couldn’t make it this year.
Printing Quality Matters More Than You’d Think
Cheapest printing option usually means the design cracks and fades after three washes. What’s the point of reunion shirts if they’re unwearable by next year’s reunion?
Look for reviews on printing companies. Ask other families who’ve done this before. Check if they use quality inks that actually last. Slightly higher upfront cost beats having to reorder because everything fell apart.
Screen printing works great for larger orders and gives vibrant colors. Heat transfer or direct-to-garment printing suits smaller batches or designs with lots of colors. Don’t pretend to know the technical differences – just ask the printing company what they recommend for your specific design and quantity.
Timeline and Ordering Logistics
Don’t wait until two weeks before the reunion to start this. Printing takes time, shipping takes time, and something always goes wrong with the first proof you see.
Start at least six weeks out. Eight weeks if you’re picky or have a complicated design. Gives you breathing room to fix mistakes or reorder if needed.
Get samples first if possible. Seeing the actual shirt in person versus a digital mockup can reveal issues with color matching or print quality. Worth the extra step to avoid disappointment.
Making It Actually Happen
Someone’s gotta take charge here. Waiting for group consensus on every tiny decision means those shirts never get ordered.
Designate one person to make the calls, collect money, coordinate sizes, and place the order. Everyone else can vote on the design concept, but final decisions need one point person or this project dies in endless group chat debates.
Set a deadline for responses and stick to it. “Need your shirt size by March 15th” means March 15th, not March 30th when someone finally checks their messages.
Family reunions already involve enough moving parts. The shirts shouldn’t add stress – they should be the easy, fun part that makes everyone feel connected. Keep the design clean, the process organized, and the expectations realistic. Your family will thank you when those reunion photos turn out awesome.
