2021 Design Trends: Custom Beanies, Neons + Neutrals, and Edgy Fonts

It's no secret that beanies have been very popular over the past couple of years. Both functional and fashionable, a beanie can keep your head warm, hides undone hair, and adds a casual touch to your outfit all at the same time.

 

With the popularity of streetwear brands and streetwear-inspired designs on the rise, we believe that the beanie "trend" will be here to stay for some time. 

In fact, some trend specialists have even deemed Carhartt beanies as a "millennial wardrobe basic." 

 

According to People Magazine, well known celebrities like Rihanna, Kacey Musgraves and Kourtney Kardashian are fans of the stylish yet practical beanie. 

Custom Beanies

Here at Campus Ink, we noticed this Tridelta beanie project designed by Student Designer, Mia Wallace, that emulated a lot of trends we've seen recently. ⠀

The mix of neutral and neon colors, gothic style font and simple outlined embroidery are very in at the moment. 

We love how the simple design and single thread color made it easy for the design to be recreated on multiple colors of beanie. This allows for more options and creativity without needing to adhere to order minimums for each color of blank beanie. 

In this blog post, we will share what trends we saw in this project, share some different options of apparel items and beanies available for customization and share information on how to get started on an order of your own. 

 

 

Trends:

Neons and Neutrals 

Fashion and design publications have recently shared that a mix of neons and neutrals is an on trend way to easily add a pop of color to your next outfit or project. In fact, popular website Apartment Therapy dubbed the blend of neons and nuetrals as a "bold mix that works".

 

Here are some neon apparel options outside of beanies available for customization. Don't worry, we'll share beanie options further down in this post! The pieces listed below all come in classic colors like black, white and grey in addition to neons - making it possible for your to create your own mix of bright and neutral colors. 

 

Products:

• BELLA + CANVAS - Women’s Flowy Boxy Tee - In colors Athletic Heather/Neon Pink and Neon Yellow
• JERZEES - NuBlend® Crewneck Sweatshirt - In colors Neon Green, Neon Pink, Neon Yellow, Safety Green and Safety Orange
• Next Level - CVC Short Sleeve Crew - In colors Neon Heather Green and Neon Yellow
• Independent Trading Co. - Midweight Hooded Sweatshirt - In colors Safety Orange, Safety Yellow and Neon Pink
• Comfort Colors Garment-Dyed Heavyweight Pocket T-Shirt - In colors Neon Green, Neon Yellow, Neon Pink and Neon Red Orange

 

The BELLA + CANVAS - Women’s Flowy Boxy Tee in Neon Yellow

 

The JERZEES - NuBlend® Crewneck Sweatshirt in Safety Green  

Old English, Edgy Font

Old English fonts are the perfect way to add elements of grunge and edge to your designs. While these gothic style fonts date back to Medieval times, they have been popping up on many modern designs and logos to add a little bit of edginess. 

  

These fonts are seen everywhere from historical manuscripts, to punk band t-shirts and street art. Graphic Designer and Design writer Grace Fussell put it eloquently - "it’s this blend of medieval influence and modern rebellion that makes blackletter and Gothic styles always look moody, cool, and dramatic."

 

Because of their timeless look, these fonts are great for adding edge to apparel designs, and even logos or company signage.  

 

 

Morale Supply Co. T-shirt design for Chicago Cubs "Director of Morale"

Simple Embroidery 

 

Embroidery is a great option to elevate the look of your design to something timeless and a little more premium. However, different than screenprinting, it's best to keep things simple. 

 

In Mia's Tridelta beanie project, she stuck to a hollowed out font, in a one color thread design. This allowed the simple lettering to pop, versus being difficult to read. When it comes to embroidery, always think about making your design as simple as possible, for the best results. 

 

 

Beanies

As promised, here are a few of our favorite beanie options that work great for embroidery. 

• Sportsman - 12" Solid Knit Beanie - these were used for Mia's beanies!
• Carhartt® Watch Cap 2.0 - A stylish, premium option
• Sportsman - Pom-Pom 12" Knit Beanie - The pompom on these adds a fun twist
• Champion - Ribbed Knit Cap - Another premium, on trend option

 

 

The Champion Ribbed Knit Cap in Heather Grey

 

So, how do I create a neon apparel item or custom beanie of my own?

If you're ready to start the design process, click here. Someone from our team will connect with you to discuss what type of piece you are looking for, as well as preferred style and colors. We'll guide you through the whole process, from design conception to your order being delivered in your hands. 

 

Thanks for reading! Leave us a comment below if you have any questions, and be sure to follow us on social! We're on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and Youtube.