Tailormade FAQs

What’s the difference between horizontal and vertical?

Please see the template below and note that with "Vertical" fonts, the characters will need to be smaller in order to fit within the embroidery area. We normally suggest the "Horizontal" orientation if you have a long name or if you would like the name to be on the label end.

Horizontal

Vertical

What are the maximum number of characters I can fit on the belt before the text is too small to read?

There are four main factors that will determine the maximum number of letters that will fit on the belt.

• The Font
• The Orientation
• Whether it’s on the plain or label end
• Any Dan bars

Generally anything under 16 characters including spaces (horizontal) and 10 characters (vertical) will not be a problem.

If we think it might look better using a different orientation etc., we normally contact you with some suggestions.

I asked for my name to be embroidered in Japanese. But why is my name written in katakana instead of kanji?

Katakana is the standard modern phonetic alphabet when spelling words and names in Japanese.

Having your name completed in Kanji is possible; however you will need to send us the translation yourself.

The reason for this is because there are many characters that can be used to write any given name in Japanese. For example, 'Sam' pronounced as 'sa-mu' can be written using the characters from the words 'Skilful' and 'Samurai':

However, it can also be written as:

By using the characters from the words 'Rugged' and 'Dream'.

There are almost 100 different combinations you can use to spell 'Sam'. Because of this we are unable to choose a name for you as it is purely dependant on personal preference.

There are many websites to choose from online where you will be able to look up the various ways to spell your name in kanji. Once you have decided on the characters, all you need to do is send us the characters you have chosen, and we will have a belt made for you.

Can I send my own belt in to have a dan bar added?

Yes, you can! Provided the belt was originally bought from us.

We cannot embroider on other belt makes due to the varying thickness' other brands have which may complicate matters for the embroidery machines. Also, although very rare, the needle on the machines may break or bend causing damage to the belt. If the belt is of another make, we will not be able to replace it.

Can I send in my own translations?

Yes of course! We offer an English to Japanese translation service for names and use the characters as we see fit. But we urge anyone who has already had their names embroidered onto a belt to send us their own translations as some spellings may differ. Much like English, there is more than one way to spell 'Katelyn' I.e. Caitlin, Caitlyn, Kaitlin, Katelynn, Kaitlynn, Katelin, Caitlynn and Katlyn. In fact, there are over 140 ways to spell Kaitlynn.

I’ve just received my belt and the spelling doesn’t match my previous belt. Can I return the belt, or have it re-done?

We urge anyone who has already had their names embroidered onto a belt to send us their own translation as some spellings may differ. Much like English, there is more than one way to spell 'Katelyn' for example. I.e. Caitlin, Caitlyn, Kaitlin, Katelynn, Kaitlynn, Katelin, Caitlynn, Katlyn. In fact, there are over 140 ways to spell Kaitlynn. If you haven't sent us an image of your previous belt or no translation has been sent in, we will not be responsible for any discrepancies linked to spelling according to personal preference.

What source do you use to translate names into Japanese?

With things as important as names we do not like to rely on websites as they are not always guaranteed to be correct. Instead we have a dedicated translator who lives in Japan.

Can I have embroidery going all the way around the belt?

Unfortunately, not. Our brackets that hold the belts in place whilst being embroidered allow us to embroider designs up to 21cm in length on the plain end.

I don’t want the backing on belt. Can it be removed?

All our black embroidered belts come with vinyl backing as standard. Once the backing is added it cannot be removed.