Week 11: Jersey Design Contest
As the IceHL's 13 Weeks of R&R begins to wind down, it's time to move on to the final phase of the project. From now until Sat., July 6, jersey design submissions will be accepted for the 11 teams that have been rebranded this summer.
There are 3 rules to the contest:
- Design 2 jerseys (light and dark) using team colors and logos only. You may not alter or add to the official colors or logos for each team.
- Assemble your final design on the PNG template provided and submit it to icethetics@gmail.com. Please keep the image transparency intact.
- Include your first and last name and email address in the graphic where designated as well as in your submission email. (Unlike in past competitions, your name WILL be displayed during voting. However, your email address will remain private.)
IceHL Jersey Design Kit – 13 Weeks of R&R (.zip/622 KB - updated 6/26)
Download the jersey kit and keep in mind that eligible submissions must use the official jersey template provided. It was created to be compatible with almost any graphics software out there from Microsoft Paint to Adobe Photoshop. I also recommend GIMP and Pixelmator for Mac as other software options. (To be included in the voting, your design must be submitted in PNG format.)
Recommended link: Paint Users Paradise at SportsLogos.net
To assist you in your designs, feel free to implement or mix-and-match aspects of existing hockey uniform templates. There are many available at at the link above. The copy and paste functions are your friends in this case and make designing a great jersey so much easier. But feel free to experiment on your own too.
The template includes the front and back of a jersey as well as gear like socks and pants. All you have to do is design the jerseys. Designing the gear is up to you. I'd also request that you include a full alphabet and number set as seen in the Design Kit sample. You may choose to leave out any of the elements, but keep in mind that if you do, I reserve the right to design those elements myself or disqualify your entry.
Last thing. Simply submitting your jersey design doesn't guarantee it will be included in the voting process. If it doesn't meet a certain level of quality, I'll give you the opportunity to try again as long as you meet the deadline. But I always accept far more than I reject.
For customization purposes, you may use any name and number you choose to customize your jerseys.
Remember to stick to the official team colors and logos. You may sample the colors in the logo graphics using an eyedropper or similar tool in your chosen graphics software. If you need assistance with RGB codes, feel free to ask via email.
One last note about your jersey designs. Do something creative and original. Avoid copying existing jersey designs. We want IceHL teams to stand out and be unique!
Deadline: Saturday, July 6
You have two weeks to design and submit your work. Good luck to everyone!
Chris
Someone emailed me asking for wordmarks to use as helmet decals in the uniform designs. Since I didn't include them in the original Design Kit, here they are:
IceHL 13 Weeks of R&R – Wordmark Set (.zip/109 KB)
Reader Comments (28)
@Chris - Just to be clear, no third jersey designs allowed yet?
@Matt Marczel: Correct, as previously stated, third jerseys will come later in the 13 Third Jerseys project. That begins July 13, immediately following this jersey design contest.
Right now, we're just looking at jersey designs for the 11 teams we just rebranded.
@Chris - Would this be like the logo designing with non-designers giving designers ideas in the comments?
Here we go again...here are some ideas I had in mind (though I suck at designing myself)
COLONIALS: Keep Kevin Dallatore's current pattern; just adapt it to the tweaked color scheme and logos.
STALLIONS: Keep Bastian Schmülling's current pattern (though having the secondary logo on the shoulders would be nice)
CHARGERS: Ricky Hajduk's design was a good one, but gold's now out of the color scheme; replaced with silver. Since we already have a horse team, have the primary "D-bolt" logo on the chest, with the horse-triangle logo on the soulders (black yokes on the white jerseys, no yokes on the black ones).
DRAGONS: Kinda 50-50 on whether it should be green or red (both are pretty rare; but I think red is moreso). One thing I would absolutely LOVE to see is a tartan (known as "plaid" in North America) pattern somewhere on the jersey! That dragon-shield is a BEAUTY which would go well on the chest, and the Town Clock-Citadel Hill secondary would be EXCELLENT for the shoulders (Maybe next year when a third jersey is done it'll be on the chest)
STEELCATS: Ryan Hawkes' current pattern will work; but as much as it hurts me to propose it, switching the navy and the red around will be the best look for the team's new identity.
OLYMPIQUES: Try a combination of the Habs and the Maroons' (whose color scheme was an obvious inspiration here) jerseys for inspiration. While it is a BEAUTIFUL logo on its own, the primary might be a TAD bit too busy for the chest logo-however, it's the only logo strong enough IMHO to be a chest one. You're the designer, you figure out the dilemma!
ACES: Have the color jersey be scarlet. On one hand, Houston has the plane as their primary and on the other hand, Seattle has the badge as their primary. Just go with whichever chest logo you'd be more comfortable with.
SNIPERS: The color jersey HAS to be blue; primary on the chest and chevron secondary on the shoulders. However, at least the white jersey should have red shoulder yoke so the blue-on-white chevron patch can be seen too.
OUTLAWS: The ONE gripe a lot of people see with this uniform design is that, despite being called the Outlaws, they have a lawman's badge as their secondary. Therefore, I'd like to see the circular logo on the shoulders with just the bandit's face being on the chest. (As for the jerseys, the color one should obviously be black.)
LUMBERJACKS: Either the tree or the Sasquatch logo could serve as a solid chest logo...one thing I'd LOVE to see (again) is a tree pattern somewhere on the jersey. Make it green or gold; whichever you choose.
SENTINELS: The monument-eagle logo was MADE to carry the chest, while the flag patch will do well on the shoulders. The striping pattern has ENDLESS possibilities, and either a blue or red color jersey will do the brand justice.
All in all, I look forward to seeing the results of everybody's work!
@Jordan: Don't see any reason why not. Designers may be looking here for inspiration. Might as well give 'em some!
Can the light jersey be a non white color?
@Matt St. Jean: Yes, but be careful. It still needs to be a light color. If you submit two dark jerseys, your entry will be disqualified.
Any chance of including the color palette for the teams?
I updated the secondary logo for the Texas Outlaws, replacing the Sheriff badge although it's not included in the package... Chris did you forget about it? Thanks!
One one design per team or can i submit 2 sets for a team???
What about names and numbers? Who do we put on which team?
@Nuno Kopio: It would be a little tedious for me to build color palettes for every team given all the other work I have to do right now. That's why I'm hoping you guys can just sample colors from the logos using an eyedropper tool or the like. However, if there are any colors you're having trouble sampling, let me know and I'll help you out.
And to your other question, yes you may submit multiple entries for a team, just don't go crazy.
@Francis Matte: I did forget and I apologize. I've updated the ZIP file to include the revised logo Outlaws logo set. Thanks for bringing that to my attention. That's a great logo that I definitely want to see used on the jerseys.
@Andy P: As stated in the post, you may use any name and number you choose. But if you want to see the current team rosters, just head over to the ESPN league offices: IceHL EAST | IceHL WEST
@Chris- Why isnt Calgary in any folders?
@Chris: Do we put one team's home and road together in one image or separate them each?
@Jared P: Oversight. Probably because the logo didn't change. Also the original logo designer is coming up with a new Stallions wordmark so technically the Calgary branding is incomplete at the moment.
That said, I've updated the ZIP file again and it now includes the Stallions' primary and secondary logos.
@Alan John Herbert: I'd prefer separate images. If you send them merged, I will just have to separate them manually which is extra work for me.
@Chris - I would like to use a tiny amount of gradient on one of the jerseys I plan on submitting (similar to Vancouver Canucks 2000s alternate). Technically a gradient wouldn't contain colors exactly from the logos, even though the start and end color would be colors from the logos. Can I do this?
@appleclock: Let's avoid gradients altogether. They look as bad on logos as they do on jerseys. And if such a jersey was ever produced, it would have to be done with a sublimated process.
Quick question! Are we allowed to use fonts if they are free for personal use?
Will Alaska's uniforms be updated as well? They weren't a part of the rebranding process, but are in the same boat as Boston by having updated logos.
Will the current jerseys include in the voting? Some of them are pretty cool.