Size to the seam, not to the artwork
Most structured caps give you roughly 55mm of usable height and about 130mm of width before the side seams start curving away. Anything taller crowds the crown; anything wider distorts as the panel rolls.
- Standard cap front: 50-55mm tall, 110-130mm wide.
- Keep lettering at 6mm cap height or larger.
- Move fine detail to a side or back placement rather than shrinking it.
Sew bottom-up and centre-out
Cap frames drive the fabric from the middle outward, so the stitch order has to follow. A file sequenced left-to-right, as most flat-goods files are, pushes fabric ahead of the needle and leaves registration gaps by the time it reaches the far side.
Underlay does the stabilising, not the topping
Structured caps need a heavier underlay grid than a knit polo, plus a centre-run to lock each element before the top stitching. Add pull compensation across the width — the panel stretches horizontally far more than vertically.