How to Get the Best Looking Custom Paddles: Design Advice from Dink

A custom designed pickleball paddle can not only boost your confidence on the court but also express your style and personality. However, to avoid any disappointment, there are some nuances that you should know before uploading your design and ordering the paddle. 

That's where our expert advice helps you craft the perfect paddle that reflects your design in real life and enhances your gameplay. In this article, we'll explain design suggestions to ensure your custom pickleball paddle meets your expectations.

Recommended File Formats for Artwork

When creating digital artwork, choosing the right file format is crucial to ensuring your pickleball paddle designs look their best across various platforms. While we can work with all file types, we recommend a vector file format.

When preparing artwork, it’s best to use vector formats such as SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics), AI (Adobe Illustrator), PSD (Photoshop), and PDF (Portable Document Format). These formats allow the design to retain its sharpness and quality regardless of print size. 

However, for ease and efficiency, our website only supports the SVG format, which ensures smooth processing during the customization process.

Our team can work with other vector formats like AI, PSD, or PDF, but you’ll need to email us the files.

Optimal Resolution for Image Files

High-resolution images ensure that the final product looks sharp, vibrant, and professional. Resolution refers to the number of pixels within an image, and the standard recommendation for high-quality prints is to use images with at least 300 pixels per inch (PPI). This ensures that when your design is printed onto the paddle, it maintains clarity and avoids pixelation, which occurs when the image is stretched beyond its capacity, resulting in a blurry or blocky appearance.

Using high-resolution images ensures that every detail of your design is crisp and the colors are vibrant.

Artwork Suggestions for Carbon Fiber Paddles

The natural dark tones and subtle carbon fiber patterns don’t contrast well with white, which can create a washed-out or dull appearance. This can make the overall design less striking, as the white background tends to clash with the carbon fiber material.

Instead, opt for darker or more vibrant color schemes that complement the paddle's carbon base. Deep blues, rich reds, metallic accents, or even bold neons can provide a sharp contrast that highlights the texture and complexity of the carbon fiber. Earth tones like charcoal, burgundy, or forest green also blend nicely with the paddle’s base, creating a more harmonious and eye-catching result.

The goal is to complement carbon fiber's high-tech, premium look, so color choices should enhance, rather than detract from, the paddle’s overall aesthetic.

Colorspace Considerations: CMYK vs. RGB

When designing custom paddles, one of the most critical decisions involves choosing the right colorspace for your artwork. CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black) is typically used for print, while RGB (Red, Green, Blue) is for digital screens. Although RGB colors may look vibrant on your computer or phone screen, they don’t always translate perfectly to print. This is because the two colorspaces interpret and display colors differently. RGB can produce a broader range of colors, especially bright and neon hues, but when the design is converted to CMYK for printing, certain shades may appear muted or dull.

For this reason, it’s recommended to design your custom paddle artwork in CMYK from the start, especially if the final product will be printed. This ensures that the colors you choose are more likely to appear the same on the finished paddle. If you design in RGB, you may end up surprised by the color shift after the artwork is printed.

Paddle Dimensions and Our Design Template.

The printable area of the paddle is roughly 8 inches wide and 11 inches tall. For those who want the ultimate level of precision, you can download our design template here.