Custom Medal Ribbons & Lanyards — Printed, Woven & Sublimated Neck Ribbons, MOQ 100

Adult size is 860-900mm length by 20-30mm width. Children size is 800mm length by 20mm width. Toddlers use 700mm length. These are our standard defaults. Custom sizes are available on request. Width affects how much design content and text you can fit. Length affects how the medal hangs on the body. We recommend based on your medal size and target age group.

Yes. Heat-transfer printing reproduces full-color sponsor logos with excellent clarity. Logos can be arranged as a repeated pattern running the full ribbon length, or as a single prominent placement at the chest position. Send vector files in .AI or .EPS format for best results. Raster files at 300dpi or higher in .PNG format are also accepted. Sponsor logo printing is included in the standard ribbon printing cost.

The ribbon loops through a D-ring, dog clip, or jump ring on the medal body. The ribbon ends are joined by ultrasonic welding (clean, no visible stitching) or traditional sewing. For 4-fold ribbons, the loop is formed during the folding process. The attachment method is specified during the design phase, and we recommend the best option based on your medal style and weight.

Yes. Ribbons can be reordered independently of medals. Same design, same colors, same quality standards. Minimum order is 100 pieces. Production lead time is 5-7 days for ribbon-only orders since no mold or die-casting steps are needed. This is useful for annual events that reuse medal designs but want fresh ribbons each year, or for replacing worn or damaged ribbons from previous events.

Yes. Common scenario: same medal design for 5K, 10K, and half marathon, but each distance gets a different ribbon color. Or different divisions get different ribbon text. Each ribbon variant must meet the 100-piece minimum. This is an effective way to distinguish categories while keeping a unified medal design across your event.

Yes. We match ribbon colors to Pantone references and coordinate them with your medal plating finish. Since ribbons and medals are produced in the same factory, the color matching is done in-house with direct access to both the ribbon stock and the plated medal samples. Classic combinations like gold medal with navy ribbon and gold text are our most popular, but we can match any color scheme you have in mind.

Yes. Our polyester ribbons are colorfast and washable. Hand wash in cold water with mild detergent. Lay flat to dry. Do not machine dry. The print will not bleed, fade, or crack with proper care. We recommend removing the ribbon from the medal before washing, especially if the medal has a plated finish that could tarnish with water exposure.

100 pieces minimum for ribbon-only orders. This is the same MOQ as our medal orders. Lead time is 5-7 days since no mold production is required. For ribbons ordered alongside medals, the MOQ matches your medal order quantity and they ship together as one consignment.

Yes. UIL district meets, academic meets, and regional or state competitions all fall within our standard ribbon range. Place ribbons typically use 25mm width at 860-900mm adult length (800mm youth for elementary campuses), heat-transfer printed with school colors, event name and district text, or upgraded to woven for state-level awards. Minimum order is 100 pieces per ribbon design, and ribbon-only production runs 5-7 days since no mold or die-casting step is involved.

Yes. Spelling bees, science fairs, speech and debate tournaments, private and charter school competitions, and academic events outside Texas all order from us. The specification is the same as UIL work: 100 pieces minimum, Pantone-matched school colors, 20-30mm width, 860-900mm length. Non-UIL events often choose satin solid color, or heat-transfer print with the event name repeated as a pattern down the ribbon length.

Yes. Heat-transfer printing reproduces full-color school logos and mascots, including shading and gradients, along the full ribbon length. Send vector artwork in .AI or .EPS format, or raster files at 300dpi or higher. If your mascot uses flat spot colors and you need extremely precise registration, screen printing is also available — it prints spot colors with very accurate alignment, but it cannot produce gradients and it carries a screen fee.

The ribbon loop is formed by one of three constructions: four-fold (the standard, folded twice for clean edges and the highest durability), three-fold (lighter and more flexible), or a diagonal single-loop with a jump ring. The loop passes through a lobster clasp, a dog clip, or a jump ring on the medal body, and the ribbon ends are closed by ultrasonic welding or by traditional sewing. We recommend the hardware and fold combination based on your medal weight and style during the design stage.

Artwork is free and returned within 24 hours. Ribbon-only runs — including runs well above 1,000 pieces — typically need 5-7 days of production because there is no mold or die-casting step. If you want a physical sample first, allow 7-10 days for sampling. When ribbons are ordered together with medals, the ribbons are assembled to the medals and packed in the same factory, and the whole order follows the standard 7-15 day mass-production schedule.

Yes. We keep your artwork, Pantone references, webbing specification and print method on file, so an annual reorder reproduces the same ribbon rather than an approximation of it. This is how most district meets, school award programs and race series handle repeat events: the medal stays the same and the ribbon carries the new year or event date. Each ribbon design reorders at the 100-piece minimum, and you can reorder ribbons on their own without buying new medals.

Vector artwork in .AI, .EPS or .PDF is preferred, and raster files in .PNG or .TIFF are accepted at 300dpi or higher. Convert all fonts to outlines or curves so nothing shifts when the file is opened on our production systems, and give us a Pantone reference for every brand colour. Extend background colour past the trim edge and keep logos and text inside the safe area, because the ribbon is cut, folded and welded after printing. If you only have a low-resolution logo, a photo of a previous ribbon or a sketch, send it anyway — our in-house design team returns ribbon artwork within 24 hours with unlimited revisions.

Print failure is almost always a method mismatch: a surface ink layer asked to survive harder handling than it was specified for, or flat spot-colour artwork sent to a full-colour process. We select the method against the artwork and the event before quoting. Thermal sublimation infuses dye into the polyester fibre, so there is no surface ink layer to crack or peel. Woven ribbon puts the design into the thread itself, so there is no ink at all. Screen printing is offered only for flat spot-colour artwork where precise registration matters more than shading. The polyester webbing itself is colourfast and washable, so colour does not bleed when the ribbon gets wet from sweat or rain.

Yes. Individual numbering and variable text are applied by laser engraving — the same variable-data method we use on medal backs — so each ribbon in a run can carry a serial number, a place number or an award reference. Supply the list as a spreadsheet alongside the artwork. Laser engraving is an add-on to the chosen print method and runs at the same 100-piece minimum.

Attachment hardware is specified during the design stage against the actual weight and style of your medal rather than chosen from a generic list. Large 3D medals, heavy medals and multi-piece medals are paired with a lobster clasp on a 30mm ribbon, which spreads the load across the neck. Standard place medals and participation medals run on a dog clip, and lightweight youth pieces on a jump ring. For younger students we recommend a safety breakaway clasp. If you send us the medal specification, we will tell you which combination we would use and why.

Yes. All three are available as alternatives to flat webbing when the standard ribbon is not the right look or the right hand feel. Ball chain is metal, hangs straight and does not drape, and suits military-style, dog tag and retro formats. Suede cord is matte, soft and tactile, and is popular for boutique races and commemorative pieces. Waxed cord has a slightly stiff, water-resistant surface that suits outdoor, adventure and swim events. Cord diameter and drop length are quoted to your specification, and cords are finished with end caps and a clasp rather than a sewn fold.

A 50mm standard place medal runs best on a 25mm ribbon at 860-900mm — wide enough for legible text, light enough to drape cleanly. A 70mm large or heavy 3D medal should move up to 30mm, because more webbing spreads the load across the neck and stops the medal rolling or flipping while it is being worn. The failure runs in both directions: a 20mm ribbon under a 70mm medal leaves nothing to brace against and the medal turns face-down, while a 30mm ribbon under a 40mm youth medal looks bulky and hides the medal itself.

The minimum line width we can hold on metal parts is 0.3mm. Anything thinner tends to fill in during polishing and plating, so fine hairlines, thin outlines and very small lettering disappear between the proof and the finished piece. Ribbon artwork is more forgiving because the design is printed rather than cast, but it still needs to be supplied as vector artwork or as a high-resolution bitmap so the pattern stays sharp when it is scaled to your ribbon width. Send what you have and we will flag anything that will not hold before the proof goes out.

We assemble it. Ribbons are folded, joined and fitted to the medal in the same Huizhou, Guangdong facility that casts and plates it, so the ribbon ships already attached and the order arrives packed as one consignment. That removes one handling step at your end and one opportunity for a mismatch between the ribbon colour and the plated medal. It also means we can check the hardware against the actual medal before packing rather than against a drawing. Ribbon-only orders are still available when you want to fit them yourself or replace worn stock.