DesignCrate Product Designer for WooCommerce

FAQ

Is DesignCrate free?

Yes. Every feature described here is in the free plugin, with no limits on
products, orders or designs.

Which products can customers personalise?

Any WooCommerce product with a mockup image: t-shirts, hoodies, mugs, bags,
caps, posters, signs and more. You set the printable area per product.

Do I need a print-on-demand service?

No. DesignCrate gives you the print-ready file for each order. Print it
yourself, or send it to any printer or print partner you work with.

Does it work with my theme?

Yes. It works with classic themes such as Astra and with block themes. On
block themes the designer always sits beside the add to cart button.

Does it work on mobile?

Yes. The designer resizes to the screen, the handles are sized for touch, and
customers can zoom in with the zoom buttons.

Does it work with the block cart and checkout?

Yes. Both the classic templates and the Store API are supported.

Does this send anything to an external service?

No. Artwork is stored in your own uploads folder and never leaves your server.

Where is customer artwork stored?

Under wp-content/uploads/dcpd/. Design files are blocked from direct web
access; only the preview images are publicly readable, because the cart and
your emails need to display them. Filenames are random, so nothing can be
guessed or enumerated.

What happens to artwork if I uninstall the plugin?

Product settings are removed. Artwork attached to orders is deliberately kept,
because deleting something a customer paid for would be data loss. Remove the
uploads/dcpd folder yourself if you are certain you no longer need it.

Designs that were never ordered pile up. Are they cleaned?

Yes. A daily task removes designs and uploads that were never completed, two
days after they were last touched. Anything attached to an order is never
touched.

Can I change how large an image customers may upload?

Yes, with the dcpd_max_upload_bytes filter. The plugin never accepts more
than your server’s own upload limit.

Why is the print area locked to one shape?

Because the exported file has to match the size the product declares. A square
print area on a 12 x 16 inch product would export a square file, and the print
would come out wrong. The box keeps the shape of the print size you set, so
you position and resize it without ever producing a mismatched file.

What file do I send to the printer?

Use Download print file (PNG) on the order screen. It is the artwork only,
at the full print resolution, with a transparent background. The JSON download
beside it is the editable design data, not something a printer can use.

What happens to a design left in a cart?

It is kept for as long as the cart is alive, and swept two days after it was
last touched if the customer never checks out. Anything attached to an order
is never swept.

How does the product colour picker work?

Tick Product colours on the DesignCrate tab and list the colours you
offer, one per line as Name | #hex. Tick Custom colour to also offer a
colour picker. The designer recolours the product in your mockup, and the
chosen colour is shown in the cart and saved on the order, so you know which
blank to print on. It works best with a white product on a transparent
background; on an opaque mockup the backdrop is detected from the image
edges and left untouched. The print file is never coloured.

Can the designer be bigger?

Yes. Set Designer position on the DesignCrate tab to Full width, below
the product to give the canvas the full page width. Customers can also hide
the tools panel and zoom in. Block themes always show the designer beside add
to cart.