Problems with Double-sided Designs

Here are some use-cases you probably didn’t consider when you added support for double-sided designs.

I have some designs that are double-sided, but there are some products for which the two designs don’t work. For example, a double-sided design might be fine for a T-shirt, but I might not want it on a mug or a cap. The only way I’ve figured out to do this is to upload the design twice. This works, but when I go to the Designs page, the same design appears twice.

Here’s another weird one: I have some double-sided designs where the reverse side can be also used single-sided. Again, I can achieve this and it shows up on the Designs page just once. The design there points to where the design is used on the front. Doesn’t it seem like it should include all products that use that design, even if the design shows up on the back?

Perhaps I don’t understand the best way to use the same design for multiple purposes.

While I’m here, I’ll mention that I’d like to be able to apply a product template to double-sided designs as well as single-sided designs. Right now, I have a very limited selection of products, because it’s such a pain to add a new design. For example, with a double-sided design, there are no short-cuts: I have to select every product. Then I have to check every product for sizing and colors. It’s too much work.

Yes, we are working on having the templates also work with double-sided designs :slight_smile:

Can you post a screenshot of what you mean exactly? I’m not sure I understand. Thanks!

It might be easier for you to just visit https://shop.spreadshirt.com/tony-freixas-t-shirts/all?listModeOverride=DESIGN

There’s a design called Vegvisir. Then you’ll see two identical designs called Iceland—Kirkjufell Mountain. The Iceland with 19 products is a two-sided design with Vegvisir on the back. I also use Vegvisir as a one-sided design with 8 products and Iceland as a one-sided design with 6 products.

What I would expect to see is one Iceland design with 25 products (some double-sided, some single-sided) and one Vegvisir design with 27 products (some double-sided with Vegvisir on the back, some single-sided with Vegvisir on the front). The idea is that this would find all products with the selected design, whether on the front or back and regardless of whether it’s single-sided or double-sided.

The problem, of course, is that if I want to create a double-sided product and a single-sided product using the same design, I have to upload the design twice. Your model is one design = one product. You have shoehorned this to allow a second or third design to be added to the first, but the first design can no longer be used for the front in any other product (it can be used as the back or side, though).

The “correct” approach would be to separate products from designs. You upload designs and then you create products which can use one, two, or three designs (or whatever). Designs can optionally be sold in Spreadshirt. Products go into Spreadshop.

You can’t really fix the problem until you fix your data structures, so I don’t really expect a fix anytime soon.

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Is it clear now?

Yes it is clearer now. Thanks for passing along. Indeed this isn’t something that will change anytime soon but I have passed it along to our product owner/developers.