Name colours by reference, not by word alone
Colour words are unreliable. Navy, red, khaki and grey each cover a wide range of shades, and two people can mean very different colours by the same word. The reliable way to brief a colour is by reference: a physical sample, a colour standard, or a previous order that can be matched.
If no reference is available, describe the colour as precisely as you can and ask for a confirmation before production. A maker who is asked to match a word alone is being asked to guess, and a guess that is wrong costs a sample round at best and a rejected batch at worst.
Single colours and contrast combinations
A single-colour cap is the simplest brief and the easiest to match, because there is only one shade to confirm. A contrast combination — for example, a crown in one colour and a brim in another, or a front panel in one colour and the rest in another — needs each colour to be named and confirmed separately.
Contrast combinations should be described part by part: crown, brim, panels, closure and any trim. A brief that says two-tone without saying which parts are which colour leaves the most important decision open. Naming each part takes a few extra words and prevents most colour disputes.
How colour interacts with logo and texture
Colour does not sit alone on a cap: it interacts with the logo and with the surface. A logo colour that works on a dark crown may disappear on a light one, and a colour that looks right on a smooth surface may read darker on a ribbed surface. Those interactions should be considered together in the brief, not as separate decisions.
For a logo, the safest approach is to name the logo colours and the crown colour together and ask for a confirmation of the combination. For a textured surface, ask for a sample in the actual colour, because a photograph of a colour on a different surface is not a reliable guide.
Confirm before production
Ask for a colour confirmation or a sample in the ordered colours before the full quantity is made. Check the sample in daylight as well as indoors, because artificial light changes how colours read. Confirm any change in writing, and keep the confirmation with the order record. Please confirm the minimum order quantity and the lead time in the same inquiry.