Hi all, Im hoping someone ran into the same issue and was able to solve it. Before someone says “you should ask gelato”, I did. they said it was an issue with shopify. I bult an item in gelato “personalization studio” that can be customized with image and/or text (allowing a customer to customize their own item), and posted it through my shopify store. the image customization works perfectly, until it gets to the thumbnail image of what the customer would be purchasing. Then the origional image (which is nothing more than the shirt that says “delete this and add image and/or text here” shows. I went into the gelato site to see if everything was what the customer made, and it was. But some customers cancelled their item, because they thought their image wasnt correct, which at that point Gelato removed money from my account and charged me, until the money was refunded. Mr. AI in Gelato said it was an issue with the shopify “horizon” theme (what i use), even though Gelato doesnt list the horizon theme. So after i typed all of this, has anyone else run into this? Is Gelato correct? If they are, did anyone solve this so your customer saw the correct thumbnail on their screen? Thank you.
Hi, it sounds like the customization itself is working since Gelato receives the correct final design. The issue is likely with how Shopify is displaying the preview/thumbnail image.
I’d test the product on a default Shopify theme (like Dawn) to confirm if Horizon is causing a conflict. If the thumbnail works there, then it’s most likely a theme/script issue rather than Gelato.
You can also check if any other apps are affecting product images or previews. Hopefully someone using Gelato with Horizon can confirm, but this would be the first thing I’d test.
Hi! That definitely sounds frustrating.Based on what you described, it seems the personalization is being saved correctly in Gelato, but Shopify is still showing the original product image as the cart thumbnail. This isn’t necessarily a Horizon theme issue, it could be related to how Gelato handles preview images.I’d recommend testing the product with a free Shopify theme like Dawn. If the same thing happens, it’s likely an app-related issue rather than the theme. You could also ask Gelato if dynamic cart thumbnails are currently supported with their Personalization Studio.If you’re able to share your store URL or the product link, the community can help test it too.
i was given this link from the gelato site through the AI ( Personalization studio for any theme in Shopify | Gelato Create | Help Center ) , but truthfully, even my IT tech at work who is an MIT graduate scratched his head and said “Huh? what are they saying here? theyre all over the place”. I honestly have to say, I really like gelato. It is the only POD that gave me true ability to show a garment they sell, and let a customer actually customize it themselves completely. Front, back, sleeves, uploading their own image, adding their own text. you name it. I couldn’t find another POD that allowed that much customization for $20 a month, if you sign up annually. That is why I am determined to get this to work.
is it complicated to test something like that? Can i just save my store in horizon, and try the dawn? and if it doesn’t work, just reinstate it into horizon from the saved store?
It’s actually not too complicated. You don’t need to replace your whole theme permanently. The safest way is to duplicate your current Horizon theme first, then install/preview Dawn and test the product there.
If the issue still happens on Dawn, then it’s likely not the theme. If it works on Dawn, you’ve confirmed Horizon is causing the conflict. You can simply switch back to your original Horizon theme afterward without losing anything.
Just make sure you duplicate the theme before testing so your current setup stays safe.
I just want to strengthen why this is so important to me to work. Ive attached some pictures. 1-1-12. Gelato works seamlessly until you hit “Check out” where it defaults to the original image that can be customized.
a customer can choose what they want as a blank from your site. I have set them up so they can remove, and know exactly where they an customize by giving them options to remove an image and replace with what they upload and / or pick text.
Choose customize, delete the image you want. Upload your own image and or text, and click add to cart. everything is perfect up until there.
it even gives you a really nice preview, of what the customer is working on.
even the CART is fine. and you can preview it one last time to make sure its right, and everything seems fine.
It all goes wrong at picture 12, once you hit “Check out”.
the thumbnail defaults to the original image. And many customers think there is something wrong, so they cancel the order.
I just wanted everyone to know how great this really is, if we can get it working right.
Thank you to everyone in advance.
This is not a theme issue.
The overlay is not the product image. You can change what is displayed in the theme all you want, all the way to the cart page. Once you go to Checkout, only the primary product image is shown. This is completely normal. There is nothing wrong there.
One thing that is interesting is that the upload itself does not seem to go through to the cart or checkout. No line item property, no cart attribute.
You had me understanding until
can you elaborate?
I have the cart set to not automatically print, so the product can be approved first.
And when i checked what would be produced after customization, it was correct.
Could you tell me what you meant above?
Sorry.
Sure.
But first, from your screenshots, you pointed out that the image only changes after you get to the Checkout. This is expected. Checkout is separate from the theme. Gelato’s primary variant image has the box and text. That’s what checkout shows. The line item image is pulled directly from the variant media.
Beyond that, Let’s imagine you are doing the printing and not Gelato. Even an engraving. Any type of customization. You would need a way for the upload or custom text to get to you in the order page. Shopify allows you to create Line Item Properties. This would make the custom text or image appear in the order page.
The line item property can also show up in Checkout right below the color/size. It would allow the customer to see that their text or image went through, even though the variant image itself doesn’t show the preview.
Now, you’re using Gelato, and Gelato’s code for this customization apparently doesn’t have the line item property showing in Checkout.
So, the answer to your original question about the variant image is that it’s a Checkout issue that you can’t change. But this Line Item Property showing in Checkout is a Gelato issue. Probably doesn’t interfere with internal workings, but it does tell you that the customer has no clue their upload worked.
Ok. Awesome. I totally understand. It makes sense. I know i definitely have to let customers know that their order will be checked and they will be emailed a copy of their customized item before processing. Thats the only way i can imagine to correct it. The items that I actually processed were actually correct when i was informed a order was placed. But as you said they have no idea if its right.
Thank you for that, and you are completely correct. It is not Shopify Horizon. I tried dawn, Craft, all themes Gelato says works, and same deal.
I could of course try to get rid of that last image, but (conveniently) shopify requires the higher paid tier to do that.
That would actually solve the problem, as the cart itself shows correctly, and does allow you to hover over, and get the increase image size, which would solve all of the confusion in the “payment” cart image.
Hi @arveellc 
Gelato cart/checkout thumbnail only updates to the customer’s personalized design on themes Gelato specifically supports for it. It’s a theme-integration limitation, not a Shopify-wide bug.
Horizon is Shopify’s newest theme and isn’t on Gelato’s supported list yet, which is exactly why customers see the placeholder “add image/text here” mockup in the cart instead of what they made. Their real design is fine on Gelato’s side (as you confirmed), it just isn’t being pulled into the theme’s cart thumbnail.
Two realistic paths: move to one of the themes Gelato lists as supported for personalized cart previews (their help center keeps the current list), or stay on Horizon and have a developer wire the personalized preview image into the cart line-item (doable, but custom).
In the meantime, adding a short line near the cart like “your personalized design is saved and prints exactly as previewed” will cut down the panic-cancellations you’re getting right now.
One broader thing if you ever reassess the personalization side itself: some personalization apps generate the live preview image themselves and pass it straight through to cart and order, so they lean less on theme support. Teeinblue Product Personalizer is the one worth testing, our app works seamlessly with any Shopify theme, provides a complete personalization workflow from design to fulfillment, and we have an integrated connection with Gelato so you can send the order to Gelato to fulfill in just 1 click!