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Why can't I add a blueprint? Something about an existing exhibit?
Why can't I add a blueprint? Something about an existing exhibit?

"The selected template is an existing exhibit in OrbitKit. Please use a new template for this blueprint."

Jeff Schnitzer avatar
Written by Jeff Schnitzer
Updated over a week ago

You're trying to add a new blueprint to OrbitKit. You copy the URL of a good looking product from your venue, paste it into the Add Blueprint dialog, and get this error message:

The selected template is an existing exhibit in OrbitKit. Please use a new template for this blueprint.

What happened?

You have an existing blueprint, say "Dark Fabrics", that was used to publish a listing, say "My Happy Tee". You just tried to create a new blueprint from "My Happy Tee" - an exhibit that OrbitKit created.

Why is this a problem?

For one thing, this would produce erratic and unpredictable results. If you update "Dark Fabrics" and resync "My Happy Tee", that change would start affecting exhibits published with the "My Happy Tee" blueprint.

Also, why not use the "Dark Fabrics" blueprint in the first place?

How can I work around this?

  1. Upload a new design by hand. This is straightforward.

  2. Use the "convert to blueprint" button on the Exhibit detail page. The listing will stop being an exhibit managed by OrbitKit and become a standalone blueprint. OrbitKit might end up republishing that design as a new exhibit, but one duplicate in your account shouldn't be too big of deal.

Anything else?

Usually this comes up because the original blueprint listing may have become unavailable - maybe the POD platform (often Spreadshirt) rejected it, or you accidentally deleted it out from underneath OrbitKit.

Rather than creating a whole new blueprint, the easiest solution to this is to point your existing blueprint at a new listing. Look for the Select button on the blueprint detail page:

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