Article of apparel with a coated graphic

1. A glove comprising:

a backer material forming an entire palmar side of the glove;

a dye sublimated graphic printed directly on the backer material and covering all of the backer material; and

a protective layer applied over the backer material, wherein the graphic is disposed between the protective layer and the backer material, and the backer material is combined with one or more additional portions of the glove to form the glove, and wherein the protective layer is a transparent silicone and the graphic is visible through the protective layer.

2. The article of apparel according to claim 1 , wherein the graphic comprises one or more dyes arranged on the backer material.

3. The article of apparel according to claim 2 , wherein the article of apparel is a glove and a material of the protective layer has a higher coefficient of friction than the backer material.

4. A glove comprising:

a backer material having a metacarpal region and a plurality of phalangeal regions and forming an entire palmar portion of the glove, the backer material having a first surface and an opposite second surface facing away from a hand of a wearer, and the backer material incorporating at least one of a textile material, a polymer material, a polymer foam material, a leather material, and a synthetic leather material;

a dye sublimated graphic printed directly on the backer material in the metacarpal region and the phalangeal regions; and

a protective layer applied over all of the backer material in a manner that disposes the graphic between the backer material and the protective layer,

wherein (a) the backer material has a first portion disposed on a first side and a second portion disposed on a second side opposite the first side, (b) the graphic extends from the first surface through the first portion, (c) the backer material has a first thickness, the protective layer has a second thickness, and the second thickness is greater than the first thickness, (d) the backer material is combined with one or more additional portions of the glove to form the glove, (e) the protective layer is a transparent layer, and (f) the graphic is visible through the protective layer.

5. The glove according to claim 4 , wherein the protective layer includes silicone.

6. The glove according to claim 4 , wherein the graphic includes a plurality of graphic regions disposed over a substantial majority of the metacarpal region and the phalangeal regions.

7. The glove according to claim 6 , wherein the graphic regions are raised portions of the glove.

8. A glove comprising:

a first material element forming an entire palmar side of the glove, the first material element having a metacarpal region and a plurality of phalangeal regions, the first material element having a first surface facing away from a hand of a wearer and an opposite second surface, and the first material element incorporating at least one of a textile material, a polymer material, a polymer foam material, a leather material, and a synthetic leather material;

a dye sublimated graphic printed directly on the first surface and covering all of the first surface, the graphic extending from the first surface through a first portion of the first material element, and the graphic not extending through a second portion of the first material element;

a protective layer applied over all of the first surface in a manner that disposes the graphic between the first material element and the protective layer, the protective layer being a transparent silicone, and the printed graphic being visible through the protective layer; and

one or more additional material elements, the first material element being combined with the one or more additional material elements to form a structure that extends around and contacts the hand of the wearer.