Custom Printing Tips
Read these 14 Custom Printing Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Printing tips and hundreds of other topics.
Silkscreen for Custom Printing of T-Shirts
One of the most common methods of custom printing t-shirts is called ‘silk-screening'. My first experience with a silkscreen was at camp in arts & crafts. Silk-screening is a fun way to custom print any type of clothing and is easiest with t-shirts.
First, go to your local crafts store and see if they offer a silkscreen kit. Custom printing is very popular and many companies sell starter packages with everything you need. If your local store doesn't have any, don't worry. There are plenty of websites that can have one shipped to you very quickly.
Next, choose your design. Beginners at silkscreen will want to choose a design that is not too intricate, or they will soon hate the experience. Once you have your design, you are ready to begin. Not all silkscreen kits are made the same, so follow the instructions as provided with the custom printing kit you bought. Remember, custom printing with a silkscreen means using a razor knife and fairly toxic chemicals, so use safety precautions. You will have your own look done in no time!
From Stationery to Shoelaces - Custom Printing Services
If you are looking to market a new product and want to use many different media, I assure you of this, custom printing services are available that will suit whatever your needs. With advances in custom printing services and technology, you can now brand your image on anything from hats to t-shirts to underwear.
Pens, notepads, and other office supplies are also often customized for corporate branding. Stretch the imagination with your next effort and you will have no problem finding a provider of custom printing services to meet with your expectations. Effective branding can be the key to any company's success. Get creative and set your company apart.
Custom Printing Invitations
Invitations often can set the stage for an event. For weddings, birthday parties, and other events, the invitation you choose is going to give your guests their first impression of what to expect. Custom printing of invitations is a great way to get you invitation right and should be done with the help of professional custom printing companies.
Finding a custom printing company to help with your invitations is simple. Once you have found them, the right ones will be able to walk you through every option of font, paper, color, and many others. With custom printing, you don't have to worry that your same invitation was used for another birthday or wedding that some of your guests have attended recently. Make your event stand out from the very start with custom made invitations.
Professionals - The Right Choice for Your Custom Printing Needs
Depending on the job at hand, custom printing is not typically something that you want to embark on without professional help. Whether for business or personal needs, there are simply too many qualified custom printing companies and stores for you to try to re-invent the wheel, or printer as the case may be.
Most custom printing jobs are for important events, business proposals, or marketing materials. Each of these things is too important to be handled by anyone less than a qualified professional. Unless you have the training that these people do, it isn't suggested that you start with something important in nature. Chances are, you wouldn't have the equipment necessary for most custom printing jobs and you will find it is far cheaper to just get the right help than buy the expensive printers or presses you would need.
Get help with your custom printing needs and get the confidence in knowing that the job will be done right.
Custom Greeting Cards
Custom greeting cards have the potential to make even more of an impact on your customers or associates than regular greeting cards. When making a custom greeting card, you can choose just how much or how little information to put inside the card, as well as what sort of graphic or photo to put on the outside. Where regular greeting card printing may restrict you to selecting from pre-made templates, custom greeting cards allow you to put your own style into templates or create your card from scratch. Many of the Microsoft products (such as Word and Publisher), also offer templates that you can create your custom greeting cards from, as well as the templates that the greeting card printing companies themselves offer. You can also choose from different sizes and papers for your custom greeting cards, and even whether you want a glossy or matte finish to the card.
Basics of Custom Printing Services
Anything custom is innately unique, right? Wrong. While custom printing services may produce unique results, the industry itself is anything but custom. If you are looking for custom printing services, there are some basics that you should know about what is typically included.
Many custom printing services include design assistance. If you have an idea but are having a hard time putting it to paper, many custom printing service providers have design departments dedicated to this type of assistance. Double-check before you choose your printer to see if they have this capability.
Typically, when it comes to custom printing services, pricing only includes the item printed on, unless otherwise specified. In the case of printing invitations or mailings, the pricing can often include envelopes or other inserts. You will want to be sure of this as well when determining your budget.
Lastly, all custom printing services will include a required approval, from you, before proceeding with a final run. Make sure that the company you go with will offer you a glimpse at your final product before you may have to pay for their mistake.
Custom Calendar Printing
Custom calendar printing varies from traditional printing in that custom calendars are much more expressive. With a custom calendar, you can often have different pictures or logos for each month (custom calendar printing uses the month-on-a-page style of calendar). You can also choose from different templates for the month grid, as well as different types of photos or graphics for both the front and back cover. If you are a user of Microsoft Publisher, custom calendar printing can be even easier; the program includes many calendar templates to get you started making your own custom calendar. Then, you can just send the entire digital file to a printer to have your custom calendar printed.
Greeting Card Printing
Greeting cards also make great business promotional items. You can get greeting card printing done for various reasons, such as for holidays like Christmas, as thank you cards, or even just as cards to let customers know more about your business or promotions. Greeting card printing usually comes in one of two standard sizes; a folded 5”x7” card, or a 4.25”x5.5” note card. The note card size lends itself especially well to thank you notes, while the larger size card is perfect for winter holiday greetings. Greeting card printing as advertising has the advantage of adding a personal touch to your ad – people enjoy getting greeting cards, and will be happy that you've mailed a personalized card to them.
Calendar Printing
Calendars are a great idea for business promotion. People need and use calendars everyday – and are less likely to throw away this type of advertising. With the many types of calender printing available (in sizes ranging from small pocket size calendar to large wall calendars) there is a calendar that can fit any business budget. Many calendar printing services offer different types of calendars within the different styles as well – for example, you can get a wall calendar that has the entire year on one page, or you can choose to get a calendar with just a month on a page. No matter which type of calendar you choose for your business promotion, you'll know that you're putting your business name out there for an entire year, just by printing your name or logo on the calendar.
Calendar and Greeting Card Gift Ideas
Calendars and greeting cards also make great gifts. Calendar printing is a perfect idea for relatives – you can get photos printed on each month of the year, so that Grandma or Auntie can see how the children are growing and what you've been up to. Greeting card printing is also a great gift idea; whether you choose to get photo greeting cards printed with a family picture and use them for your holiday cards, or if you decide to get a box of greeting cards printed with beautiful nature scenes for others to use. Personalized gifts like calendars and greeting cards are always welcome – and you'd be surprised the number of compliments you get when you choose to give a custom calendar or custom greeting cards as a gift!
Calendar Printing Companies
There are many different calendar printing companies available to print your custom or standard calendar. Some of these companies specialize in the year-on-a-page calendar; this type is usually made with one photo or graphic at the top and the entire year's worth of dates on the bottom. Other calendar printing companies make custom calendars, where there are twelve pages with a different graphic for each month. Other calendar types, such as small pocket calendars and even plastic card calendars, can also be created by a calendar printing company – but some of these are considered specialty items and may cost a bit more than traditional calendars. Another option besides using calendar printing companies is to use a copy store – this can be a great idea for people who want to make just a few copies of a custom calendar.
Custom Printing of Photos is Easier Than Ever
In the past, we were all forced to go to the local drug store or photo-mat to have our pictures developed. If you ever wanted any custom printing on your pictures, you were sure to pay an arm and a leg. Today, with advances in personal photo printing, custom printing your pictures is easy and affordable.
Most large electronic stores now have very reasonable prices on digital cameras and photo printers. These usually come with editing software that will allow you to: add text to your image, reduce redeye, alter the image with airbrushing, or any number of other custom printing effects. These programs are super easy to use and even my Mother has no problem finishing up and custom printing pictures of my new nephew.
Look around for a good price on a personal photo printer. Even though they are more costly, if you are a true shutterbug, the initial costs are quickly made up for in saving on custom printing and development.
Custom Photo Greeting Cards
Custom photo greeting cards are another great tool for businesses, as well as for personal use. Many photo printing companies that offer prints from your digital photos also make photo greeting cards. These kinds of cards have many uses; from business announcements to personal uses like birth announcements. Photo greeting cards are available from such well-known photo printing sites as Kodak EasyShare Gallery and Shutterfly, and other commercial printers offer photo greeting cards for multiple uses. There are also different styles of photo greeting cards available, which range from a simple one sided card on photo paper to a folded deluxe greeting card.
Free Calendar Printing
If you're in need of a calendar fast, and as cheap as possible - why not try free calendar printing? Free calendar printing is a service that some websites offer, and it's really more of a free download. You can download calendars that are pre-created from websites, and then print them at home. This can be useful if you just need a few calendar grids for around your home or office. You can get a free custom calendar by using these websites to help you to create a photo calendar at home. While there aren't companies that do professional free calendar printing, companies that offer calendar printing will often be happy to send you a free sample of their calendars (non-personalized) so that you can see what the end product will look like before you choose to have your calendars printed.
| Guru Spotlight |
| Joe Wallace |
