Printing Basics Guides

All Printing Basics Guides

How to Build a Business Stationery Set That Matches on Every Piece

Build a business stationery set that matches, with which pieces to order first, the sizes that fit together and one brand color held across four stocks.

Emma Davis

How to Choose a Digital Printing Company for Short Runs and Fast Turnarounds

What separates a digital printing company from a copy shop, from the offset crossover band and variable data to turnaround from proof and specs to ask.

Nadia Petrov

How to Customize Your Print Order From Size to Coating to Shape

The five levers on a print order are size, stock, coating, shape and folding, and each one changes something, locks something and adds to the price.

Emma Davis

How to Get Sticker Samples Before You Commit to a Full Run

How to request free sticker samples from 4OVER4, what a swatch pack proves about vinyl, clear and holographic stock, and when a $25 test run answers more.

Jordan Kim

How to Make Photo Cards That Print Sharp, Not Soft

Make photo cards that print sharp: the pixel count each card size needs, why saved social images go soft, how to set bleed, and where to order the cards.

Nadia Petrov

How to Order Custom Carbon Copy Forms That Copy Cleanly Every Time

Ordering carbon copy forms: how to pick 2, 3 or 4 part sets, the right size, sequential numbering, padded or booked binding, ink, proofs and turnaround.

Emma Davis

How to Print Custom Index Cards in 3x5, 4x6 and 5x8

Print index cards in 3x5, 4x6 or 5x8: the product for each size, the uncoated stock that takes pen ink, file setup with bleed, and real starting prices.

Nadia Petrov

Matte vs Uncoated Paper and How Each One Takes Ink

Matte is coated and keeps ink on the surface while uncoated absorbs it, so the same file prints softer, and here is which to pick for cards and flyers.

Emma Davis

NCR Paper, How Carbonless Sets Copy and What Ruins Them

NCR paper copies by bursting dye capsules under pen pressure, so here is how the CB, CFB and CF sheets stack, what part colors mean, and what ruins a set.

Emma Davis

Your Online Custom Print Center for Cards, Flyers, Signs and Banners

How an online custom print center handles ordering, file preflight, free digital proofs, turnaround and shipping, with starting prices per product family.

Sofia Ramirez

Online Document Printing Explained From File Prep to Binding

How online document printing works end to end: exporting a print ready PDF, choosing interior stock, matching binding to page count, and real turnaround.

Emma Davis

The DPI Your Poster Actually Needs at Every Print Size

The DPI a poster needs at 11x17, 18x24, 24x36 and larger, the pixel counts behind each target, and the point where upscaling an image stops working.

Tobias Reed