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Support
Artwork & file setup.
Everything you need to send us a file that prints the way you expect it to. Most jobs are fine with a decent PDF — this page is here for when you want to get it exactly right.
The short version
Four things, and you are done.
Send a print-ready file and there is nothing else to think about. If any of this is unfamiliar, send what you have anyway — we look at every file before it prints and we will tell you what we find.
1 · Vector where possible
PDF, AI, EPS or SVG with live vector artwork. Vector stays sharp at any size, which matters most on logos, type and cut lines.
A high-resolution PNG or JPG is fine for photographic work.
2 · CMYK colour
We print in CMYK. Files built in RGB get converted, and some bright screen colours shift when they do — most noticeably vivid blues, oranges and greens.
Converting yourself means you see the shift before we do, not after.
3 · Bleed on anything that prints to the edge
Extend the background past the trim line so a millimetre of cutting movement never leaves a white sliver along an edge.
Missing bleed is the one thing we quietly fix for you.
4 · Keep text inside the safety margin
Hold text, logos and anything you cannot afford to lose well inside the trim, so nothing sits close enough to the edge to be clipped.
Our online designer draws this line for you as you work.
What happens to your file
What we fix, and what we flag.
We check every file for print-readiness before it goes near the printer. Some things we correct without bothering you. Others we will not change on your behalf, because guessing at your intent is how a job comes back wrong.
We fix it silently
Missing or insufficient bleed. It has one correct answer and no judgement call attached, so we extend it and carry on.
We flag it and wait for you
Low resolution, a logo that has been rasterised and lost its edges, and RGB-to-CMYK colour shifts. Each of these has more than one reasonable fix and the right one depends on what you intended — so we tell you what we are seeing and let you decide.
Flagging happens before production, never after.
One thing we do not check: copyright. You are responsible for holding the rights to the artwork you send us.
Design specs
Bleed, trim and safety.
Three lines sit on every print job. Understanding them takes about a minute and saves most of the problems we ever see.
Bleed — past the edge
Artwork deliberately extended beyond where the cut lands. Cutting has a tiny tolerance; bleed is what absorbs it.
Trim — the actual edge
The finished size, and where the blade is aiming. In our online designer this is the solid border.
Safety — the comfortable inside
A margin inside the trim. Anything important lives inside it so a slight shift never crops your text.
Shown as the dashed line in the designer.
Exact bleed and safety measurements differ per product and are drawn to scale for you in the online designer, so there is no table here to copy from and get wrong.
Common questions.
I only have a JPG or a screenshot of my logo. Can you still print it?
Usually, yes — but we will tell you honestly how it is going to look at the size you have chosen. A small web logo blown up onto a banner will show soft edges. If it matters to you, we can talk about redrawing it as vector.
What resolution do I need?
300 DPI at final size is the comfortable answer for anything held in the hand. Large-format work viewed from a distance — banners, signage, vehicle graphics — is fine considerably lower, because you are never standing close enough for it to matter. Send what you have and we will check it against the actual print size.
Do you send a proof before printing?
Always. Nothing prints until you approve it. When you approve, you are confirming spelling, layout, colour and sizing — so please read it properly. Production time starts at proof approval, not at checkout.
Will the colours match what I see on my screen?
Close, not identical. Screens emit light and ink reflects it, so a perfect match is not physically possible. Supplying CMYK gets you much closer, and if exact brand colour is critical, tell us before we print rather than after.
How do I send large files?
You can upload artwork directly on the product page when you order. For anything too big for that, get in touch and we will sort out a link.
What if I do not have a designer?
Use our online designer to lay the job out yourself with the bleed and safety guides already drawn in — or just talk to us. We would rather spend ten minutes helping you get the file right than reprint the job.