Acceptable File Formats
We support a variety of file formats for uploaded designs.
Adobe Acrobat Document (*.pdf) (recommended)

Software Templates
Using a downloadable template for your application will ensure that your dimensions, resolution and color settings match ours.

Adobe Photoshop (recommended) Download Vertical Template
Adobe Illustrator (recommended) Download Vertical Template
If you are creating a PDF document in Acrobat Distiller,
please use our Distiller settings.
Adobe Acrobat Distiller (recommended) Download Settings Bleed

The very edges of the document are called the bleed area. To prevent an unwanted white border from showing at the edge of your document, be sure to extend any background colors or design elements all the way to the edge. Trim Marks Trim lines are the finished size of the document. The document is cut close to
the trim line, but because of the mechanical tolerances involved in printing, the actual cut can happen anywhere between the bleeds and the safe margin. This is why it is important to keep your text and important images within the safe margin. Full Bleed vs. Trim Size When to create your document at the full bleed size If you are working in an illustration program (such as Adobe Illustrator or Corel Draw) or a photo editing program (Such as Adobe Photoshop or Corel Photo-Paint), we recommend that you create your document at the full bleed size. This will prevent any white edges from showing at the borders after the final product is trimmed. When to create your document at the trim size If you are working in a layout program (such as QuarkXPress or Adobe InDesign) we recommend that you create your document at the trim size and include the specified amount of bleed for your product (.137”). When you export your document as a PDF for upload, make sure to include the bleed in your output settings so that the final upload PDF document is at the full bleed size for your product.

Safe Area / Safe Margins
The safe margins are borders that are definitely inside the place where the cut will
take place. Please remember to keep all important information, like names,
addresses, phone numbers or logos within the safe margin (at least .137” from the edge)
to ensure that they aren’t cut off when your document is trimmed.

Resolution
What is resolution?
Resolution refers to the number of dots per inch (dpi), or the amount of detail the
image has. Most documents prepared for upload should be 300 dpi at 100% of the
final print size. Higher resolution means a more detailed image, and also larger
file and longer upload time.

CMYK vs. RGB
CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black) are the colors used in the printing
process, whereas RGB (Red, Green and Blue) are the colors used by screen
displays such as your monitor. Please note that JPEG files are almost always in RGB.
Your document should be created in CMYK mode so that the colors that you see on the
screen most closely match the final printed product. If you create your document in RGB,
the colors in your printed product may vary slightly. Many of the bright values produced
by your monitor cannot be reproduced in print.

Digital Imaging
You may create printed products on our web site using digitized images from a
variety of sources. Your designs, photos and images can come from a digital
camera, scanner, or the Web.

Any image you plan to use must be saved at approximately 300-dpi at 100%
output size for the very best printing results. It’s helpful to know that shrinking
an image on a product will increase its resolution. For example, an image
captured at 600 x 900 pixels has 150-dpi at 4” x 6”. However, it can be printed at 300-dpi
by reducing its dimensions on the product to 2” x 3”.
Images from a Digital Camera

Before taking a picture choose the highest resolution for your camera which depends on
how many megapixels it has.
You cannot increase the resolution of a photo after it is taken, except by reducing its printed
dimensions (after you upload the image). Be very careful when cropping a photo after it is
taken. Cropping will reduce the number of pixels in the final image.

Images from a Scanner
Like a digital camera, a scanner must be preset to the proper resolution before image
capture. Many scanners default to 150-dpi (or spi). Set your scanner’s resolution so
that it results in 300-dpi at the image’s final print size. If your resulting scanned image
is smaller than the recommended size or has less dpi than you need, you should either
rescan your original at a higher resolution, or use the image for a smaller printed area.
Images from the Web
Images found on the web are typically at a resolution of 72-dpi. This resolution is much
too low for quality printing. In addition, most images on the web are protected by
copyright laws. For these reasons, we do not recommend using images from the web.