Printing Tips

How to Order Printing

about paper...

• ○ Know the paper size you are starting with: 

8.5 x 11 is the regular size that fits in a home or office printer

11 x 17 is twice as big 

8.5 x 14 is Legal size

• oKnow the finished size of your piece (take a blank piece of paper and fold or cut it)

For instance, a newsletter is typically an 11 x 17 folded to 8.5 x 11

If it gets mailed, it's folded again to 5.5 x 8.5.

An invitation is often 5.5 x 8.5 folded to 4.25 x 5.5 (which fits nicely into a small A2 envelope.

Postcards can be anything from 4.25 x 5.5 to 5.5 x 8.5 or larger, but they should not be square- (the post office doesn't like that)

Your Print Provider will want to know the flat size of the piece to be printed as well as the final folded size, if it gets folded.

•  tKnow the quantity – how many do you want to end up with? If asking for a quote, What's the least amount you can use – What is the most ? 

Do Not try to “help” your Print Provider by telling him how many pieces of  paper you want- if you set something up and are getting 4 on a page, unless you are doing the cutting, stick to the number of finished pieces as the quantity to ask for. What the Printer wants to know, is how many of the finished size you want. He will take your file and set it up to run on his equipment, which might mean he's using a larger piece of paper and getting more “up” on a sheet.