Whether you’re a designer working on behalf of someone else or you are looking for stickers, labels, wall-graphics or decals for your vehicle, this section will explain what’s possible and what we require from you to be able to effortlessly reproduce your ideas in sticky format!
Stickers4 specialise in printing onto self-adhesive vinyl, static cling (self-cling) and specialist wall vinyl. Our products include:
Custom printed stickers & labels
Window clings for shop windows
Decorative window stickers for home
Car decals
Cut vinyl lettering and graphics
Event stickers
Custom wedding labels
Corporate branding
Asset management
Car park control stickers
Wall decals & wall art
We only print stickers and window clings and have been doing so since 2003. Along the way we’ve developed some rather unique printing techniques that, as far as we know, no one else has worked out how to do!! Our pièce de résistance is a print technique that we call ‘LUVIT’ or Layered UV Ink Technology which utilises a very special type of ink and lets us print amazing double density window clings for viewing both inside and out… you’ll Luvit!
We can print from most types of artwork but here are a few things worth bearing in mind…
Vector
This is the preferred format for printing stickers and window graphcs. A Vector image is a graphic that has been created in a drawing program (such as Adobe Illustrator or CorelDraw!). It uses paths to create polygons or lines and stores information mathematically. Vector art is ‘Resolution Independent’, which means that whether you enlarge or shrink the image, the output quality will be as high as you need it to be.
Save your vector image as an AI or EPS file so that it may be imported into our specialised print software. CONVERT TYPE TO OUTLINES if the text is part of your logo. If you would like us to make changes to the text then leave it as it us but remember to supply the fonts that you have used – whilst we have a library of over 10,000 fonts there is a chance we won’t have yours. There a law for that!
Raster
A Raster image is a file that is totally composed of tiny dots, or pixels. It is useful for photos or complex imagery that would be difficult to create as vector art. Some common formats you may be familiar with include: TIFF, GIF, JPEG & PNG .
Raster art is ‘Resolution Dependent’, which means that the you can’t increase the size of the image without loss of quality. Essentially, any raster image used for print has to be created at the size you want to print it at, using a setting of at least 300dpi (dots per inch). If you take a small image (perhaps one that is used on a website) and try to enlarge it to print as a poster, the quality will be, shall we say, terrible! Please note, YOU CAN’T JUST STRETCH A SMALL IMAGE, OR CHANGE THE DPI IN THE HOPE THAT IT WILL PRINT BETTER! IT MUST BE CREATED AT THE SIZE YOU WANT IT (that’s why vector images are soooo much better!)
PLEASE NOTE: ALL OUR SYSTEMS ARE PC BASED. WHY? THE SOFTWARE REQUIRED TO PRINT ONTO SPECIALIST VINYL AND THE MACHINES THEMSELVES ONLY RUN VIA PC's. IT SAVES US TIME AND MONEY IF WE DON'T HAVE TO CONVERT BETWEEN DIFFERENT SYSTEMS. PLEASE ENSURE THAT ALL ARTWORK IS 100% PC COMPATIBLE. THANK YOU.
ACCEPTED PROGRAMS:
ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR Saved as Adobe Illustrator .ai, version 1.1 or higher. No preview image, postscript level 2. IMPORTANT! CONVERT YOUR FONTS TO OUTLINES!
CorelDraw! PC Versions 7-18(X8) .cdr IMPORTANT! CONVERT YOUR FONTS (TEXT) TO CURVES!
POSTSCRIPT (EPS) PC - These files can be accepted in several different formats. IMPORTANT! CONVERT YOUR FONTS TO OUTLINES! When option available, save as ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR v. 3.0 postscript file. If not available, save as standard EPS file. Some colour shift may occur during importing process. Use postscript files only if colour matching is not critical. Always provide a colour rendering with your disk so we can see final colour output desired.
Convert text to paths, or "curves" (outline art) (Text that becomes an object can no longer be edited as text) however, if this is not possible send all screen and printer fonts used for all files.
COLOUR INFORMATION: When assigning a colour to art or text, use a pantone colour. This will work for process or spot colours. We have a huge palette of printing colours to select from.
We cannot guarantee exact colour matches when printing onto specialist materials such as self- adhesive vinyl due to the type of inks used and the way in which the inks bond with the material used. We can however usually achieve very accurate colour matching. If colours are critical then we will try to match a supplied sample as closely as possible.
RESOLUTION (for raster artwork): Output resolution is essential to image integrity, especially if you want to increase the size of the image. Resolution is directly related to final output size required. Set up files in CMYK at a 1:1 ratio, with resolution set at 300 dpi minimum. GIFs or JPEGs are generally not suitable for sticker or sign output. Such files are fine for viewing purposes but not for printing due to the file compression that they utilise.
The better your original artwork the better the print!
Missing or incomplete fonts: Be sure to include both screen and printer fonts used in the creation of your files
Missing Files: Please include all supporting files.
Poor Quality Type/Line Art: Digital type and line art should be created using the programs detailed above because they provide the best quality for reproduction.
Missing or Poor Quality Colour Match Provided: In order for us to match colour on your digital picture files, please provide a colour accurate proof to match. Desktop inkjet prints or colour laser printouts are not considered to be colour accurate and are not recommended for colour matching.
Unclear or Conflicting Art Directives: If type, artwork, images, or colour callouts in the digital file are different from what is on the hardcopy printout provided, we will not be sure which directive is the correct one to follow. The digital file and the reference printout should match one another. Please provide as much information as possible regarding the files.
INTERNET- files up to 5Mb in size may be emailed directly to us at hello@stickers4.com . For files larger than this, please use a web-based provider such as www.wetransfer.com
Artwork proofs are only available upon request and will only be printed once we have received payment in full. Prices for proofs will be different for each job but in some cases can be provided free of charge.
We are unable to guarantee exact Pantone colour matching due to the process required for printing onto specialist materials such as vinyl. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that colours match as closely as possible to the specified colours there may be some noticeable differences. If your colour match is critical then we would suggest that a proof is requested. In all cases we strongly recommend that a hard copy is posted to us with any notes that may be applicable to your specific job.
Stickers4 will not be held responsible for colour differences if no artwork proofs have been requested or hard copy samples sent to us.
We are unable to match colours from screen images due to the fact that all computer monitors are set up differently and so will display colours differently. What may look like blue on your screen may look like purple on ours!
All stickers are computer cut and as such there is a +/- 1mm tolerance for thermally printed stickers and a +/- 1.5mm tolerance on digitally printed stickers. Whilst this is not normally noticeable it may be apparent on circular stickers with a thin border or stickers where text is close to the edge. Please bear this in mind when designing your artwork.
Any questions?
Just drop us a line or give us a call! We're here to help!
