Design Tips........

Preferred Artwork We Accept:
- Adobe Photoshop CS3 or lower (for PC)
- Adobe Illustrator CS3 or lower (for PC)
- CorelDraw 12 or lower
- All text as curves (aka paths/outlines)
- All text as paths (aka curves)
- EPS (text as curves/paths, at least 300 dpi)

Art for Visual Purposes ONLY:
- JPG
- GIF
- PDF
- PCX
- WMF
- TIFF (at least 300 dpi)

Before sending your artwork, it is a good idea to import your exports to assure the artwork has been processed intact. If you have a successful import, chances are good that we will also.

To send the art electronically, click on the attachment icon (paper clip in most systems) within your e-mail messaging box. Locate the desired file for attachment and click on it, it will automatically be attached to the transmission. Please include the following with any art transmission: your company name, contact name, telephone and fax numbers, purchase order number, ship-to information, in-hands date, and any special instructions along with all pertinent details for the product(s) being ordered; qty, product numbers, imprint colors, etc.

WE CANNOT GUARANTEE EXACT PMS COLOR MATCHES!

Art files may be e-mailed with the requirements listed below - or - sent on 3½" diskette, CD or DVD.

PLEASE DO NOT SEND MAC FILES!!!

File Preparation and Shipment to identiprint:

Be Sure to Include on the Disk:
Layout file (MS Word, Quark, PageMaker, etc.).
All fonts. It is a good idea to convert all your fonts to outlines (paths), as this will guarantee that there won't be any problems with the fonts (fonts converted to outlines (paths), don't need to be included).
Graphic files (Tiff, EPS, etc).

Sublimation Printing:
Match prints can be used as a guide, but printing with sublimation inks is much more challenging then using traditional inks. We therefore cannot guarantee an exact match between paper match print and final sublimated product. It is, however, recommended that you supply us with a paper printout of your design along with your graphic file. We will use it for color reference when producing your order.

Page Layout Programs (quark, pagemaker, indesign, etc.):
MAC users - please remember to include both SCREEN & PRINTER fonts with your file. PC users should also verify that ALL fonts are embedded in their document. Save your file in the native format. Whenever possible, please send us an exported EPS file of your complete document as well.

Colour Mode:
RGB
CMYK color mode unless you specify spot Pantone "PMS" color number(s)

Resolution:
Raster Art should be 300 dots per inch (dpi) at actual size.

Font Size:
Cloth Products: minimum 12pt font bold type.
Please convert ALL fonts to "outlines" (curves, paths) when using a VECTOR based program such as Illustrator, Corel, Freehand, etc.

Layout:
Please prepare your graphic so it is 1/4" (.25") larger on ALL sides then the actual size of your mouse pad, counter mat, or coaster etc.

Constrain the important elements (text, logo, etc.) of your design to an area that is 1/4" (.25") smaller on all sides & corners then the actual size of your mouse pad, counter mat, or coaster. This will insure that no essential elements of your design are cropped off when we print your order.

Your graphic should have straight edged corners (not rounded), and should not contain any borderlines or crop marks.

Trademark & Copyrights:
All materials submitted by the customer for production including art, graphic images, photos and copy will be accepted as being unencumbered by all trademark, copyright or any usage rights. The customer agrees to hold harmless and indemnify identiprint. for any and all claims that result from the usage of submitted materials. identiprint assumes no liability for customer’s use or misuse of copyright or trademarked materials.

Overall Design Considerations:
Try to design the pieces using bright colors. Avoid critical details in low contrast areas as they can get lost during the transfer process. Avoid small and intricate detailed graphics, as they will also get lost. Keep all critical graphics and text 1/2" from the edges of the final transferred piece. Transferring is usually done by hand, so leave 1/4" bleeds on all four sides.

For mousepads, get the exact size of the pad from us before beginning. Avoid large areas of white, as they will soil quickly. Darker backgrounds work best.

Typesetting:
Light Type on Dark Backgrounds:
Because of the propensity of sublimation to gain, keep reverse type open. Use a font size no smaller than 10pt. and avoid thin serifs and lines. Keep the kerning and leading open.

Dark Type on Light Backgrounds:
Dark type on a light background should be thin or medium. Avoid heavy bold fonts as during the transfer process they have a tendency to fill in. Keep type at least 8pt. if possible.

If feasible, keep all type out of raster images as it can affect the final product. It is preferred to stroke all fonts in Illustrator or Freehand before importing the file into a layout program such as Quark or PageMaker.
Remember to include all non-stroked fonts with the disk. Don't forget the fonts in embedded EPS images.

Graphics:
Keep vector images clean using bright colors. If the art originates as a vector image, don't convert it to a raster image. Keep concepts bold and avoid extremely fine detail, as it will get lost during the transfer process. If you have PMS colors be sure to call them out as such even if the job is printing 4-color process. This lets us know the color you are trying to obtain in the final product. Make absolutely sure there is no banding in any graduation screens. It is always preferable to create all graduations in PhotoShop from scratch. If you can see any banding in your color proof at all it will be unacceptable for sublimation.

Be sure your image is high resolution, 300dpi or above at 100%. Please give us any layered files if you have them.

Correct Scan Resolutions:
The first important point to understand is the differences between PPI (pixels per inch) and DPI (dots per inch). Many software programs and scanner interfaces use these two terms interchangeably but that's not exactly accurate. As a general rule, and for the purposes of this article, the term PPI should be used when referring to image resolution, and the term DPI should be used when referring to printing resolution. How can you remember this? Monitors display pixels, and printers produce dots. So, as you follow this discussion, whether your software calls it DPI or PPI, when I talk about the resolution of your image, I will be using the terminology PPI.

Key Points:
- PPI refers to image resolution
- DPI refers to printer resolution
- Inkjets need half the PPI of the printer's DPI setting
- Print size and print quality have an inverse relationship
- Print size and print quality are dependent on pixel resolution

Pixel Resolution:
Digital photos and scans are all bitmap graphic types, no matter what format the image is saved to. That means they are made up of a grid of individual, tiny pixels with each pixel representing a single color in the image. If you zoom in on one of these images (see example) in your imaging software you'll be able to see the individual squares of color. What this means in relation to printing is that these types of images are resolution-dependent. In other words, the quality of the print and the size of the printed image is limited by the number of pixels in the image. You can't increase one value without effectively decreasing the other.

A popular myth is that it's necessary to scan an image at the same resolution that you will be using to print. In the case of color and grayscale images, this only results in excessive file sizes. A good general rule for inkjet printing is that you need half the PPI of the printer's DPI setting that you intend to use. So if you're using your printer's "normal" setting (300 dpi), your image needs to have at least 150 ppi.

If all this means nothing to you why not contact us with your ideas and let us do the rest.