Artwork Guidelines for Business Cards and Stationery

File Specifications for Thermography, Flat, Foil, Embossing, Full Color, and Stationery:

Accepted file types: PDF or EPS from Adobe® InDesign®, Illustrator®, Photoshop®; CorelDRAW®; or QuarkXPress®.

How to prepare your file:

• Size your layout to your product’s required document/page size.
• For thermography or flat printing, use the color palette for Adobe or a PANTONE® color palette to assign spot colors. For foil or embossing, use the color palette. For full color printing, use CMYK color space.
• Use high-resolution graphics at a minimum of 300 dpi. For best printing quality, we recommend 600 dpi. 
• Embed or convert all your fonts to outlines, curves, or paths.
• Remove any crop marks or bounding boxes.
• Export, save, publish or print to a PDF file.

Tips on scanning images: Scan photos at a minimum of 300 dpi and line art at a minimum of 600 dpi. Scan the image at the intended finished size. Scan gradients at a minimum of 300 dpi at 120 lines per inch.

Second side (back) printing: Create a 2-page PDF, making the first page the FRONT and the second page the BACK. 

Multiple units: For multiple units with single-side printing, create a multiple-page PDF with one name on each page. For multiple units with printing on both sides, create a 2-page PDF for each name. 

Multiple files: Compress the files into one zip file.

Adding foil to full color: To prepare your full color with foil file, you’ll need a program that will create a PDF that supports layers. Prepare your artwork file with a separate layer for the foil area. Then use the foil color swatch in the Wes-Tex color palette for Adobe products. Indicate the piece to foil stamp in the additional instructions of the upload process.

Embossing special instructions: To prepare your embossing file, you’ll need a program that will create a PDF that supports layers. Prepare your artwork file with a separate layer for the embossed area. Then use the emboss swatch in the Wes-Tex color palette for Adobe products. Indicate the piece to emboss in the additional instructions of the upload process.

Checklist for sending orders:

1. Convert fonts to outlines.
2. Check color palette.
3. Verify color separations.
4. If your artwork bleeds off the edge, allow for trimming of the card.
5. Export as a PDF with bleeds.