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2024-02-29 10:30:00
Find out how to print on card with our helpful guide. Here you’ll find a step-by-step guide to card printing and cardstock printer recommendations.
Why Print on Card?
Heavier than standard paper, cardstock is ideal for printing the following:
- Greetings cards
- Invitations
- Business cards
- Revision cards
- Marketing materials
- Brochures
- Name badges
Printing on card produces professional results that are more durable than standard copy paper. Making your own greetings cards allows you to customise your own design and save money when compared to buying a card from a shop.
Tips for Card Printing
Requiring a slightly different approach than standard copy paper due to its thickness, here’s some advice to help you get the most out of your card printing.
Printer Compatibility: First of all, check your printer manual to confirm it can handle cardstock. Most modern printers will be able to print with card, but there may be weight and thickness limitations that you’ll need to be aware of before printing.
Choosing Cardstock: Make sure you choose card that is compatible with your printer. Consider factors like thickness, finish (matte/glossy) and colour. Various weights of card are available, with heavier weights, (measured in gsm,) being thicker. Think about how sturdy your print needs to be when choosing card to print on.
Preparing Your Design: Either find a design you like, (we have lots of free printable birthday cards here), or create your own using design software such as Adobe Illustrator, Canva or Photoshop. Make sure your design fits within the dimensions of the cardstock (more on that later) and that it includes the desired text, images and graphics.
Proofread: Read over your document to check for any errors or typos. This prevents you from wasting ink/toner and card on unusable prints.
Print a Draft First: Before printing on cardstock, print a draft version on standard copy paper to check the layout, colours and alignment of your print without wasting card.
How to Print on Card: A Step-by-Step Guide
1. Set the Printer Preferences: You’ll need to adjust your printer’s settings to be able to print with cardstock. Settings to look out for include paper type, size and thickness. Check your printer’s manual for printer-specific instructions.
2. Load Cardstock Into the Printer: Open the paper tray on your printer and adjust the paper guides to fit the card’s width. Then place the card in the tray, making sure that it doesn’t exceed the maximum thickness accepted by your printer.
3. Print: Once you’ve checked your design and confirmed there’s no errors and it looks the way you want, simply print it out!
4. Allow Your Print to Dry: While it may be tempting to pick up and inspect your print straight away, you’ll need to be very careful doing so, as it needs time to dry. This could take between a few minutes and an hour, depending on the ink and printer used. To avoid smudging the ink and ruining your print, handle the cardstock carefully.
5. Trim: Finally, trim your print to the desired size and shape, if necessary. Consider laminating your card print for a more professional look.
How to Make a Birthday Card
Printing a birthday card at home is a great way to save money with a bespoke memento for a loved one.
Cartridge People offers a wide range of free printable greetings cards for the following occasions:
- Birthdays
- Valentine’s Day
- Mother’s Day
- Easter
- Father’s Day
- Exam Congratulations
- Christmas
It couldn’t be easier to print your own cards, simply make sure your printer is topped up with ink and card, and follow the instructions below:
1. Either select your design (we have a wide range of free printable birthday cards), or create your own.
2. If you choose to create your own design, open your design software and create a document with the appropriate dimensions for a greetings card (usually 5x7 inches).
3. Design the front cover.
4. Write your message to go inside the card. Alternatively, you can wait until it’s printed and handwrite your message instead.
5. Review the design, making sure you proofread the text to avoid typos.
6. Print a test print on standard copy paper to ensure the design is correct.
7. Review the following settings on your printer:
- Paper Type: Look for “Cardstock”, “Heavyweight” or “Thick Paper” in the settings menu.
- Paper Size: Ensure the paper size matches the card size you need to print. For greetings cards this is typically 5x7 inches.
- Paper Tray Selection: If your printer has more than one paper tray you need to make sure that you select the right one. Some printers have a specific tray designed for thicker media.
- Print Quality: For the best birthday cards, you’ll need to make sure your printer’s quality settings are set to the highest setting it’s capable of. While this will result in slower print speeds, it’s worth it as the print resolution and colour accuracy will be improved.
- Orientation: Do you want your birthday card to be landscape or portrait? You’ll need to change this in your printer’s settings to make sure your card is printed the right way round.
- Margins: Make sure your design doesn’t continue over the edge of the cardstock’s printable area. Your printer may have its own margin settings that could inadvertently cut off part of your card design, so it’s important to check this before you print.
- Scaling: Make sure the scaling setting is “Actual Size” or “100%” to stop your design from being resized or stretched.
- Duplex Printing: If your printer supports duplex (double-sided) printing, you’ll be able to print the front cover and inside message simultaneously. The duplex setting will need to be enabled if you want to do this, so make sure you check this before printing.
- Preview/Adjustments: Preview the card before printing and make sure there aren’t any error messages or warnings relating to the paper type or size.
8. Print your card after checking the settings.
9. Cut and fold your card. Carefully cut along the edges of the card using scissors.
10. Write your message and send!
Printers for Card
While generally both inkjet and laser printers can print on card (although not all do, so check your printer manual), laser printers are better suited to doing so because they are more capable of handling thicker materials. Plenty of inkjet printers can still produce high-quality prints using cardstock, however.
Laser printers use toner instead of ink, and toner is fused onto the paper using heat, which results in smudge-resistant prints. This is important when printing with card, as it can smudge if you don’t handle the print carefully. They also have straight paper paths which allow them to handle thicker media effectively.
Many inkjet printers support cardstock printing but this is dependent on the model and its capabilities. The ink these printers use is sprayed onto the paper, which makes it capable of smudging when printing on card. Smudging is less of an issue if you’re careful when handling your prints though. Inkjet printers are generally less expensive as well and are more than capable of producing high-quality card prints.
Please see our comprehensive breakdown of the difference between inkjet and laser printers for a more detailed comparison of the two printer types.
What to Look for in a Cardstock Printer
Think about the following if you’re looking for a printer to print on cardstock:
- Printer Specifications: Most importantly, you need to make sure the printer is capable of printing on card. Check the maximum paper weight and thickness and keep this in mind when buying card.
- Print Quality: Check the print resolution to make sure it’s good enough quality for your prints.
- Printer Path: Ideally, you’ll want a straight paper path as it reduces the risk of paper jams and allows thicker media to be fed into the printer smoothly.
- Budget/Usage: If you’re not going to print on card very often, an inkjet printer will be a more cost-effective printer to use. However, if you need to print professional quality documents on card frequently for your business, for example, a laser printer will be able to offer the quality and consistency you need.
Best Cardstock Printers
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To sum up, yes you can put card in a printer, as long as it supports thicker media. It’s easy to check if your printer supports cardstock, simply check your printer manual. Whether you’re printing a personalised birthday card, producing professional business cards or wanting a helpful revision tool, printing on card can be a great way to produce durable prints that are more substantial.
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