As an artist, there’s nothing more satisfying than seeing your creations come to life as physical prints. I’ve experimented with outsourcing my printing in the past, but I now proudly print art prints in my home studio!
I work out of a tiny bedroom in our home, so EVERYTHING I do is done in my little home studio. Kinda crazy, but I somehow make it work.
In this blog post, I’ll share the print sizes I currently offer in my shop and why, and some basic tips on how to print art prints at home.
Related:
Print Sizes I Offer
At this moment in time, I only offer 2 print sizes, 5×7 and 8×10. I really wanted to add 11×14 but my printer doesn’t have a 11×14 borderless option and I’ve tried all the hacks and nothing works. All my art prints are borderless and I prefer to keep it that way.
I’d probably get more sales if I offered more sizes but honestly this is the way it has to be for now. As I mentioned, my studio is TINY and I’m juggling so much and can only do so much too!
Printing Art Prints at Home
If you are interested in printing art prints at home, here are some tips for you:
1. Choose High-Quality Paper
Invest in good-quality paper designed for art prints. I use Red River Paper for my art prints and greeting cards.
You can learn more about why paper is important in this blog post:
2. Make Sure Your Art Is High-Resolution
Make sure the file you’re printing is high resolution. If I’m scanning watercolor paintings to be made into prints, I scan them in at 600 DPI to edit them. If you’re creating digital art to sell, ensure the file is set properly before you start creating.
I edit everything in Photoshop. There are other alternatives out there but I’m not familiar with anything else. In Photoshop I set everything up for print. Ensuring the file is high-quality and set to CMYK (the mode for printing).
3. Adjust Printer Settings
Always adjust your printer settings to match the type of paper and the print quality you desire. To be honest I wasn’t too familiar with all the options there are for this. I followed Red River’s tutorials on their website and get an excellent print quality every time.
I use a Canon Pro-200 printer!
My Supply List & Recommendations
4. Plan On Making Several Test Prints
I did sooooo many test prints in the beginning. Tutorials were my life saver when figuring this all out.
Don’t expect to get everything set up and have a perfect print (unless you’re super lucky)! More than likely, you’ll have to play around with settings to get your perfect print.
If you’re new to making art prints, this is normal. Just letting you know what to expect. 🙂
Shop My Art Prints Here!
Final Thoughts About Printing Your Own Art Prints
Anyone can print their art at home. Five years ago I had no idea how to do it myself, I was just outsourcing all the prints. There are pros and cons to printing your own prints of course. My favorite pro is that I can print when I get orders, instead of having inventory.
The printer and paper are the most important parts of getting a good print. They are costly up front, but I think you save in the long run because outsourcing can add up.
If you have any questions about print sizes or need advice on printing at home, comment below and I’ll help the best I can!
-Amanda
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