FAQs

C1S stands for Coating One Sided. Paper with this designation has a special coating on ONLY one side of the paper. This coating is generally a glossy coating on the paper. (This should not be confused with a gloss coating that is applied to sheets after they are printed)

C2S stands for Coating Two Sided. Paper with this designation has a special coating on BOTH sides of the paper. This coating is generally a glossy coating on the paper. (This should not be confused with a gloss coating that is applied to sheets after they are printed)

Uncoated paper is paperstock that has no coating. Other papers without this designation might have a sometype of coating.

Glossy paper has a special coating applied to the paper to give a glossy appears. Glossy paper is a coated paper. Coated papers keep the ink on the surface and avoids bleeding (not to be confused with an artwork bleed)

Dull paper is specially made to have a dull finish. A Dull coating is applied to the paper. This makes most printing appear crisper. This is especially good for printing books and artwork with lots of text. Dull paper is a coated paper stock.

Matte paper is non-glossy. Ink asorbs more into the paper, which reduces glare, offers great writeability, maximizes readability, which gives you the look and feel of an uncoated sheet, with the quality of a coated sheet.

Cover stock (also called card stock) is thicker and more durable than normal writing papers. Cover stock is often used to print the outside cover of a brochure. Other common applications are: rack cards, hang tags, business cards, postcards, bookmarks, calendars.

10pt or 10 point paper is noting a thickness of paper. The ’10’ is the thickness of the paper measured in thousandths of an inch: 0.010. When paper is referred to in points it is almost always referring to a cover stock. Ie 10pt gloss cover.

12pt or 12 point paper is noting a thickness of paper. The ’12’ is the thickness of the paper measured in thousandths of an inch: 0.012. When paper is referred to in points it is almost always referring to a cover stock. Ie 12pt gloss cover.

14pt or 14 point paper is noting a thickness of paper. The ’14’ is the thickness of the paper measured in thousandths of an inch: 0.014. When paper is referred to in points it is almost always referring to a cover stock. Ie 14pt gloss cover.

Today Book and Text are referring to the same type of paper.

AQ stands for Aqueous Coating. This is a clear liquid that can be applied to offset printed sheets. The coating provides some protection from scuffs, dirt and smudges. Primarily AQ coating is used to enhance the look of a piece. There are many types of AQ. The most common are: Dull, Gloss, Satin, Pencil/Pen Receptive. Note: Aqueous coatings are water based and are considered quick drying.

Gloss AQ is a type of water based Aqueous Coating that leaves a Glossy layer over the printing. The coating provides some protection from scuffs, dirt and smudges. (See Aqueous Coating)

Dull AQ is a type of water based Aqueous Coating that applies a Dull layer over the printing. The coating provides some protection from scuffs, dirt and smudges. (See Aqueous Coating)

Ever written on a brochure and the ink/pencil smears? They probably use glossy or dull AQ. Pencil/Pen AQ is specially formulated to let let pencils and pens write on them and not smear. This is great for brochures and other items that will be written on later.

Brochures printed in volume often have a coating. Please let your Customer Service Associate know that your project needs to be written on and they will spec out for your project to be coated with Pencil/Pen receiptive AQ.

UV coating stands for Ultra-Violet coatings. This is a popular method to coat short run digital materials with a very high gloss coating. UV coating provide good resistance to abrasion. Much better than most Gloss AQ/water based coatings.

We recommend postcards to be printed on 14pt C2S. This is a paper that has a glossy finish on both sides (C2S) and is very stiff. Note: Postal regulations do require a minimum thickness.)

Sometimes you want the your image or background to go to the very edge of the paper. To accomplish this the piece must actually be printed bigger than the final size and then cut down. An example is a 4.25″ x 6″ postcard. The artwork for this should be around 4.5″ x 6.25″. This extra 1/8″ all around your image is the bleed. We will print 4.5″ x 6.25″ and cut this extra 1/8″ off. This allows your artword to be printed to the very edge of your piece.

CMYK is an acronym that stands for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black inks. CMYK is sometimes noted as 4cp or process color. The vast majority of projects printed in color, print in CMYK.

4cp is a shorthand way to say 4 color process. These four colors will be Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black (CMYK). This is also refered to as Process Color. The vast majority of printed items are done in 4cp/CMYK/Process Color.

Process color is referring to printing with Cyan, Magneta, Yellow and Black. This is also noted as CMYK or 4cp. The vast majority of printed items are done in this manner.

RGB stands for Red, Green, Blue. This is the color pallet used in computer monitors. RGB images are often developed for websites. RGB files and artwork images will NOT be used for printing. An RGB file will need to be converted to CMYK prior to printing.

Low Res means that the artwork or an artwork element has a resolution that is considered lower than the standard for that specific printing method. Any printed done with a Low Res artwork would most probably appear blurry and low quality.

Computer monitors display in RGB (Red, Green, Blue). Artwork developed for computer monitors will often be designed in RGB. Printed items are almost never printed in RGB. The vast majority of printed items are printed in Process Colors (CMYK). CMYK stands for Cyan, Magneta, Yellow and Black. Our PrePress programs will interpret any RGB images into CMYK. This can sometimes be a problem. The shading or tone of the printed item will be different than the image you saw on your computer monitor. We strongly recommend that the conversion from RGB to CMYK be done prior to submitting artwork for printing.

There are some variables that go into answering this question. Some of these variables are: quantity to be printed, is this going to be mailed, is this a self mailer, how is this to be used and number of pages. The best answer is to contact one of our experienced Customer Service Associates to discuss the details.

Items printed on a desktop printer will often look different than commercial digital or offset printing equipment. Please discuss the availability to obtain a printed sample with your Customer Service Associate at the beginning of a project. This is especially important for clients servicing corporations with firm color specifications.

Large volume projects are printed on one of our larger offset presses. Black text artwork that uses all 4 primary inks (CMYK) is often referred to as Rich Black. Any minor registration inconsistencies will cause the text to be blurry. To provide the best results we specify that all black text should be in solid black (100% = K and 0% of CMY). This information is mainly for regular black text on offset presses and doesn’t apply to colored text or items printed using other digital printers.

Sometimes you want the your image or background to go to the very edge of the paper. To accomplish this the piece must actually be printed bigger than the final size and then cut down. As an example, if your final size is 8.5 x 11 and your image goes to the edge, your artwork should be 8.75 x 11.25 (1/8″ bleed all around)

Yes we offer several types of mailing services. We offer both bulk and targeted mailing services. Our experienced organization has a long track record of generic mailings and those with dynamic content. Dynamic content is also referred to as personalized or variable mailings.

We offer both digital and offset printing. Your project specifications will be reviewed with you to determine what is the appropriate printing method for your project.

There are a few primary variables that determine which is the most appropriate printing method for your project. These primary variables are: quantity, turn time, and color sensitivity. Call one of our experienced Customer Service Associates to discuss your project specifications.

Yes. Please note that a mailing permit is for a specific post office.

Printers and monitors produce color differently. Differences are to be expected because the monitor shows images in RGB and your printed piece is being printed in CMYK. If your project is extremely color sensitive please bring it to the attention of your Customer Service Associate at the start of your project

If you supply us with a high res, printable pdf – we do not need the links to your images or fonts. If you need us to make any changes, you will need to supply us with all links, images and fonts. Our Customer Service Associate can guide you through submitting your files.

The resolution should be 300 dpi at 100%

PDF (Portable Document Format) is the most common preferred file format for submitting digital files.

PMS stands for Pantone Matching System is a color reproduction standard in which colors all across the spectrum are each identified by a unique, independent number. The use of PMS allows us to precisey match colors. However you can’t print digitally with PMS colors, only offset.

A proof is a way of ensuring your job is set up accurately and free from errors. A PDF proof is a soft electronic proof and is quick and convenient. We can e-mail you a proof or a link to view your proof. A hard copy proof is a “one off” copy of your document to show color, trim, page numbers etc. The most common proof for smaller projects is a PDF proof. By approving the proof, you are acknowledging that your job is ready to print. Your Customer Service Associate can discuss your proofing options with you.

Not typically. White the default color of paper and is considered absence of color. There are some instances where white ink or foil can be used.