How I Design and Print My Own Greeting Cards

Greeting Card Size

Before you even start thinking about what sorts of designs you’re going to make, it’s important to choose what size you want your cards. Now it’s not totally necessary to do this first. However, for me it’s way easier to design the card when I’m working on a canvas that’s the same size as the card I’ll be printing on. By doing this I can make sure that the design looks good on the card before I print!

The card size I use is A2 which is 4.25″ by 5.5″. It’s a pretty standard size so it’s easy to find card stock and envelopes to match your design/brand.

Creating the Design

Pinterest is my favorite place to find inspiration for quotes I can use on my mugs. I usually try to choose things that I think would be really funny or weird on a card. I also like to come up with sayings that relate to specific topics. If you can come up with a really fun and quirky Harry Potter saying to put on a card, Harry Potter fans are going to buy that card to give to other Harry Potter fans.

When I know what I want the card to say I make a template on Procreate that’s the same dimensions as the card (4.25″ x 5.5″ ). You can do this on whatever program you’re using.

When I’m done I resize/center/do whatever I need to do to the image so that it’s where I want it to be on the card. By making sure it looks right on the digital template it’ll be much easier to print it out the way you want

Choosing Paper

I prefer to print on heavyweight folded cardstock. I would suggest at least 80lb cardstock. No one wants a flimsy as heck card. I like to use this paper from Paper Source.

I love Paper Source. There’s so many different color options, size options, and you can order folded A2 cards! Also, it’s pretty affordable.

Printer

First thing’s first is you have to get a printer that can handle more artistic jobs. You don’t want your cardstock jamming your printer.

I use this printer to do all my print jobs. Its pretty affordable and the ink is even more affordable. I did loads of research on the type of printer I should get and this was the most affordable and the most recommended. If you don’t want to get this specific printer I definitely suggest you do research before choosing!

Printing Your Greeting Cards

When you’re getting ready to print make sure to specify what size your paper is. There’s a bunch of options but if you don’t see the dimensions you’re using you can create a custom size.

Once you’ve told the printer what size paper it’s printing on, check the preview on the left to make sure everything looks how it should. I sometimes have to mess around with the settings to make sure the image is oriented properly / isn’t cut off. The three things I mess around with depending on the card is fit to screen, borders/no borders, and orientation. I’m not entirely sure what some of these mean/do but if my preview doesn’t look the way I want to changing these things usually fixes it.

Finally! It’s time to print!

Putting the paper I’m using in the right way is honestly the hardest part of this entire process for me. I’m not very good at rotating 3D images so sometimes I screw it up. However, I do know that the printer I use prints from top to bottom and the paper just goes straight through. This means that I put the paper with the side I want the design on facing up and the top of the card goes in head first. I’m not entirely sure if that makes sense. But I’m still figuring out the orientation part of printing. Hopefully, you’re not as bad at figuring out which way to put your card in the printer as I am.

Time to Sell Your Greeting Cards

Make sure that you have matching envelopes for your greeting cards. I like to use paper bag envelopes because they go with everything. Sure those lime green envelopes might be calling your name but I can guarantee you AT LEAST half of your customers will hate that color. Everyone loves a good paper bag.

The cheapest way to ship your cards is in an A7 envelope with a forever stamp. It’s quick, easy, and inexpensive. If your customer is buying a 4 dollar card they don’t want to pay as much, if not more for shipping. A forever stamp is like 50 cents.

Now that you have all the details sorted out it’s time to open up your shop! If you need some inspiration you can check out my shop to see the types of cards I sell! If you think you’re ready you can click here to get 40 FREE listings!!!!

Related: 8+ Procreate Brushes Every iPad Letterer Needs