Instructions for preparing card files

The PDF file must contain pages arranged alternately, in the order: Front (Face) – Back (Reverse).

Rule: One page in the PDF file is always one side of a card (front or back). This means that each complete card consists of two consecutive pages in the PDF file.

Example for a 30-card deck (60 pages in the file):

• • Page 1 – front of card #1
  • Page 2 – back of card #1
  • Page 3 – front of card #2
  • Page 4 – back of card #2
  • …and so on, up to Page 60.

Duplicating cards: If there are to be several identical cards in the deck, you must duplicate them in the PDF file (i.e., duplicate their front and back), remembering to maintain the alternating order.

Example of a card deck with the same reverse side: Each card consists of two consecutive pages in the PDF file (front and back).

The orientation in the PDF file must be the same as on the finished card.

• • For vertical cards, use pages in portrait orientation.

• • For horizontal cards, use pages in landscape orientation.

NOTE – Mixed Cards: If you have both vertical and horizontal cards in one PDF file, you must manually rotate the back (reverse) of the card by 180 degrees relative to its front (face) for those cards whose orientation differs from the majority. This will ensure that after printing and turning the card, the back will be facing the correct way.

Before submitting the file for printing, you must convert all text to outlines (in graphic design programs, this function may also be called “convert fonts” or “flatten”).

Why is this important?

• • Print Assurance: This guarantees that the fonts on the printed cards will look exactly as they do in your design, regardless of the fonts available to our printer’s software. This helps avoid printing errors and distortions.
  • Responsibility: If we receive a file where the text has not been converted to outlines, and errors related to incorrect font display occur during printing, we will not be able to accept such a complaint.

PDF Page Size

To precisely cut the cards, you must provide an additional margin on each page of the PDF file, known as print bleed.

• • Rule: The page in the PDF file must be 6 mm larger than the target card dimension in length and 6 mm in width (i.e., 3 mm on each side).
  • Example: If your card has dimensions of 63 mm x 88 mm, then the page in the PDF file must be 69 mm x 94 mm.

Tip: After opening a PDF file with your card design in Adobe Reader, the file size (dimensions) will be displayed if you hover your mouse cursor over the bottom-left corner of the program’s viewer window.

What is print bleed?

Print bleed is an additional 3 mm of graphics on each edge that extends beyond the card’s trim line. This is a safety buffer that helps avoid white edges after trimming.

• • Important: The bleed must be an extension of the card’s graphics, not a border that is cut off from the graphics.
  • Exception: White can only be used as bleed if the card itself has a white border on the edge. In all other cases, the graphics must be extended to cover these additional 3 mm.

This is a crucial design stage, stemming from the technological aspects of printing. Binding machines operate with a small but significant cutting tolerance (inaccuracy). To avoid production and aesthetic errors, you must maintain appropriate distances from the card’s edge.

Adhere to the 4 mm rule:

• • Protect Important Elements (Safe Area): Place all key objects – texts, logos, icons, symbols, or inner frames – at a distance of at least 4 mm from the trim line (inward). This will prevent them from being accidentally cut off or aesthetically “stuck” to the edge.

  • Ensure Border Aesthetics: If your design includes a border running along the edges, it must also be at least 4 mm wide on the finished card. Thinner borders are risky – with even a minimal knife shift, differences in margin width will become visible to the naked eye, which looks unprofessional.

Important: Remember that the border (like the background) must extend beyond the net format, i.e., into the bleed (additional 3 mm).

The rule is simple:

• • In the PDF file you send us, do not include lines that show where the card should be trimmed (so-called trim lines).
  • Similarly, do not add rounded corners (we will do this automatically).

The only acceptable elements are:

• • Crop marks in the corners (i.e., small, short lines at the card’s corners that our machines use for precise print positioning).

The PDF file name should contain key information so that we can quickly and accurately identify your order.

Always include in it:

Your Last Name/Company Name
Exact Card Dimensions

Example: kowalski_41x63.pdf

If you have ordered from us before (or are placing a repeat order): To minimize the risk of error, add the current order date (in Day.Month.Year format).

Example: kowalski_63x88_23.06.2025.pdf

Maximum File Size

For technical reasons, the maximum size of a single PDF file you send us cannot exceed 2 GB.