Xpression of colours, printed right.

Preparing artwork

• Keep 3 mm bleed on every edge, and hold text and logos 5 mm inside the trim.
• Send a press-ready PDF with fonts embedded or converted to outlines.
• Images at 300 dpi at final printed size; line art and barcodes higher.
• Convert RGB artwork to CMYK before you export, so you see the shift on your screen and not on the sheet.

Colour and light

• The same sheet reads differently under daylight, tube light and LED. Judge colour under one standard light, not three.
• Two inks that match under one light can drift apart under another — worth knowing when a carton and its insert are printed on different stocks.
• Use rich black for large solid areas and single black for small text, so fine type stays sharp.
• A monitor is a guide. When colour is critical, ask us for a proof off the press.

Substrate

• Coated stock holds ink on the surface — colour reads denser and detail stays crisp.
• Uncoated stock absorbs ink, so expect some dot gain and a softer, lighter result.
• Board and kraft carry their own colour; the paper is part of the mix, not a blank white.
• Finishing changes appearance: matt lamination drops density, gloss and UV lift it.

Environment and handling

• Paper takes on moisture. Keep stock and finished work flat, wrapped, and off the floor.
• Let sheets settle before folding or die-cutting — it keeps folds from cracking along heavy ink.
• Fresh ink needs time to set. Stacking a run too high too soon can mark the sheet below.
• Store away from direct sunlight. Reds and fluorescents fade first.

Die-lines

• Keep the die-line on its own layer as a spot colour set to overprint, never as part of the artwork.
• Mark cut, crease and perforation distinctly — a crease drawn as a cut becomes a cut on the sheet.
• Extend background colour 3 mm past every cut edge, including glue flaps and tuck-ins.
• Send the die-line as vector at 100% scale. Scaled or traced outlines drift from the tool.

Packaging structure

• Tell us the product weight and how the cartons will be stacked before the board is chosen.
• Grain direction runs along the crease — across it, the fold cracks and the box loses stiffness.
• Board caliper changes the flat size. Fix the structure first, then lay artwork on it.
• Ask for a plain mock-up on the actual board and pack your product into it before we print.

Pantone matching

• Name the Pantone number in the file and keep it as a spot channel, not converted to CMYK.
• Quote the coated or uncoated reference that matches your stock — the same number prints differently on each.
• Some Pantones cannot be reproduced in four colours. If the run is CMYK-only, we will show you how close it lands.
• Judge against a current swatch book. Fans fade with age and light, and an old one moves the target.

Send the die-line and the Pantone list with your first file.

It saves a round of proofs on almost every packaging job.