Ever wonder how the ink on a postcard goes all the way to the edge? It seems like a trick only the great Houdini could have mastered! The fact is printers don’t use any magic words or a wand; instead they use a method known as a bleed. Unfortunately a printer is unable to print all the way to the edge of a piece of paper. So this is where a bleed comes in handy. A bleed, literally refers to a design bleeding or extending beyond the border. To achieve the illusion, a printer uses a larger piece of paper than needed and trims off the extra area (bleed) eliminating any type of lines or white space.

When specifying your job to the printer, always make sure to let them know if you need a bleed. As a general rule, remember to add a bleed if the image you designed goes all the way up to the edge of the page, otherwise there will a small white border around the design. But note there can be additional costs associated with a bleed. Bleeds require the printer to use larger paper and cut it down to size, so in some cases they may have to use a larger printer - which could increase the cost of your print job.

To help demonstrate, let’s discuss printing a postcard, and how it would be measured with and without a bleed. You want a 6”x 4” postcard with an image of a sunny beach. The first option has the photo with a 1/4” white border all the way around the edge. The second option covers the entire card, edge to edge. The first option is not a bleed, therefore the document size should be set up at 6”x 4”, and the image size would actually be 5.5”x 3.5”. The second option, however, is a bleed, therefore the document size and the image should be 6.25”x 4.25”, thus providing a 1/8” bleed area on the document. Be sure to insert crop marks to specify the 6”x 4” actual size for proper cutting or cropping of your image.

Remember, speak with your printer about a bleed before sending them artwork! Getting it right on the front end can not only save time, but save money as well. The amount of bleed varies depending on the type of piece being printed and the size. Miscommunications during the printing process can lead to a large discrepancy between your estimated bid and the final bill.

Asking questions and proper design lead to high quality and crisp printed pieces. We know the importance that bleeds have on any printed piece and would love to answer your questions.