printing invitations at kinkos/staples

[musincy]

Have any of you printed your invitations at Kinkos, Staples, etc? I bought an invitation kit from Target, and wasn''t sure what the process is to have them printed at one of those stores. Do I create the wording and bring the file to them? What are the steps I need to take?

Also... how much did it cost?

Thanks.

 

[marchswallowbird]

Call them up and ask what their cost and procedures are! But I would suggest that you have a pdf file that is sized correctly to your paper that they just use to imprint onto your invites.

 

[musincy]

Date: 2/18/2009 8:56:16 PM
Author: marchswallowbird
Call them up and ask what their cost and procedures are! But I would suggest that you have a pdf file that is sized correctly to your paper that they just use to imprint onto your invites.

I did try calling and the person I spoke with was not helpful at all...I might have to rethink that store. That''s why I thought I''d ask here just in case someone had gone through the process.

 

[tropiqalkiwi]

If you are looking for more service a local print shop might be better for you. Alot of times these places do more custom-y jobs where Kinko''s focuses on large simple orders. Most print shops also have designers that you can hire to help you design your invites or simply to lay them out in the proper software, if you are looking for that.

Here is what the usual process is like at print shops: You go in with the file you want printed on a cd or jump (USB) drive. You talk to somebody and tell them what you need and they will give you a few options (color vs. black and white, high quality paper vs. regular, etc.) that will affect price. Then they print your stuff, they should be able to tell you how long it will take for the prints to be done (sometimes the fancy printers already have a long list of jobs waiting to print and yours is put at the end of the que.) Then you pick them up (don''t forget to look at them and make sure there aren''t any mistakes or bad prints!) and pay.

Let me know if you want any more advice about layout programs, file type, resolution, etc.

 

[musincy]

Date: 2/18/2009 9:59:14 PM
Author: tropiqalkiwi
If you are looking for more service a local print shop might be better for you. Alot of times these places do more custom-y jobs where Kinko''s focuses on large simple orders. Most print shops also have designers that you can hire to help you design your invites or simply to lay them out in the proper software, if you are looking for that.

Here is what the usual process is like at print shops: You go in with the file you want printed on a cd or jump (USB) drive. You talk to somebody and tell them what you need and they will give you a few options (color vs. black and white, high quality paper vs. regular, etc.) that will affect price. Then they print your stuff, they should be able to tell you how long it will take for the prints to be done (sometimes the fancy printers already have a long list of jobs waiting to print and yours is put at the end of the que.) Then you pick them up (don''t forget to look at them and make sure there aren''t any mistakes or bad prints!) and pay.

Let me know if you want any more advice about layout programs, file type, resolution, etc.

Thank you so much for your help. I actually bought blank invitations, so I don''t need to worry about the design or the paper type. Basically, I just need my wording printed on the paper I have. I think I will search for some local printers and see what they will charge... it sounds like they might be a little more helpful.

 

[tropiqalkiwi]

I''m glad I was helpful!

The layout I was referring to is of your text, in case you wanted a typeface your computer doesn''t have or you wanted help with deciding on spacing or type size, things like that. They might even give you advice on that for free and help you with a few tweaks if they/you are nice.

Anyway, good luck finding a helpful printer!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Most printers don''t print on invitation sized paper. They''ll print on larger paper and trim it to size. I tried this route with my save the dates which were 5"x7". In the end we just printed them at home on our colored printer.

 

[Lanie]

Musincy, I found the cutest invites at Target too! They have a bunch for about 35 dollars for 50. We are using them for our Rehearsal Dinner invitations.

Anyway, I found that Kinkos and Staples were awful (at least in my area). Others have had success with them though. I googled local printers and found one that will do thermography for WAY cheaper than I thought it would be. It''s only about 80 dollars more than regular b/w printing, so you might want to check into that as well. I''m going with copy.com but I don''t know if it''s a chain or not.

 

[musincy]

Date: 2/19/2009 11:24:53 AM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
Most printers don''t print on invitation sized paper. They''ll print on larger paper and trim it to size. I tried this route with my save the dates which were 5''x7''. In the end we just printed them at home on our colored printer.

Uh oh, mine are 5x7. I really didn''t want to print them at home... is that really my only option??

 

[bootsiekin]

I had this same problem when I wanted to have my STDs printed at Kinkos. They said they can''t print anything smaller than regular 8.5x11. I ended up printing them on my home printer and they actually turned out fine. I did have my programs printed at Staples (much cheaper than Kinkos) and they turned out great - but they were on regular paper size. If the size is a problem, if its only text your printing, your home printer may be fine - you could always test a few out first and see what they look like.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I printed mine at home and they came out great. There are pics in the DIY thread.

 

[Gypsy]

Did my escort cards there on blank business cards. The printing, in color, was totally economical. I think I spent close to 5 bucks for the printing.

 

[musincy]

Date: 2/19/2009 11:24:53 AM
Author: Hudson_Hawk
Most printers don''t print on invitation sized paper. They''ll print on larger paper and trim it to size. I tried this route with my save the dates which were 5''x7''. In the end we just printed them at home on our colored printer.

You''re right... I called Staples and Kinkos and they said they only do letter size and larger. Do you think local, privately owned printers would do smaller cards?