Sometimes you're dancing on the fine line in print design. When working in digital publishing, it can be difficult to truly know what your end result may look like. Screen size and resolution can make you find yourself on edge with your content.
By edge, we mean the size of your document. Often, prints will be cut down from larger sheets. If your text and graphics are too close to the edge, it can be an eyesore, or worse, cut off entirely.
The easiest solution is keeping these rules in mind when it comes to margins, and the space needed to keep your prints clean and legible:
1. Business Cards
A minimum of an eighth-inch is good because the item is so small. It leaves enough room so that nothing gets cut. 3/16" will give you a bit more breathing room.
2. Brochures, Postcards, Flyers
These items range from 4.25" wide panels to 8.5" x 11" documents. You're looking at on average, quarter-inch margins to give balance to the rest of the document. If you go an eighth-inch like business cards, it can make a reader feel uneasy as their eye will conflict with high-volume text teetering on the edge.
3. Books
These get tricky because the binding may vary. A simple stapled saddle-stitch will typically range from a quarter-inch all around, to a half-inch from inside the spine. But coil-bound and perfect-bound (hard covers, paperbacks) can vary based on where the binding takes place.
Most hole-punched coil-binding will need a half-inch to 5/8" from the inside of the pages. The holes are usually a quarter-inch in, so accounting for this space will relieve any risk of content getting punched out.
When perfect-binding, understanding your book size and page count early helps. The more pages you have, the thicker the book. The thicker the book, the more the inside of the pages bow in the middle. A half-inch margin from the spine is a good start on small page counts. When designing your book like this, talking to your printer or publisher is always a good start.
If you're on edge about reaching your audience,
contact us. The only edge you should worry about is the competitive edge!