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Artwork and file prep for vinyl decals
The commonest delay on a decal order is the file. Cut vinyl needs outlines for the blade to follow, printed work needs enough resolution at the finished size, and a logo pulled off a website is usually neither. None of this is a problem — we redraw artwork all the time — but knowing it up front saves a round trip and gets your job on the plotter sooner.
The short version
- Cut vinyl — vector only: SVG, PDF, AI or EPS. The blade follows the outlines in the file, and a JPG has none.
- Printed work — vector is best; a PNG or JPG at roughly 150 DPI or better at the finished size is fine.
- Clear and holographic film — the background must be genuinely transparent, not white.
- Text — convert to outlines or paths before sending.
- Only have a photo? Send it. We redraw as vector for a small fee.
What file format should I send?
Vector is best for everything: SVG, PDF, AI or EPS. For cut vinyl it is not a preference but a requirement, because the blade physically follows the outlines stored in the file. For printed work a high-resolution PNG or JPG is fine at roughly 150 DPI or better at the finished size. If you are not sure what you have, send it and we will tell you — that takes us a minute and saves you guessing.
What is the difference between vector and raster?
A raster file (JPG, PNG, GIF, most photos) is a grid of coloured pixels. Enlarge it and you get bigger pixels, which is why a logo pulled off a website looks soft printed at a foot wide. A vector file stores shapes as mathematical curves, so it is resolution-independent: the same file is sharp on a two-inch sticker and on a four-foot sign. Cut vinyl has no pixels at all — there is only the path the blade takes — so it needs vector outlines to exist.
I only have a JPG or a photo of my logo. Now what?
Send it anyway. We redraw artwork as vector for a small fee, and it is very common — old logos, a photo of a faded truck door, a business card, a sketch on paper. You see a proof of the redraw before anything is cut, and once it is done you own a file that works at any size forever, which is worth having regardless.
What resolution do printed stickers need?
About 150 DPI at the finished size is the working minimum, and 300 DPI is comfortable. The phrase that matters is "at the finished size": a 300 DPI image that is two inches wide is only 75 DPI printed at eight inches. If you know the pixel dimensions, divide them by the finished size in inches and that is your real DPI.
Do I need to send the fonts?
Not if you convert text to outlines or paths before sending — which is the better answer, because it guarantees the lettering comes out exactly as you drew it regardless of what is installed here. In Illustrator that is Create Outlines; in Inkscape it is Object to Path; most design tools have an equivalent. If you cannot, tell us the font name and send the file anyway.
Does the background need to be transparent?
For anything printed on clear or holographic film, yes, and genuinely transparent rather than a white rectangle that looks transparent on a white page. White in a file prints as white ink, which on holographic film hides the effect entirely and on clear film creates the white patch you were trying to avoid. A PNG with real alpha or a vector file with no background shape is what is wanted.
Will the colours match exactly?
Printed work is matched closely but a screen and a printer are different technologies — a screen emits light, ink reflects it — so expect very close rather than identical, especially with strong blues and oranges. Cut vinyl is a different situation: the colour is the vinyl itself, chosen from the colours we stock, so what you get is a physical swatch rather than a mix. If exact colour matters, say so and we can work to a reference.
Is there a minimum line thickness for cut vinyl?
In practice, strokes much under about an eighth of an inch and text much under half an inch tall get hard to weed and tend to lift at the edges once applied. Hairline serifs, tight script joins and fine outlines are the usual casualties. This is a property of the blade and the film, not of the design — we check your artwork at the size you actually need and tell you before cutting, not after.
Do you need bleed on printed artwork?
A little helps. Extend the background about an eighth of an inch past where the cut will fall, and keep important detail the same distance inside it. Cutting has a small tolerance, and bleed is what stops a sliver of white appearing along one edge. If your file has no bleed we will usually just add it.
Will I see a proof before it is made?
Always. Every job is proofed by email before anything is cut or printed, with the finished dimensions stated. Check the spelling, the phone number and the size on that proof — approving it is what releases the job, and custom work cannot be remade for a typo that was approved.
How to send it
Attach the file to an email to info@signs613.com, or use the request form, which takes attachments. Send the largest version you have rather than a resized copy, and if the artwork exists in several places — a website, an old sign, a business card — send them all and let us pick the best source. Tell us the finished size you want at the same time, because whether a file is good enough is a question that only has an answer once we know how big it is going.
What happens next
We check the file at the size you need, tell you plainly if anything will not hold up, and send a proof by email with the finished dimensions on it. Nothing is cut or printed until you approve that proof. Check the spelling and the numbers on it carefully — custom work cannot be remade for a typo that was signed off.
Related reading
The materials guide covers which film your job wants, the size guide covers how big it should be, and the application guide covers getting it onto the surface once it arrives. If you are still deciding between cut vinyl and print, the plain decal guide is the place to start.