Planners are great for staying organized and productive. And creating your own custom planner with A5 sized pages allows you the flexibility to design it exactly how you want. But once you’ve created your planner pages, printing them properly can be a challenge. In this detailed guide, as a professional planner manufacturer, I’ll walk you through the entire process of printing A5 planner pages quickly and easily.
Why Print Your Own Planner Pages
Before we dive into the printing specifics, let’s first go over some of the benefits of creating custom planners with printable pages:
Complete Customization
When you design your own planner pages, you can include everything you need and leave out anything you don’t. No wasting space on sections you’ll never use. You can customize your planner to perfectly fit your organizational style and needs.
Cost Savings
Buying pre-made planners, especially ones from major brands, can get very expensive. Making DIY planners using printable pages you design allows you to create stylish planners at a fraction of the cost.
High Quality Prints
Another benefit of printing your own pages is that you can use thick, high-quality printer paper designed specifically for planners. This results in pages that are sturdy enough to stand the test of daily use over the course of a year.
Fun Hobby That Reduces Stress
For many people, designing attractive planner pages with color schemes that match their style is an enjoyable hobby. And having a planner you actually want to use keeps you de-stressed and on track all year long.
Step-By-Step Guide: How To Print A5 Size Planner Pages
Now that you understand the benefits of homemade planners, let’s get into the specifics of printing A5 size pages properly:
Step 1: Select Your A5 Paper
A5 paper measures 148 x 210mm, making it the perfect size for portable planners you can take anywhere. You can buy packs of pre-cut A5 paper online or at most craft and office supply stores.
You can also save money by purchasing larger sheets of paper, then cutting them down to size yourself. For example, cut A4 paper (210 x 297mm) in half lengthwise.
No matter where your paper comes from, make sure you have enough A5 sheets to complete your planner before printing. Running low part way through is no fun.
Step 2: Check Page Orientation
Before you start printing, it’s critical that you check your page setup and confirm the orientation. Control-click your planner page PDFs and select “Properties”.
Under details, it should state the page size is A5. If it’s anything else, you’ll need to convert your file first.
While in Properties, look at “Page Size” and confirm orientation is set to Portrait. For any landscape pages, rotate them within your file before printing.
Step 3: Align Paper Properly In Printer
Printers are designed primarily for standard 8.5” x 11” or A4 paper. So loading smaller A5 paper properly can be tricky. Refer to your printer’s instruction manual for specifics on tray adjustments and A5 alignment.
As a rule, slide paper guides snugly against both sides of your stack of A5 paper before printing. If your first test sheets come out skewed or only partially printed, experiment with guide placement until aligned correctly.
Step 4: Print A Test Sheet First
I highly recommend printing a test page before running large batches, especially when printing double-sided. Make sure pages come out oriented properly and any duplex alignment markings line up correctly on blank opposite sides.
Tweak margin or binding settings if test prints are off. Starting over is much less frustrating than dealing with stacks of incorrectly aligned pages down the road. Consider adding crop marks on test prints as cutting guides.
Step 5: Print All Front Sides First
When everything’s aligned, you’re ready to start printing. Best practice is to print all front sides of pages first in sequence. Then reload and print matched backs.
This avoids mixing up page sequences when printing duplex. Print enough complete planners at once so you’re not restarting print jobs constantly as you assemble.
Step 6 (Optional): Cut, Punch And Bind
For a professional bound book, use a stack cutter trim down pages evenly post-printing. Utilizing a book press before trimming improves consistency.
If adding pages into a ring or disc-bound planner, reinforce holes by pre-punching pages with an A5 hole punch. For best alignment, print hole outline crop marks to use as hole positioning guides.
Carefully line up crop marks and hole punch together before disassembling and inserting into planner binders. Enjoy your sleek, affordable custom planner printed perfectly on A5 pages!
Final Tips For Success Printing A5 Planner Pages
Follow these additional handy tips for stress-free A5 planner printing:
- Always print test sheets first to confirm page alignment and print quality before running full jobs
- Consider adding crop marks and borders during design for easy post-print trimming
- Sort pages in your planner PDF file so duplex pages print front-to-back sequentially
- Hole punch pages while stacked immediately after printing for best hole alignment
- Store printed planner pages in order in page protectors until ready for final assembly
I hope this step-by-step guide helps you successfully tackle printing your own custom A5 planner pages! Take your time, avoid last minute rushes, and feel free to ask any other questions in the comments below.