Playing cards are a fun and versatile tool for entertainment and game playing. Being able to print your own custom decks at home opens up exciting creative possibilities. In this guide, as a professional custom playing card printing manufacturer, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know to design and print high quality playing cards on your own printer.
Why Print Your Own Playing Cards?
There are many great reasons to print playing cards at home:
- Customize decks for a theme – You can incorporate any imagery that inspires you or relates to an event or interest. This makes personalized playing cards ideal for weddings, birthdays, gamer profiles, or just for fun!
- Create your own games – Inventing custom card or board games is a rewarding hobby for game enthusiasts. Print your own prototype decks easily at each iteration until your game is ready to publish.
- Make DIY accessories – Use printed cards for scrapbooks, backings for handmade earrings, decor, or anything you can glue them to!
- Save money – Once you have the initial supplies, each deck printed at home costs just pennies compared to ordering custom cards.
How to Design Your Own Playing Cards
The first step is to design the imagery for both sides of your playing cards. This will require some graphic design software.
Software Options
Some options to create your card faces include:
- Adobe Photoshop/Illustrator – The industry standard design programs, but require paid subscriptions.
- GIMP – Open source bitmap and vector editing tool, similar to Photoshop.
- Inkscape – Open source vector graphics editor like Illustrator.
- Canva – Free simple browser-based designing with templates.
Adobe products are worth the investment for extensive projects. Otherwise, GIMP and Inkscape are great free alternatives. Canva also works well for basic designs.
Design Custom Artwork
If you don’t consider yourself an artist, don’t worry! Look for creative commons images to incorporate or modify. You can also use your own photos.
If making a custom deck from scratch seems daunting, start by duplicating and editing existing playing card templates. For example, replace the numbers on a poker card deck with fantasy themes. Slowly add more custom elements over time.
Prepare Print Files
Print shops have strict requirements for file setup to insure quality results and accurate printing registration between the front and backs of cards.
When ready to print, check your manufacturer’s guidelines. General specifications are:
- 300 DPI resolution
- CMYK color mode
- 0.25 in bleed area past trim lines
- PDF or PNG format
How to Print Playing Cards at Home
Printing playing cards requires specific paper stock and inks. Fortunately modern consumer printers can achieve professional results with care.
Recommended Home Printer Types
- Inkjet – Great affordability for home use and photo printing, but ink saturation causes warping.
- Laser – Crisp print quality ideal for text and graphics if paper handled properly.
- Dye sublimation – Amazing photo printing directly onto coated surfaces, but requires special paper.
For card printing, laser printers generally excel for sharpness. However inkjets work for prototypes if the right paper is used.
Paper Type
Paper selection makes all the difference when printing playing cards at home:
- Weight: 130lb (350 gsm) minimum
- Texture: Smooth finish
- Material: Card stock
- Size: 8.5 x 11 inches (standard letter)
Heavier weight paper prevents ink bleeding through to the back sides. Smooth texture allows surfaces to glide smoothly during shuffling.
After printing, avoid touching surfaces before drying to prevent smudging. Let cards fully cure for 24 hours before playing to avoid damage.
Enhance Durability (Optional)
For cards that will get heavy gameplay, extra protection helps prolong their life. Consider rounding the corners with a punch or apply sealant:
- Corner rounders – Punch tools to curve the corners, improving shuffle-ability.
- Matte sealant – Acrylic sprays add weatherproofing and prevents scuffing. Use light coats to avoid damage or blocking.
How to Cut Printed Playing Cards
The final vital step is accurately cutting apart your printed cards:
Supplies Needed
- Craft knife or guillotine paper cutter
- Metal ruler
- Cutting mat
A paper cutter ensures perfectly straight edges, but knives carefully used along rulers also work. Cut stacks no thicker than 4 sheets to prevent shifting.
Align the paper guide bar parallel to the card edges. For best results, cut in two stages:
- Slice sheets in half horizontally to separate card rows
- Cut vertically between the individual cards in each stack
Take it slow, and firmly secure sheets while cutting to prevent tearing. Then proudly play your first custom home printed deck!
Conclusion
I hope this guide gives you the preparation to start printing fantastic playing cards from home. With some graphic design know-how and the right paper products, creative hobbyists can produce gaming sets far beyond what you can order online.
The ability to rapidly test card game concepts or quickly print themed decks for events makes home printing a game changer. Just remember to use card stock, give ink adequate drying time, and carefully handle card surfaces throughout the entire process for the best results.
What theme or artistic style will you use to customize your own playable decks? The possibilities are endless, so unleash your imagination to its full potential! Let me know how your printed projects turn out.