Print Settings

Seed paper is different to that of standard machine made paper. It’s handmade from recycled content and embedded with seeds. Each sheet is unique and beautifully textured with slight variations in color, thickness and the placement of seeds.

Printing and trimming of seed paper can present some challenges! The design of your artwork can effect pricing, print quality and seed germination.

WHAT IS INK COVERAGE?

Ink coverage refers to how much of your design is filled with printed colour.

For seed paper, we recommend keeping ink coverage to 50% or less. This helps maintain healthy seed germination, preserves the natural texture of the paper, and is more economical than printing heavy, saturated designs.
All our standard pricing is based on artwork that requires low to medium ink coverage (under 50%).

How do I determine ink coverage?

A simple visual check is usually the best guide. Ask yourself:

  • Is most of the page covered in ink?
  • Does my design use a full‑colour background?
  • Are there large blocks of solid colour?
  • Does the artwork include photographs?

If you answer yes to any of these, your artwork likely requires high ink coverage. We can print high‑coverage designs, but it’s important to note that saturating the paper with ink may reduce seed germination.

Printing on both sides

If you’re printing double‑sided, only one side can have high ink coverage. The reverse side must remain very low coverage to allow for better seed viability and print quality.

 

WHAT IS PRINTING TO THE EDGE?

When your artwork runs right to the final cut edge, it’s considered printing to the edge.
If even one side reaches the edge, your file must include a bleed.

What is a bleed?

A bleed is the extra artwork that extends past the trim line.
Anything touching an edge should continue into this area.

Think of it like this:

  • Trim size: 100mm × 100mm
  • Bleed added: +3mm on each side
  • Final artwork size: 106mm × 106mm

Why is a bleed required?

Cutting precisely on a line isn't always 100% accurate. This is especially relevant to seed paper which can move slightly more than regular machine made paper when printing and cutting.

  • Without a bleed, after cutting to size there will be small white lines next to the edges and this really doesn't look great.
  • Extending your artwork into the bleed area allows us to cut off the extra 3mm which results in a much nicer cut.
  • Text or important details you don't want cut off must not be placed 5mm inside of the trimmed edge. 

Please see images below showing ink coverage and edge to edge/ bleed artwork examples.

DESIGNING YOUR ARTWORK

Along with ink coverage and printing to the edges it's also important to consider the general design elements of your artwork to ensure they print well on seed paper. This may include:

  • text size and font styles
  • images
  • colour matching
  • plus more...

Please see our ARTWORK page for more details.

See below for ink coverage and bleed examples

Example

Low ink coverage

This example shows a square postcard with low ink coverage.

There is also no printing to any edges so a bleed is not required.

Example

Low ink coverage

This example shows a square postcard with low ink coverage.

The artwork requires printing directly to the trimmed edge so a bleed must be added.

The bleed area is an extra 3mm added to trim edge (around all edges). The artwork design must be extended into the bleed area.

Example

High ink coverage

This example shows a square postcard with more than 50% ink coverage.

The artwork requires printing directly to the trimmed edge so a bleed must be added.

The bleed area is an extra 3mm added to trim edge (around all edges). The artwork design must be extended into the bleed area.