Create your art
The drawing method that both Ilona and Christine use is an iPad alongside the Procreate app , an art program designed specifically for tablets. It works perfectly with an Apple Pencil, allowing you to draw, color, and texture anything you want to create.
You can also download new brushes, free or paid, to expand the possibilities of the application.
While Procreate is a common choice, you can use any digital art program, such as Adobe Illustrator , Canva , or a free program like GIMP , to create stickers. You can also scan non-digital art with a computer program, digitize it, and use it on stickers.
The most important thing is that any design you use is at least as large as the final size of the sticker you're printing. It should also be a minimum of 300 dpi (dots per inch) and saved as a CMYK file to ensure the final product has the same quality and colors as your design.
Finally, if you are making individual stickers that are not just a simple square or circle, you need to have a clear, defined border so that the printer or cutting machine knows where to cut the edges of the sticker.
Many people choose to draw a white border around their designs, but you can experiment with different colors.
Discover with our guides how to sell art online or how to sell your crafts online .
Types of stickers to sell
Stickers can be printed in many different finishes and cuts. Deciding on these details in advance will help you create your designs more easily.
Ways to cut a sticker
There are two main types of cutting for stickers: die-cut and semi-die-cut:
Die-cut stickers are cut to fit the exact shape of the sticker. It can be as simple as a circle or square, or as intricate as the delicate leaves of an illustrated plant. With this method, canadian business email list both the sticker and its paper backing are cut to the same shape.
Semi-die-cut stickers are when the cut is made through the top layer of the sticker, but not the backing paper. This cut is also called a surface cut or “kiss-cut.” When the sticker is removed, the backing and a border remain. This method can be used to make sheets of stickers with various designs.
Types of finish on stickers
Stickers may look and feel different depending on the media they are printed on.
The most common types are:
Satin paper or vinyl
Mate
Holographic
Mirror type
Holographic glitter
Prismatic
Clean or simple
Your stickers will look different when printed on different materials. For example, fine details may look better on a matte sticker, and holographic stickers work better with bolder designs. We recommend experimenting with different finishes before settling on one or another.
MilkteaNco Sticker Packs
How to make stickers to sell
You have several options for creating your stickers. Some people do everything at home, from start to finish, while others have a professional printer create their stickers. There are also online dropshipping companies that do all the work for you.
Each method has its pros and cons.
How to print stickers at home with the Cricut
Ilona prints all of her stickers at home using a color printer and a Cricut cutting machine, an electronic tool with a blade that can cut precise shapes from paper and other materials.
To print the stickers, you will need adhesive paper, which you can find in craft stores, office supply stores, specialty stores such as Apli or on Amazon. Make sure the paper is compatible with your printer, whether it is inkjet or laser.
Adhesive paper comes in a variety of finishes, including matte, glossy, or holographic. Which one you choose will depend on your aesthetic preferences.
A popular option is to print on matte paper, which is the most cost effective, and then apply a layer of self-adhesive laminate to achieve a glossy finish. This method not only adds shine, but also protection to make the sticker water and weather resistant.
The printed sheet is then placed into a cutting machine, such as a Cricut or Silhouette, which cuts around the stickers to make the final product.
Ilona says she prefers this method because she can create stickers on demand rather than keeping an inventory of stickers that may or may not sell. This also allows her to offer more designs since she doesn't need to make a large batch every time she adds something new to her store.
“I have tried outsourcing to a printing company and a supplier, but in my experience I have much less control and quality,” he says.
The downside to printing at home is that it can take a lot of trial and error to get everything just right, from making sure the print quality is right to calibrating the cutting machine. This means investing a lot of time and material before you have stickers you can sell.