Printing Glossary

A bleed is the portion of artwork that extends beyond the final trim edge of a printed piece.

The purpose of a bleed is to ensure that when the paper is cut to its final size, there are no unwanted white edges caused by slight variations in the trimming process. This is one of the most important print-ready file requirements for business cards, postcards, brochures, flyers, book covers, and most full-color printed pieces.

"A bleed is extra artwork printed past the edge of the page so that when the piece is trimmed, the color or image goes completely to the edge without leaving any white border."

Spiral bound (also called coil binding) is a binding method where a continuous plastic or metal coil is threaded through a series of holes punched along the edge of a document. This binding style allows pages to open completely flat and fold back on themselves, making it ideal for documents that need to be easy to read, write on, or reference.

Great for: Training manuals, Employee handbooks, Workbooks, Catalogs, Cookbooks, Menus

Gutter is where the inside margin meets at the binding. It is an area that can become particialy hidden or difficult to see depending on the turned edge binders. Extra space must be left in the gutter to ensure that no text, images or page numbers are lost or difficult to read near the spine. If a space is not left in the design process, if may cause the reader to force the book open in order to see the content.

Gutters are important in the following printing projects: Hard Cover Books, Childrens Books, Catalogs, Magazines

Endpapers (also called end sheets) are the sheets of paper that connect the inside pages of a hardcover book to its cover. They are located at the front and back of the book, serving both a structural and decorative purpose.

One side of the endpaper is attached to the inside cover board, while the other side remains a free page that can be turned like a regular page.

Grayscale is a printing and imaging method that uses only shades of black, white, and gray to reproduce an image. Instead of using color inks, grayscale images are created using varying percentages of black ink to produce different tones and levels of contrast.

Grayscale is commonly used when color is not necessary or when a project needs a classic, professional, or cost-effective appearance.

Imposition is the process of arranging pages on a large press sheet in a specific order so that when the sheet is printed, folded, cut, and bound, the pages appear in the correct sequence in the finished product.

The page layout on the press sheet often looks out of order to the eye, but it is carefully planned to ensure proper assembly after production.

Paper stock refers to the type, weight, thickness, texture, and finish of paper used for a printed project. Different paper stocks can dramatically affect the look, feel, durability, and perceived quality of the finished piece.

Choosing the right paper stock is an important part of creating a successful print project.

A proof is a preliminary version of a printed project that is reviewed and approved before final production begins. Proofs allow you to check for errors in text, images, layout, colors, and overall design to ensure everything appears exactly as intended.

Approving a proof is typically the final step before a job goes to press.

A spot color is a pre-mixed ink printed separately from the standard four-color CMYK process. Instead of combining cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks to create a color, a spot color uses a specific ink formula to reproduce an exact color consistently.

Spot colors are often matched using the Pantone Matching System (PMS) to ensure brand colors remain accurate across different print runs and materials.

Trim size refers to the final dimensions of a printed piece after it has been cut down from the larger press sheet. It determines the finished width and height of items such as books, brochures, catalogs, postcards, and flyers.

For example, a book printed at 8.5" × 11" will be trimmed to that exact size after printing and cutting are complete.