3 Creative Ways to Customize Printables

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Free Printables!

Everyone wants free things, including free printables. I get the craze since I scour the web finding my own printables for inspiration in my home. There are adorable ones for bathrooms, kitchens, offices, and much, much, more.

Oftentimes, though, the file is given to you in an 8.5 x 11 format. This is great for printing, but not always super friendly when trying to mix and match sizes and not get always have 8 x 10’s hanging around your house. Sometimes you might want a 4 x 6 of the print, or 5 x 7 or change the orientation from vertical to horizontal.

I get that. And I’ve got you. In this post, I will outline several ways to manipulate (legally!) a printable that someone has so graciously given to you and make it work for you home.

3 Creative Ways to Customize Printables

For the sake of this post, I am going to focus on home decor prints, though you are welcome to use these techniques on any type of thing you would like to print out and use as decoration.

Please ignore some of my outdated technology. If things didn’t still work well, I wouldn’t be using them, haha! With that in mind, I will try to show you some videos to demonstrate!

1 – Easy way to protect organizational printables

One super easy trick is to put an 8.5 x 11 printable into a notebook page protector*. I like this look and feel for checklists, to-do lists, and other temporary decorations or inspirations for my office.

Bonus: It’s cheap and keeps my printables from sagging, curling, and getting water spots.

2 – Customize Printables by Resizing the Image through Print Options

Print options? What?

Few of us remember that the print options can change a lot of things about how you print. You can change many different things, including the size! This short tutorial goes through how you can change things up to fit a smaller picture frame!

60-65 Print Scale – 5 x 7 photo frame

40-50 Print Scale – 4 x 6 photo frame

3 – Customize Printables by Changing the Colors with Print Settings

If you don’t like the color of a certain printable that you downloaded, you may be able to change the settings with the print button.

Be forewarned, this method takes a lot of experimentation on how to create a different hue and saturation. Check out this video for some ideas on how to change the colors of a printable.

Additional ways to customize printables

• Always use a frame with glass to protect the paper from getting damp and wrinkly or curling
• Print it out with the HIGH-QUALITY option to have deep colors and no blurry lines; this will make it look more professional
• Print out the pages with a thicker paper, or even cardstock*. If you are using regular print paper*, add another piece of white paper behind it when you frame it, otherwise, you might be able to see through it.

Splash of Color

• Another cool way to customize your printables would be to print a black and white design on colored cardstock. That way the color matches your home and inspiration. I like the natural look of these*, but if you want a variety of brighter colors, try this pack*
• Follow these steps:

1 – Find your printable PDF download to print out

2 – Push the print button and set the color to “black and white”. It will be in grayscale so if there are lighter colors in the printables they will become different shades of gray.

3 – Place your colored paper in the printer feed

4 – Hit print and watch your beautiful print come to life! Boom!

How Creative Will You Be with Your Printables?

These options have given you ways to be extremely creative with your FREE or paid printables. You can be as creative as you like or just simply resize for a different look. (or fit the only picture frame you have in your house!) Customize your printables a little or a lot with these tips.

Need a place to start looking for printables? I have FREE ones as well as ones that can be purchased! So, have fun with this and create a unique space just for you (and your family, too, I guess…)

Another favorite of mine is Hope Ink. She does some amazing handmade prints and coloring pages. I especially love her holiday and seasonal ones! Go check her out!

If you need some more ideas for Christmas gifts  this year, read up on this posts!

19+ Small Biz Christmas Gifts for 2019