7 ways to make printable artwork look great

I've been printing a few new pieces for my walls lately, so I thought I'd share some simple tips on how to make printables look more like "real" art for your home.

1. Make sure your printer has ink

Obvious, yes, but important. If your ink cartridge is dying, your print will look like it's dying too.

2. Adjust your printer settings

Make sure your print quality is set to "Best" (or equivalent). If it's a black-ink-only print, set it to "Grayscale" and "Black cartridge only." In my experience, printing black with both the black and color cartridges doesn't look as sharp.

3. Don't enlarge the printable

Most printables are designed to print at a certain size. Enlarging them will turn them into a pixely mess. Stick to the size the printable is supposed to be and you won't have any problems.

For PDF printables, it's important to check a couple of settings in Adobe Acrobat to make sure you aren't unintentionally scaling up. In the printer settings, make sure Page Scaling is set to "None" and Auto-Rotate and Center is unchecked.

4. Just say no to standard white office paper

Printing on anything other than plain white paper will elevate your artwork from printout to print. Your choices are endless: card stock, textured cardstock, patterned paper, colored or kraft paper, photo paper, etc. You can buy single sheets of fancy paper for well under a dollar at any craft store.

5. Send it out

One of the great things about printable artwork is that you don't even need to leave the house to get something up on the walls. But if what your printing requires a lot of ink, or your printer doesn't work well, it might be cheaper to send your prints to a copy shop and have them printed on a color laser printer. An 8.5" x 11" color laser print usually costs around $1. Something to consider.

6. Treat it like "real" art -- frame it

Everything looks better behind glass. It's a fact.

7. Make it the sidekick, not the star

Printables are a great way to get art on your walls for cheap or free. But if all you have on display are printables, well, that might look a little thin. You've got to mix them up. Pair a printable with other types of artwork, and let its neighbors give it more credence.

See my collection of printables >>

Printing on Con-Tact paper + Utensil holder makeover

I'd been on the hunt for a colorful utensil holder. You know, the canister by the stove where you put all your spatulas and slotted spoons.

There was nothing wrong with the one I had, but it was stainless steel. And next to a stainless steel toaster, in between a stainless stove and a stainless fridge under a stainless hood... well, things were looking a bit too samey. I wasn't finding anything I loved, which signaled it was time to change up the one I had with some paint.

I decided to make a sticker/stencil of sorts with Con-Tact paper. This is one of my favorite techniques for creating custom designs. The poor man's version of a crafter's die cut machine, if you will.

First, I found a shield shape via Google images and re-sized it in Photoshop. 

Then I printed it out on the paper backing side of a piece of clear Con-Tact paper with my normal home ink jet printer. Warning: Don't print on the shiny sticker side! And you probably don't want to send Con-Tact paper through a laser printer because they can get very hot and who knows what kind of mess that might make.

I cut the shape out with a scissors...

And stuck it like a sticker onto my surface, making sure to burnish down all the edges really well. I also masked off the top/inside and bottom of the can with some painters tape and paper so they would be protected.

Next, I spray painted the utensil holder for a smooth, glossy finish with aqua Valspar spray paint (Tropical Oasis). Valspar must have changed the formula recently because this dried a lot "harder" than when I worked with the same paint in the past. Much better! Plus it has a built-in primer and you can spray upside down and it dries super fast and it's cheap (only $3.98!). Winning x5.

After the paint had dried, I carefully peeled up the Con-Tact paper sticker. There was a little bit of gummy residue leftover, but I was able to remove it with some vegetable oil.

Sharp lines! The paint seriously looks like a factory finish. And the shield, my own personal superhero insignia. But if I ever get tired of the shield, I can just spin the can around to reveal the plain backside. Two in one!

Thrift store makeover: Nautical print

Wow, I totally did not intend to blow off last week, but a bad cold knocked me down for a few days. I hate that helpless feeling of having a thousand things to do and no energy to do them.

Anyhow, I'm back today to show you a small painting project. Let's get to it.

I found this nautical boat print at the Goodwill Outlet last month. I liked the print, but the orangey oak frame did not complement it at all. Nothing a little paint can't fix.

The frame is very sturdy (it hasn't pulled apart), but there were wide cracks in the corners. I filled them with a tiny bit of painter's caulk and let it dry.

A couple of coats of craft paint, and the oaky color was no more. Now you can actually see the print instead of the frame!