How to Prepare Your Art Files for Custom Acrylic Keychains

How to Prepare Your Art Files for Custom Acrylic Keychains: A Step-by-Step Guide

Creating your first batch of custom merchandise is exciting, but the technical side can be intimidating. "What is 300 DPI?" "Do I need to draw the cutline myself?"

At CustomWLD, we believe manufacturing should be easy. While our team offers Free Digital Proofing (we fix minor issues for you!), following this guide will ensure your acrylic charms turn out exactly how you imagined them.

Here is the professional artist’s checklist for perfect printing.

1. Canvas Settings: Start Big The most common mistake beginners make is drawing on a canvas that is too small. If you stretch a small image, it becomes pixelated and blurry.

• Resolution: Always set your canvas to 300 DPI (dots per inch) or higher.

• Size: We recommend drawing at 200% of the final physical size.

  • Example: If you want a 2-inch keychain, draw your art on a 4-inch canvas.

• Color Mode: CMYK is the industry standard for printing. However, at CustomWLD, our modern printers handle RGB very well. Pro Tip: If you draw in RGB, do a "Soft Proof" in Photoshop to see if your neon colors will look duller in print

2. Understanding "White Ink" (The Secret Layer) Acrylic is transparent. If we just print your drawing on it, the colors will look see-through and ghostly. To make your colors pop, we print a layer of White Ink underneath your art.

• For Solid Characters: You don't need to do anything! We automatically add white ink behind your character.

• For Translucent Effects: If you want parts of your design to be see-through (like sunglasses, wings, or magic spells), please put those parts on a separate layer in your PSD file and name it "Semi-Transparent."

3. The "Cutline" and "Bleed" How do we know where to cut the acrylic?

• The Cutline: This is the pink or blue line you see in proofs. It usually sits 1.5mm - 2mm away from your artwork edge.

• The Bleed: This is the extra artwork that extends past the cutline. It ensures you don't get awkward white edges if the cutting machine shifts slightly.

Don't know how to draw a cutline? Don't worry! CustomWLD offers free cutline service. Just upload your character with a transparent background (PNG), and our designers will create the perfect smooth border for you.

4. Double-Sided Printing: A vs. B Side Most acrylic charms are double-sided.

• Same Design: We will mirror your front image for the back.

• Different Expressions: Want your character winking on the front and crying on the back? Save them as two separate files: filename_front.png and filename_back.png.

• Important: Remember that the back image needs to be mirrored horizontally to line up with the front!

5. File Formats We Love To speed up your production time, please upload files in these formats:

• PSD (Photoshop): The best option. Keep your layers separate!

• PNG: Great for single images with transparent backgrounds.

• AI (Illustrator): Perfect for vector designs.

Why Choose CustomWLD? We know technical files are a headache. That's why we simplified the process.

• Low MOQ: Start with as few pieces.

• Free File Check: A real human reviews your file before it goes to the printer.

• High-Quality Materials: We use high-transparency acrylic and durable UV ink that won't scratch off.

Ready to bring your art to life? Stop stressing about the settings and start creating.