Borders? No borders? How big? How small? Will it shrink my artwork? How will this affect my mat? These are all very common questions we get about borders so I wanted to write a quick explanation of how we've simplified this process to make it easy and understandable for everyone involved. And so you, the artist, get exactly what you want once you place that order!
So, in general whether to have a border is totally up to you and your personal taste. There's no right or wrong whatsoever. I, myself, decided to do away with borders years ago because I like the sleekness of no border (meaning it's printed to the bleed) and it makes it easier for my packaging supplies to all coordinate size-wise like my backer boards and plastic sleeves. But some artists like to add that extra white which can create a "double mat" look with the right mat choice. Some artists even like to sign their name on the white of the mat. So there's many reasons and style options for why to have a mat. Just pick what you like and stick with a consistent style. Let's talk about the different kinds of borders next!
All of our prints are "borderless" unless you order your prints with a border. Our borders are all 1/4" wide unless you request a wider size. We find that 1/4" is plenty big enough for taping behind mats but if you need a bigger size like 1/2" or more you may custom order that.
So let's dig in with our options:
1. Borderless / No Border
•art bleeds to the edge and cut to size
2. Standard Border
•1/4" border added within total dimension, making artwork shrink to fit but no cropping. So if you order a 12x10" print the exterior will remain 12x10" but the artwork will be reduced 1/4" all the way around.
3. Excess Border
•1/4" border is added on top of total dimension making the total print size larger. So if you order an 12x10" print the artwork will be 12x10" and the border will be added on top of that to make your paper bigger by 1/4" all the way around.
Anyway, I hope that helps and clears up all the border confusion. Now all you have to decide is to border or not to border? That is the question.
If you are interested in checking out prices of borders vs. no borders here's our most popular velvet paper click on each size and you will see the price difference within the "style" options toward the bottom: Velvet Paper Prints