Vibrant labels at home

[Rappatuz]

Hello, good people!

I've been making (fruit) wine for a couple of years and decided to make my own labels. I got to it; designed a label, printed it out (on regular printing paper) and was disappointed. The print just looks super dull and wrongly colored compared to the screen image. The label is basically a close up image of rose hips (the type of wine I want to dress up), heavily filtered to give it an artsy feel. Probably not the easiest thing for a printer to faithfully recreate, but still, the result was just really far off.

For those of you who have experience with printing labels; what is the key to vibrant recreations of the design? I guess the answer is pretty obvious; printer and paper. I really don't want to buy a new printer, paper on the other hand ... Maybe you have a trick up your sleeve? Would love to get some insight into this label printing business.

Also, what kind of glue works great for adding (and removing) labels to/from bottles? I'll probably try milk but a back up solution (that pun just made itself) would be great!

Thanks!

 

[user 36973]

You could have the labels printed on some Avery full sheet adhesive paper at a UPS type of store. Color should be good and you can cut the labels to size for your bottles.

As far as getting labels off, different label printers use different types of adhesive. Some are water soluble and others not.

 

[wpt-me]

I like the Avery # 22827 labels, they peel off real easy and don't leave any residue. I
have them printed at Office Depot.

Bill

 

[salcoco]

I use onlinelabels.com they have pre-glued labels that also remove easily and software that allows you to correct place your design on the labels for printing as well as design software to help on future labels.

 

[Rice_Guy]

Vibrant: just an idea for labels printed on Avery page stock,, spray the sheer with an aerosol varnish, ,,, note this will make it harder to remove the label, ,,,, most of the cardboard stock as used in food packages is what is called “clay coat” which provides a smooth less absorbent surface and better quality image when printed.

Removal: I find it extremely easy to get non treated Avery labels off, the paper can be moistened and the adhesive rolls when rubbed.

Everything gets a one color package content Avery label when bottled. like salcoco if I want to make gift quality bottles, I add/ use web ordered vinyl stock labels. They will pull off if I catch a corner.

 

[Darkroom]

I have been using onlinelabels.com for years. The labels we use are 8.5x11White gloss Inkjet OL713 with diagonal slits. Design labels with 6 labels to a sheet but can create any size. With a decent inkjet printer you can good results with a glossy finish. Soaking the bottle in warm soap water and then removing label with straight ultility blade works well for easy removal. They also have waterproof glossy at about twice the cost.

 

[winemaker81]

In my experience, ink jet printers do a so-so job. As others have suggested, printing at an office supply store on a color laser will produce MUCH better results.

However, I suggest printing 1 page to ensure you're satisfied, before printing the entire batch.

 

[Rice_Guy]

screen colors are always different, with *.jpg files I will have a print made at *mart

However, I suggest printing 1 page to ensure you're satisfied, before printing the entire batch.

 

[winemaker81]

screen colors are always different, with *.jpg files I will have a print made at *mart

Very true. Let me adjust my statement by saying I'm much happier with the labels produced on a color laser printer vs. an inkjet. The difference between screen and print are less significant.

I'm producing PDFs, which so far is producing excellent results.

 

[Rappatuz]

I appreciate all your responses.

The printer is an Epson Stylus Photo R2880 with pigment ink. This setup should be decent (it's not my printer and I really don't know that much about printer technicalities) but the result was rather disappointing.

I think the Avery/office supply route will be too expensive but varnish (as suggested by Rice_Guy) may be something to try out. Found some self adhesive A4 photo paper online. Think I'll see what this paper can do before taking any further steps.

 

[bobofthenorth]

Photo paper will make a huge difference to your image quality - make sure you select the paper quality in your printer properties at the time of printing. If you want to try a cheaper alternative look for a coated cardstock. I use a coated paper that is similar to what you might see on a grocery store flyer. Its not photo quality but it does have a shiny coating and its slightly heavier than regular bond print paper. The coating improves the image quality and makes it somewhat easier to remove. I just print 4 labels on an 8.5x11 page and then cut them out with scissors. It takes a bit of time but so what - wine making builds patience.

I stick them on with 3M spray adhesive. When it comes time to remove them I fill the bottle with hot water without getting the label wet and they peel of fairly easily - sometimes a bit of scraping is involved. Sometimes I have to clean the bottle up with brake cleaner but I keep a can of that by my wine sink.

 

[Darkroom]

The paper/medium used for printing makes a major difference as does the printer settings and resolution. I have a $150 Epson inkjet printer with a resolution of 5760x1440 DPI. Most laser printers have a resolution of 1200x1200. The main advantages of laser is faster and moisture resistant. If you have a high quality JPG image that is color/density corrected you can create great photos on inkjet. Inkjet printer weakness is usually slow and not waterproof.

 

[MiBor]

I really don't want to buy a new printer, paper on the other hand ... Maybe you have a trick up your sleeve? Would love to get some insight into this label printing business.

If I understand the matter correctly, a better question would be: How much am I willing to spend on labels for my wine?

There are many sources online for buying professionally printed labels on many different kinds of media. The problem with that is the cost (>$1/label) for small quantities. I purchased from Noontime Labels and Stoney Creek Labels and the quality was awesome, but I ended up paying close to $2/label with shipping included. That's a little steep for a home winemaker.
Nowadays I print my own labels, using Avery 22827 media and an old Epson WF630 inkjet printer. I use the online label design software from Avery to create a .PDF file to print on Avery media. That way I keep the total cost around $.50/label (cheap remanufactured ink cartridges included) and I only put labels on the bottles that I give away to friends and family or the ones I plan on keeping in the cellar for a while.
One trick I learned printing my own labels is that I can't have any kind of borders, because they won't be very well centered.

 

[bobofthenorth]

One trick I learned printing my own labels is that I can't have any kind of borders, because they won't be very well centered.

Its a major pain cutting my labels out of coated paper with scissors but the exact opposite situation prevails with borders. I like a nice solid rounded border so that my scissor work doesn't have to be 100% accurate. I put 4 labels on a page and I make sure that all the borders touch each other so I only have to cut once between the labels. I used to have a guillotine paper cutter but it has evidently moved on so I'm looking for another one.

 

[winemaker81]

The media makes a tremendous difference. Typical copier paper is thin, 20# I believe. I use 24# at home, and it makes better labels. I tried colored, gummed sheets designed for wine labels, but the print quality was disappointing. However, any paper (in my experience) wrinkles in a high humidity environment.

Regarding cost -- the labels I purchased (Avery 94215) cost $0.75 USD/sheet (I purchased a large box, got a better price), and Staples charged me $0.65 to print a sheet -- total for a sheet is $1.40, or $0.23/label. $5.60 per carboy.

For me? The cost is worth it. After a year in the rack, the labels look like those on the newly bottled wine. If the labels did well after a year, I expect positive results after 5.

 

[montanarick]

I have been using sheetlabels.com for some time, i order 100 sheets at a time and cost is $0.6593 per sheet or $0.16 per label. here's what i use:
Blank Sheet Labels

3.75" x 4.75" (SL571)

Removable White Polyester Weatherproof (for laser printers) (RXW)

4 labels per sheet

8.5" x 11" sheet

I have them printed at Staples on their laser-jet printer - cost varies but not expensive. These labels are great, easily removable and reposition-able if you don't get them situated right the first, second or third time. They are also waterproof and less expensive than Avery Labels. they have in-house templates so you can create your labels and download to your computer

 

[batman72]

thanks for the awesome info here, I am awaiting on 5 different 1 gallon wines to clear and will need labels soon.

 

[Rappatuz]

Just to put a conclusion to the thread, this is what I ended up doing:

• Set the correct printer settings for the type of paper I would use. This made colors look more like the ones displayed on the screen.
• "Fine tuned" (a bit of a exaggeration) the look by playing around with color tools in Photoshop and printing out tests until happy (used "regular" printing paper for this step).
• Ended up buying self adhesive matte photo paper (10 A4 sheets, ~$10). Compared to "regular" printing paper the print looked "richer"/had more "depth" if that makes sense. The paper is perfect for labels: It sticks well to bottles, is easy to remove when grabbing a corner and doesn't rip at removal. The best part, though, may be that it leaves absolutely no glue on de-labelled bottles.

The bottles ended up looking pretty good and once I get some shrink capsules on, they'll look even better

 

[batman72]

Just to put a conclusion to the thread, this is what I ended up doing:

• Set the correct printer settings for the type of paper I would use. This made colors look more like the ones displayed on the screen.
• "Fine tuned" (a bit of a exaggeration) the look by playing around with color tools in Photoshop and printing out tests until happy (used "regular" printing paper for this step).
• Ended up buying self adhesive matte photo paper (10 A4 sheets, ~$10). Compared to "regular" printing paper the print looked "richer"/had more "depth" if that makes sense. The paper is perfect for labels: It sticks well to bottles, is easy to remove when grabbing a corner and doesn't rip at removal. The best part, though, may be that it leaves absolutely no glue on de-labelled bottles.

The bottles ended up looking pretty good and once I get some shrink capsules on, they'll look even better

let see some pics?

 

[Rappatuz]

let see some pics?

Especially for you.
Added a canvas filter in Photoshop, which I think looks pretty nice.