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How to print your patterns (without smudging)
A quick guide to printing these patterns so they look their best and hold up to being colored in, especially if you reach for alcohol markers.
Inkjet or laser?
Your printer matters more than anything else. Most home printers are inkjet, and inkjet ink is usually dye-based, which alcohol markers dissolve and drag across the page. Even when it's fully dry, a marker can reactivate the ink and smear your lines. If you color with pencils, gel pens, or water-based markers, inkjet is completely fine.
If you love alcohol markers, a laser printer is the better tool. Laser toner is fused to the paper with heat, so there's nothing for the alcohol to dissolve and your lines stay crisp. If you'd rather stick with inkjet, look for pigment ink instead of dye, let it dry fully, and always test on a scrap sheet first.
Choose the right paper
Smearing and bleed-through are two different problems. Bleed-through is when marker soaks through thin paper to the other side. Standard printer paper is about 90 gsm, and markers will bleed straight through it. Heavier stock, cardstock or mixed-media paper around 160 gsm and up, holds color far better and won't buckle. Since these are single loose sheets, a marker bleeding through has nothing underneath to ruin, so heavier paper plus single sheets is the marker-friendly combination.
No printer? Use a print shop
You don't need to own a printer at all. Most FedEx Office locations and local print shops run laser printers, and you can bring your own cardstock or ask for a heavier stock. It's cheap per page, the toner won't smear, and you often get a nicer sheet than a home printer manages. Download the PDF, take it in, and you're set.
What we recommend
Some links below are affiliate links. If you buy through them, it supports the site at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
- The top pick for printing at homeIf you want the best results and plan to print a lot, this is the printer to get. See it on Amazon →
- An affordable laser printerThe safe choice for alcohol markers. Toner is heat-fused, so it won't smear no matter what you color with, and it's easy on the wallet. See it on Amazon →
- Large loose sheetsBig, heavier sheets that take color well and won't buckle under markers. See it on Amazon →
- A perforated tear-out padSheets tear out cleanly to feed through your printer, and it comes in a few sizes. A tidy option if you don't want a stack of loose paper. See it on Amazon →
Start with a free pattern in the studio