Teach Soap

hi everyone!

i hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season so far!

i'm here to ask your advice on professional label printers such as Vista Print. I'm looking for the best for the cheapest price (as we all are). I've come to the conclusion that if I want to continue growing, i'm going to have to bite this really big bullet and just get it done. i find that printing and cutting out labels is just too time consuming and it ends up costing more in the end. (printer cartridges + label paper + designing Label + printing and cutting out label = way too much time and money)

any recommendations on professional label printers would be awesome.

TIA and Happy Holidays and Many Sales to all of you!

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~Shell

see the post below, it has the info you need.
I checked out the solid wax printers mentioned, but the lowest cost one is more than double what I paid for my HP colour Laserjet, and when I read the reviews, many complained about exorbitant refill costs (cost more than the printer itself) and that "it sounded like a freight train" when printing. For $250 carriage paid, I am delighted with the HP and I use recycled toner cartridges.

I have sheets of my cigar bands pre-printed with my background and business name, address etc. Then all I need to do is print my ingredients & soap name. Cost is very close to what I would pay to print on my printer, but I save a lot of color ink since all I use is black for the name & ingred.
I'm also looking into having labels printed for my lotions, lip balms and creams, where all the ingredients would stay the same for each batch. I'm hoping to work with a local print shop for this, but may end up using an online company.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

I use VistaPrint for my labels, and so far I'm happy with the results. I just use one of their templates and then put my company name/address/phone etc with room at the top to write in my product name/fragrance. They're spendy, but I mitigate the cost a bit by not printing each one for each product I make. My handwriting is nothing special.

I use an Avery label for the back of my product with ingredients and price.

At this point in time, I'm using Avery labels. My problem is that I make too many different fragrances, etc. Right now this just works for me. I have an $80 HP Deskjet 3050A and I print in black ink. With ink and labels (and I use the translucent ones), I figure it costs me about five cents each and I use two per bar.

I'm guessing my bars cost me about 11-12 cents each to wrap (and I'm pretty quick now).

Jill

That's awesome, Jill! I'm thinking of doing the translucent labels just because it would be so much cheaper than using VistaPrint. When I first started I just didn't want to mess around with labels, but they're so stinkin' expensive! Even when I use one of VistaPrint's 50% off coupons (which you can find online pretty easily), it's still about $.26 per label.

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Linda

I learn so much when I can't leave well enough alone!

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

Happy New Years,

Thanks for all the helpful tips. Does anyone know where I can find vinyl clear labels to print on my computer at home?

Have a blessed year

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The Lord is my Shepard and I shall not want.

Yvonne

Most office supply stores and Walmart carry Avery clear labels, but they aren't vinyl as far as I know. And they also are not completely clear. I use them for my stuff.

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~Shell

Check with local printers, too. Sometimes they can be just as cost effective and you'll be supporting a local business as well.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

A company called online labels has so many labels you are sure to find what you need. I use them for my lip balm, price was reasonable, They have vynal (sp) and glossy and whatever you need. Good Luck.

I don't mind designing and printing my own lables. I have a look I like, and don' know anyone who would do it just the same way, and to my liking. I've gotten fast at doing it, so its not an issue for me, and I save all the templates. Since my lotions are basically all the same, I just change the font colors and names and I have a coheasive look.

As for clear labels, you can buy the clear stuff to print on that they use for over head projectors (I've gotten this at computer shows) and print in reverse. Then put through a xyron glue machine. You then have a clear label.

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JKM Creative Enterprises

If you do decide to print your own labels, I recommend checking Costco or Amazon for price on Avery labels. I've found that I can usually find what I need for 1/2 the price of what Office Max or Office Depot charges.