A design-minded neighbourhood
Elephant & Castle is home to the London College of Communication, which brings a strong design and print culture to the area. Students and independent publishers often want the same thing: a small run of something that looks and feels properly made, without a large print order.
Choose the format first
A folded and stapled booklet is the classic zine: simple, cheap and quick. For something thicker, comb, spiral or perfect binding gives a more finished object. The format decides your page count, margins and cover, so settle it before you design.
Page counts come in fours
Stapled booklets are made from folded sheets, each giving four pages, so your total needs to be a multiple of four. Plan your content to fit, and decide what the inside covers will do. Our booklet page count guide explains it in more detail.
Paper and feel
Uncoated paper feels natural and suits text and illustration; coated paper makes photography and colour look stronger. A heavier cover stock makes a small publication feel substantial. If the object matters, ask to see paper options before printing.
Margins, bleed and the fold
Keep text clear of the fold and away from the trimmed edge, and add bleed if images run to the edge. Check the file at actual size before you send it. Our print-ready artwork guide covers the basics.
Start with a test copy
Before a full run, print one copy. It's the cheapest way to catch a missing page, a wrong order or text too near the fold. Then print the quantity you actually need.
Getting your publication printed for Elephant & Castle
From Elephant & Castle, the Northern line runs directly to Tooting Broadway in around 27 minutes, or our shop is around 6.4 miles by car. See our Elephant & Castle printing page, our stapled booklet and perfect binding pages, or contact us with your page count and size.