dotted with dots: Costco 20x30 Print Review and New Layouts

Hello, everyone who reads my blog. I'm happy you're out there!

I had a largish rectangular frame laying around the house, and since I'm gradually "decorating" Miller's new apartment, I thought I could make him something. The frame opening (from the front) is 9 1/16 x 29 7/8 inches. I remembered that Costco can do 20x30 prints in about an hour, and they're very inexpensive - about $10. So I decided to give it a go.

I wanted to create an image with his name and use my scrapbooking supplies to add in all kinds of things that he likes - pirates, bugs, robots, super heroes, buses and fire trucks. Here is my creation (click to see larger):

Me Hearties Collab by Scrap Orchard Designers; Funky Basic Cardstock
by Gina Marie Huff; Meep Bob Beep and Buggalicious by Kristin Aagard
Vehicle Doodles by Kate Hadfield; Super Pop by Designs by Dani

I actually worked in Photoshop with a 9.5 x 30 inch canvas (the back opening of the frame was 9.5 inches wide). When it was complete, I enlarged the canvas to 20x30, with my image roughly centered. So, about 2/3 of my 20x30 print was actually white. Here's a small version of what I uploaded to Costco. (the thin black border is just to highlight the actual edges of the image):

I trimmed it by hand to fit the frame. Here's how it looks in his room:

Now, do you notice anything about the print in the frame? Something not quite right? The white bands on the left and right edges? That's because the 20x30 print did not actually measure 20x30 inches. It is a little smaller - it only measures 29 11/16 inches in length. So I have little white gaps at the ends. I wasn't too happy about that.

But other than that the print is great. The colors are bright and bold. I think the 20x30 prints are made with a different process than the 12x12 prints that Costco does. The 12x12 prints that I have received in the past have the "Fujicolor Crystal Archive" marking on the back, whereas this 20x30 print had no markings on the back of the paper. And being that the print was only $10, it leads me to believe that this is an ink printed image, not the chemical image printing of the photographic prints. But color and image quality wise, I can't tell the difference. If it had been exactly 30 inches, I would have absolutely no complaints. In fact, I really can't say enough how bright and beautiful the image itself is.

Well, that's that: Costco 20x30 print is beautiful, but just a tad smaller than 20x30. I didn't actually measure the 20 inch side. I had already cut it up.

Here are some other things I've made in the last week or so.

Another self portrait page for my Project: Love, Me album.

Blessed by Litabells Designs; Stylish Stocks Paper Pack by Pixel Gypsy

And some T-shirts for Miller with iron-on transfers. He won't wear the Heart Breaker shirt because he doesn't like the idea of someone getting his or her heart broken. He actually cried when I told him what the shirt said. I tried to explain the alternate meaning of "heart breaker," but he just didn't get it.