How to Create Your Own Room Sign

If you're looking for a unique yet simple way to add a little something extra to your room, consider creating your own room sign. This is a sign sized similar to a poster that can contain anything your heart desires, from a picture of your family to images from your favorite sport. You can place signs in any room of your home, from the bedroom to the laundry room. After you design the sign on your computer, print it yourself on special paper or send it in for printing by a professional.

Things You'll Need

• Graphic design or layout program

Instructions

1. Measure the height and width of the area of your wall where you want the sign to hang. Common room sign sizes are between 5.5 by 8.5 inches to 12 by 18 inches or bigger. Keep in mind that most home printers only accept pages sized up to 12 by 18 inches, so keep the sign under that size if you plan to print the file at home.

2. Create a new blank file in a graphic design or layout program sized according to your decision in the last step. Set the color mode to CMYK (best for printing). Ideal programs to use include Adobe InDesign, Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Publisher, or PowerPoint), and Quark XPress.

3. Insert the background for the room sign. It can be anything from a simple solid color to an elaborate, intricate image of your choice. You can browse and download a royalty-free image from a stock photo website (see "Resources" for an example).

4. Insert your desired text over the background. Try to be witty whenever possible. This sign should represent your personality, the personality that you want the room to convey, or a positive reinforcement for viewing each day. For instance, if the sign is for a young boy's room who likes baseball you can create a sign that lists his best little league stats.

5. Add another descriptive image to the room sign, if you want. For instance, for the little league sign you could add an image of a bat and ball or one of the young slugger in his little league uniform made to look like a baseball card.

6. Save the file and print it on card stock paper, at least 100 pound stock. Make sure your printer is color and equipped to print on paper this thick.

7. Save the finished room sign as a TIF, JPG, or PDF file if you plan to send it to a copy shop or professional printer. These are the most common formats requested by printers.

Tips & Warnings

• Hang the room sign on your wall with double-sided tape or tacks.

• Some online printers can produce your room sign on light metal (like a license plate) or plastic using screen printing tools. See "References" for more information.

• Some online printing services allow you to design the room sign from scratch or with a template. If you plan to submit the room sign online for printing, consider using their tool instead of a layout program.

References

• Top Bits: CMYK Best for Printing
• Grafix: Screenprinting on Metal and Plastic

Resources

• Dreamstime: Royalty-Free Photos
• Kumies Country Cuties: Example of a Room Sign