Custom Wall Calendar
Custom wall calendars printed and bound for a year on someone's wall, from 100 units. A date grid with boxes big enough to write in, a binding that lies flat when a page is turned, and a hanging point that does not tear out in month three.
A brand gift that stays on the wall for twelve months
- Formats
- 11 x 17 folded, A3 folded, 12 x 12 in square, 11 x 8.5 in single page
- Pages
- 12 months plus a cover; 13 or 14 sheets with an overlap month
- Stock
- 100–130 gsm coated silk; gloss or uncoated on request
Get a price for Wall Calendar
Send the size and quantity — we reply the same working day with a price, a dieline and a date. Artwork optional at this stage.
- Free dielineThe flat drawing comes with the quote, before you commit.
- Proof before pressNothing is printed until you have seen it laid on the dieline.
- Die kept for reordersTooling is paid once. Every reorder skips straight to press.
- Quoted in four marketsUS, UK, Canada and Australia, in the delivery currency.
Format, and how much wall it takes
The folded formats hang with the image above and the grid below, which is why the sheet is twice the height of the visible page. A single-page format shows the image and the grid side by side and takes less wall.
| 11 x 17 in, folded to 11 x 8.5 | The standard: image above, month grid below |
|---|---|
| A3, folded to A4 | The metric equivalent; the same layout |
| 12 x 12 in square | A large image and a compact grid; the photography format |
| 11 x 8.5 in single page | A small format for a desk hook or a narrow wall |
The grid people actually write in
A date box under about an inch square is decorative. If the calendar is meant to be used — and a used calendar is one that stays up — the boxes need an inch and a quarter or more, the date numeral in a corner rather than the middle, and enough contrast that a pen mark reads against the printed ground. Weekends shaded, the previous and next month in small grids at the corner, and public holidays marked for the right country: those are what make a calendar useful rather than a poster with numbers.
Confirm the week start. A calendar printed Sunday-first for a market that starts Monday is wrong on every page, and it is the most common error we catch at proof.
Binding, and hanging
- Wire-o — a double-loop wire through punched holes; lies flat, turns cleanly, takes a hanging hook in the wire. The standard for wall calendars.
- Saddle stitch — two staples through the fold; cheaper, and the pages do not lie as flat.
- A punched hanging hole through the top sheet, reinforced with a die-cut crescent so it does not tear.
- A printed board header above the wire, for a heavier calendar or extra brand space.
Paper, print and the twelve images
The image pages run on a 100–130 gsm coated silk — heavy enough not to curl on a wall, matte enough not to glare under a light — and the grid pages can run lighter. A gloss stock makes photographs sing and reflects every ceiling light; silk is the compromise most calendars land on. Twelve images is a real commitment of photography, and a calendar with four strong images and eight weak ones is worse than one with a designed graphic treatment throughout. The file preparation is the same as any print job, and our guide to setting up files for press covers the bleed and resolution the images need.
Wall Calendar — specification
The rows that are specific to this build first, then what applies to every job we run. Anything not listed is a question, not a limit — send the brief.
This build
- Formats
- 11 x 17 folded, A3 folded, 12 x 12 in square, 11 x 8.5 in single page
- Pages
- 12 months plus a cover; 13 or 14 sheets with an overlap month
- Stock
- 100–130 gsm coated silk; gloss or uncoated on request
- Binding
- Wire-o with hanging hook, or saddle stitch; board header option
- Grid
- Date boxes 1.25 in or larger, week start and holidays to your market
- Minimum
- 100 calendars
On every job
- Print process
- Digital below about a thousand, offset above it. Both sides as standard on cards, tags and leaflets.
- Color
- CMYK with spot colors for a brand match. Uncoated and cotton stocks print noticeably lighter than coated ones.
- Tolerance
- Trim plus or minus 1 mm guillotined, plus or minus 0.5 mm die-cut. Anything over about 170gsm is creased before folding.
- Tooling
- A die only where the piece is shaped, perforated or drilled, made once and kept. A plain rectangle needs none.
- Food contact
- Food-safe inks on menus and counter print that will be handled where food is served.
- Sustainability
- Uncoated and unlaminated stocks recycle without separation, and FSC papers are available across the range.
- Artwork
- Vector PDF or AI, 3 mm bleed, 4 mm safe area, fonts outlined. We check every file and send a proof before press.
- Dieline
- Supplied free with the quote, before you commit. Yours whether or not you order.
- Sample
- A plain unprinted sample at the finished size on request, for fit and construction.
- Reorders
- Skip the tooling and go straight to press at a lower unit price.
- Lead time
- Quoted with the price against your fill date rather than promised before we have seen the spec.
- Markets
- United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia — priced in the delivery currency, freight included.
Boards and films we build wall calendar on
Sheet print is judged in the hand more than a box is: the weight, the surface and whether a pen works on it. These are the stocks we run for cards, folders, leaflets and stationery.
Coated card 300–400gsm
The workhorse. Sharp full-color print, matte or gloss, laminated where it is handled. Does not take a pen unless the finish is matte.
300–400gsmUncoated card
No clay coat. Colors read softer and warmer, a deboss goes deeper, and it writes on with anything. Photographs lose punch.
300–400gsmCotton and textured card
Soft, thick and fibrous. Takes a deep blind deboss and reads as an invitation. Foil sits beautifully; four-color does not.
400–700gsmDuplexed card
Two sheets bonded, often with a colored core, for a very thick card with a visible colored edge. The heaviest thing we print.
600–900gsmText paper 100–170gsm
Leaflets, folder inners and booklet pages. Folds without cracking and takes a full-color print on both faces.
100–170gsmManila and kraft paper
Unbleached, tan, and cheap. One or two colors read well; white ink gives a light mark. Envelopes, folders and tags.
90–300gsmSynthetic stock
Polypropylene sheet for tags and cards that get wet, torn or handled outdoors. Prints like paper and does not soften.
200–400 micronBoard-backed
A printed face laminated to grayboard, for a rigid card, a folder back or a display that has to stand up on its own.
1–2 mm boardNot sure which? Say what goes in it and where it is sold — the material follows from that. Our notes on recycled, recyclable and compostable cover which claims each stock can honestly carry.
- 01
Send what you have
A dimension, a photograph beside a ruler, or the product itself. No technical drawing needed — that part is ours.
- 02
We quote and draw
A price, a dieline and a date come back together. If a different build would suit the product better, that is in the reply too.
- 03
Approve the dieline
The flat drawing is yours to check: which panel is the front, where the folds fall, how deep the cavity really is.
- 04
Artwork on the dieline
You place your design on the flat we sent, or we place it for you, and you see a proof before anything goes to press.
- 05
A sample if you want one
A plain unprinted sample at the finished size shows fit and construction — the things a drawing cannot.
- 06
Cut, printed, shipped
The die is cut once and kept, so every reorder skips the tooling and goes straight to press at a lower unit price.
Format
Vector PDF or AI where possible. Raster artwork at 300dpi at final size, in CMYK.
Bleed
3 mm past every trim line, so a fraction of drift on the cutter never leaves a white edge.
Safe area
Keep type and anything important 4 mm inside the cut and away from every fold.
Color
Convert to CMYK before sending. Uncoated stock prints lighter; a spot color is the only exact match.
Fonts
Outline them or supply the files. A missing font substitutes silently and the proof will not match.
Barcodes
On a light, matte, unvarnished patch with the quiet zone clear — a code on gloss fails the scanner.
Not set up that way? Send it anyway — fixing a file is a short conversation, and we check every one before press. Our guide to preparing print files covers each point.
Sheet print takes the widest range of finishes of anything we make.
Matte lamination
Soft, fingerprint-resistant, and it still takes a pen. The default on anything handled.
Gloss lamination
Maximum color depth. Shows every fingerprint and refuses a ballpoint.
Hot foil
Gold, rose gold, silver, holographic or a color. The block is small so the die is cheap.
Emboss and deboss
Deepest on uncoated and cotton stocks; shallow and prone to cracking on gloss coated.
Spot UV
A gloss shape on a matte laminate. Best on a dark ground where the contrast reads.
Edge paint and colored core
Color on the cut edge of a thick or duplexed card. Only seen when the card is picked up, which is the point.
Soft-touch
A velvet laminate on a cover or a folder. Marks on white; excellent on dark.
Uncoated and textured
No film at all. Writes on, debosses deeply, and reads as considered rather than cheap.
Not sure which suits the shelf it sells from? Say where the product is sold and we suggest one — our notes on specialty finishes show them on real boxes.
Sizing printed sheets, folds and the grain: wall calendar
A printed piece is specified flat and finished folded, and the difference between the two is where mistakes live. Send the finished size you want and we work back to the flat.
- Finished size
- The size after folding and trimming. A6, A5, A4, DL, US letter and legal are standard; anything else is cut on its own die.
- Bleed and safe area
- 3 mm of artwork past every trim edge, and nothing important within 4 mm inside it. The guillotine drifts by a fraction on every stack.
- Grain direction
- Paper folds cleanly along the grain and cracks across it. We set the grain to the fold, which is why a sheet is not simply cut from the biggest sheet available.
- Fold allowance
- On a roll fold or a gate fold, the inner panels are cut a millimeter or two shorter so the piece closes flat.
- Creasing
- Anything over about 170gsm is creased before folding. Without it the fold cracks and the coating flakes along the line.
- Trim tolerance
- Plus or minus 1 mm guillotined, plus or minus 0.5 mm die-cut.
Not sure your numbers are right? Send the product dimensions rather than the box dimensions and we work the box out — the full method is in our guide to measuring for a box.
Interactive · five steps · no sign-up
Spec your Wall Calendar
Pick a shape, type a size, choose a stock and a finish. The preview on the left redraws as you go, and the spec lands with us exactly as you set it.
Frequently asked questions
Got a question about wall calendar? The answers below cover what we get asked most. If yours is not here, send it with a brief, message us on WhatsApp, or call +1 503-461-4788 — we reply the same working day.
Which format is standard?
11 x 17 in folded to 11 x 8.5, with the image above and the month grid below. A3 folded to A4 is the metric equivalent.
How big should the date boxes be?
An inch and a quarter or more if people are meant to write in them. Smaller than an inch and the calendar is decorative.
Does the week start on Sunday or Monday?
Whichever your market uses — tell us, because it is wrong on all twelve pages if it is wrong at all. We confirm it at proof.
Can you mark public holidays?
Yes, for the country or countries you specify. Send the list or we will propose one for your market.
Wire-o or saddle stitch?
Wire-o for a wall calendar — it lies flat, turns cleanly and takes the hanging hook. Saddle stitch is cheaper and the pages do not lie as flat.
Will the hanging hole tear?
Not with a reinforced die-cut crescent, which we use as standard. A plain punched hole in a light stock tears by spring.
Gloss or matte paper?
Silk is the usual compromise: photographs still look good and it does not glare under ceiling lights the way gloss does.
Do I need twelve images?
Twelve, or a designed treatment that repeats with variation. Four strong images and eight weak ones is worse than a consistent graphic approach.
Can it start in a month other than January?
Yes — academic and fiscal years are common. Tell us the start month and we lay it out from there.
What is the minimum order?
100 calendars. Digital print makes short runs practical; offset is better value in the thousands.
How long does production take?
Printing is quick; binding adds time. Calendars are seasonal, so order by early fall for a January delivery.
Will you send a proof?
A full digital proof of all thirteen pages, and a printed sample on request so you can hang it before the run.
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