Frequently Asked Questions

Where can i find your terms of use?

Here you will be able to read my terms of use for each type of licensing agreement.

Use the table of contents to navigate through the 5 licensing types I offer and also, take a look at my licensing overview, where i offer a more visual way to decide your needs as a commercial user.

Can I sell or Give Your Digital Files Away?

Heck to the No! PLEASE DON'T!

While in some instances you can make something with them to sell, you MAY NOT sell OR give-away my coloring pages, printable downloads, clipart graphics or any digital files, even if they are FREE, or if you paid for them.

The copyright for all graphics and downloads at Inspirational Zest belongs to Carrie Stephens Art (me).

I am only allowing YOU to use these downloads for your personal use, or if for commercial use, according to the terms of the licensing agreement that came with your purchase or download.

Read my terms of use for each licensing agreement type, and / or see a visual licensing summary!

Contact me with questions if you need answers!

Best Printer Settings

When you are sending something to print, it is necessary to make sure you have your printer driver updated and all of your settings dialed in.

Every printer has a print setting where you can set the type of paper media you are printing on, quality and whether you want to scale it to fit.

1. Choose the quality of the print, often, your printer's default setting will not be set to the highest quality, if your print is something special or you want to keep it around for longer, make sure that you choose to print in the highest quality setting. 
   
2. Select what type of paper is in the tray! If you have photo paper in there but copy paper is selected, you aren't going to get as crisp of a result and if you are printing on white copy paper but have the selection of gloss photo quality paper, you are going ot end up with ink-soaked paper!   
   
3. Choosing the scale to fit print media option could interfere with the size of your prints if they are cards or images that are size dependent, so you are going to want to be careful and make sure that if this button is checked, it is intentionally to scale to fit your paper.

What Printer Is Best?

For printing my digital art at home, I have a canon pixma printer that has refillable ink tanks, it works just fine, it's nothing special or fancy, but it prints nicely and doesn't have any issues feeding cardstock paper.  

UPDATE + MINI RANT:  I have a Canon Pixma G3200 that I paid $300 dollars Canadian for, still had 1/2 of the ink it came with, but suddenly had error code B500, saying the ink pad overflow was full. 

When I contacted canon support, they said that the only solution to fix this printer was to buy a new one because it was no longer under warranty.  Through some research, I have discovered that this is a quite common issue with Canon Pixma Eco Tank printers. 

I opened up the printer, since it was no longer under warranty, low and behold, the printer pads were NOT full, actually, they had very little ink spill.  This printer is going to fill our landfills because canon doesn't want to offer a fix and that is unethical and contributing to destroying the environment.

In conclusion, I no longer recommend canon printers and currently, while i explore my other printing options, I have yet to have a strong opinion on which printer to purchase.

Purchasing a New Printer?

If you are in the market to buy a new printer, the most important thing to research before deciding which one you will be going with is whether the ink refills are affordable, readily available and whether the printer will accept cardstock if you want to print on a heavier weight media.   

What Is The Best Paper To Print On?

Finding the best paper to print on really depends on the application methods and what you will be using the print for!  If i am going to use ink to print something, when it comes to paper, i always go with a higher quality material unless i am going to be tearing it up for collage or just using it for testing purposes.

Printing Collage Sheets

I really like bright white copy paper to print most of my art that I will be using to collage with in my art journal & sometimes even a thinner brochure or sketch paper will give a lower profile to the images that get glued down, you just must watch for wrinkles!  

Printing Die Cut Images

When you print die cuts, you will need to choose a nice sticker paper or thicker cardstock paper.  Your scissors will fussy cut their way through anything you can run through your printer.

For Use With A Cutting Machine:

Print thencut can be tricky so, i highly recommend going to your cutting machine manufacturers website and reading the documentation they provide and using manufacturer produced paper for the first time so you can get a good idea of what it is supposed to behave like! 

email me your specific printing questions if they are not answered in the information provided above. 

I am happy to help you! 

How many times can I Print your Printables?

You can print this free printable art as many times as you need for your personal use!

If you are printing multiple copies of a printable with the intention to sell something you make with it, host a class, a group or promotion, please know that I DO NOT allow commercial use of my FREE printables, SVG, or graphic files from inspirational zest without a commercial license!

If you can't find the link to purchase the commercial license on the product, please contact me and I will help!

3. .ZIP HELP! I can't OPEN THE file.

Most of my digital files are provided in a .zip folder.   This format will have a little zipper on the folder icon once downloaded.  Windows and Mac OSX can open and un compress ZIP files without additional software while iPhones and iPads will require an additional app.

What is a Zip File?

A Zip file, also known as a zip archive, is used for the distribution of files on the internet.  

You will need to “unzip” zip files when buying digital graphics and files.

Zip files are the design industry standard. These zip containers are necessary to keep collections of digital files together while also compressing large digital files for a smaller, faster download transfer.

Unzipping On a Desktop

The extraction of a .zip format file is simple as a windows PC has the ability to unzip compressed files without any additional software!  

1. Click to Download the zip file -it will either automatically download to your downloads folder or prompt you to choose a folder location.  
2. Once your file finishes downloading, find it in the stored location.
3. The file will look like a zipper
4. Right-click and choose extract to folder -it will create a new open folder.  
5. Send your zipped file to the recycle bin and use the files from your newly extracted open folder.

The Mac operating system also enables you to open a zip file without any additional software. simply double-click on the zip archive to extract it automatically.

Unzipping On A Mobile Device

IPAD + iOS 11+ Supports Zip Files in the native files app! 

If you have an older iOS version number, you will need to find an app that works on your iPad, like this one.

1. Click the download link and choose a location to download your file.
2. You'll be prompted to choose a location to download to.
3. Go to your file location in the Files app, tap the zip to open it
4. Tap “preview content” to see the contents of the zip file.

Android OS 

To open Zip files on an android device, head to the play store and download the files app from google.  -this is also just a handy app to have to clean up your downloaded files and clear up space!

1. Click the download link and choose a location to download your file.
2. You'll be prompted to choose a location to download to.
3. Go to your file location in the Files app, tap the zip to open it
4. A pop-up shows the content of that zipped file.
5. Tap Extract!
6. You will be shown a preview of the extracted files, now select the delete ZIP file checkbox to make sure you don't store duplicate files, taking up unnecessary space on your device.
7. Now you can access your unzipped files!

Do I Need Winzip Software?

 A misconception about the Zip File of today is that you need to buy or download the trial of the WinZip software to open them.    

WinZip used to have to be bought, but this extraction method is now universal and included on your windows PC.  

What Happens If i Don't Unzip?

Your files will not work properly! 🙂

The purpose of a zip file is to compress data and transport the graphic files. Oftentimes, the result of not uncompressing is garbled files. 

By that, I mean PNG files that load with a black background or SVG files that load all junky in Cricut design space or silhouette studio.  If you are having trouble with your files, that is the first thing I will ask when I am trouble-shooting your downloads!

Over the last 16 years of selling digital files online, any question about files not behaving, 99% of the time the solution has to do with not unzipping!

Raster vs Vector Clip Art | What is the difference?

Vector graphics are made of paths a, they have crisp lines and are incredibly versatile as they can be scaled up or down to any size, recolored or rearranged in vector editing software.

Raster images are composed of pixels, if you zoom in on a raster image, you will see a lot of tiny little squares of color and shades and the quality depends on the resolution and file size that was exported at the time of saving.  

Raster clipart can be scaled down but typically not scaled up without the images becoming blurry. Print standard resolution for a raster image is 300 pixels per inch.

What is a PNG file?

A PNG is a raster-based image that supports lossless data and also retains a transparent background. It is this property which makes it ideal for graphics where you do not want an attached white box.  

PNG is the most widely used lossless image compression format in the world and a format opened within almost any software.

What is a JPEG File?

A JPG is another raster-based image format, it does not retain transparency and is not lossless, but it is best used for large items such as background papers where transparency is not necessary.

What is EPS file format?

An EPS is used for Vector based images, an older legacy format that is typically used only in online vector editors, vinyl cutting and older software.

What Software opens an SVG file?

To make, open or edit an SVG file, you will need software with vector editing capabilities such as Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Capture, Affinity Designer or Inkscape.

Alternately, software that comes with any of the popular die cutting machines out there, Cricut Design Space, Silhouette Studio designer edition, Sure Cuts a Lot, and Make the Cut all can open AND edit SVG files.

What is an SVG File?

SVG stands for scalable vector graphic. 

SVG format is an ideal format for cutting machines because it contains properties of a vector image.

A vector is an infinitely scalable image file, created in vector software like illustrator or corel draw.

The benefit of using SVG files for electronic die cutting machines:

SVG's are infinitely scalable, the file can retain a clear line, cutting a detailed, but tiny image for the use on a fingernail, all the way up to an image used on a 12×12 inch Scrapbook Page! 

Can a PNG file be converted to a SVG?

Yes, typically the software that comes with your die cutting machine will have the capability to what many commonly refer to as ‘TRACE an image'. 

This Raster to Vector tracing method isn't perfect, and doesn't work for all images, especially multicolor ones, it simply offers a basic way to convert a simple 2-4 color image to an SVG cut file and separate it for cutting within your software OR trace the perimeter of an image to get it ready for your print and cut.

NOTE: You should only be tracing images that don't belong to you for personal projects. unless you have purchased the image, it is in the public domain or listed as creative commons use.  

Just because you spot an image on google, doesn't mean it is free to do whatever you want with it. 😉

Shop Purchases / Order Questions

If you have a question about a digital download by Carrie Stephens Art that you purchased in one of my several online shops or here at shop.inspirationalzest.com, here are some answers to the most commonly asked questions!

What is your Download return policy?

Due to the nature of digital products, I do not accept returns, exchanges, or cancellations once an order is downloaded. Please email me if you have any issues with your purchase or order, I'm happy to work with you.

Still have Questions?  

Head on over to my contact page!

Before you Go…

Hey There Crafty Web Traveler!

A Note from Carrie: This site is new for me, I am still learning the ropes. Excited and working hard on making this a place to inspire creativity through Arts, Crafts, and fun DIY Projects. There may be a few things out of whack, but I'm fixing it!

Ways you can keep up with what's happening at Inspirational Zest

• Sign up to my weekly ‘Creative Juice' Box Newsletter 
• Pin Images from the best of IZ, so you can easily find them again!
• Spread the word about https://www.inspirationalzest.com to your friends who would also enjoy high-quality Free Printable Art and Creative Inspiration!   

Thanks so much for stopping by, I really hope you find something useful and come back and visit me again sometime soon!

Carrie Stephens