Calendar Making: Quick

Saturday, November 12, 2011

A Quick 'How to Make Your Own Calendar' Lesson - Part 2

Thinking you want to make your own calendar? Well, you can learn a lot from this article. I'm going to share with you some of the best and worst when it comes to creating a calendar yourself, from home, on your own color printer...

You see, what happened to me was that I got deluded in my own 'instant' success. I had just made an agreement with a local businessman who was quite prepared to pay me to MAKE a calendar... Incredible! In fact, I was so thrilled at the prospect that I forgot to map out the costs for the project! Note to self: in the business world, dude, this is what people do!

In hindsight, what I should have done was plan the whole project out, step by step, and cost by cost. So, if you're planning to create a calendar for someone, make sure you do the numbers. It's easy to blow things out of proportion. Here's an example...

Everything was going fine. I was shooting terrific black and white photography and only needed 12 good shots. Too easy! And the calendar template was a simple matter to lay out in a design program. After some long, persistent searching I finally found the right inkjet paper. And then I started to print...

It was at this step that my calendar dreams sort of disappeared out the nearest window. I was tearing through ink like a thirsty dog and my choice imported paper caused nothing but chaos with my printer. Note to anyone who wants to create a calendar: Use a paper that looks great, but slides EASILY through your printer. When you're doing a job for someone else, practicality, ease and costs comes first!

Still want to make your own calendar? Excellent! It does work, but a little planning goes a long way! What happened with my project was that I focused on perfection instead of focusing on completion! There's a huge and costly difference, believe me. So when it's your turn to do this, keep things simple and remember what I said!

Below you'll find where to get free calendar templates that'll allow you to make your own calendar easily...

Martin Hurley's http://great-printable-calendars.com site allows you to create great custom made photo calendars, download original lifestyle photos free for your own desktop calendars, find the perfect calendar for your needs, and improve your life with an abundance of time saving tips. Discover how to create a calendar here!

Sunday, November 6, 2011

A Quick 'How to Make Your Own Calendar' Lesson - Part 1

Think it's easy to make your own calendar? Well, guess again. You can expect to have a rather challenging project on your hands. As it turns out though, you can take a leaf right out of my book on 'home made' calendar making experiments. In fact, this article will show you how to create a calendar without making all the mistakes I did...

And what does that mean for you? Well, it'll just make your life easier, believe me! Anyway, let me start at the beginning. You see, a long, long time ago I met a friendly businessman, and for some strange reason we got talking art and calendars. Why on earth, I don't know. But there we were, and there I was telling him enthusiastically how I could create a calendar that would IMPRESS him no end.

Obviously that was sheer lunacy on my part. Now if you're reading this and you want to make your own calendar and offer it to local businesses... Well, just make sure you crunch your numbers first, Okay! But back to the story...

I ended up agreeing to go around my local area, shoot some exquisite, one-of-a-kind photos, and then pull this all together in an oversized but very attractive wall calendar. Now this calendar was like nothing you've ever seen, I'll tell you. It was a real work of art. A completely unique piece of eye candy too. And best of all, I got to create a calendar that he absolutely loved...

There was only one slight problem though... The darn thing caused me near sleepless nights and nearly sent me broke in printing and paper costs! Honestly! One little ink-jet smudge could ruin my whole day. And that imported paper was way too pricey for an entrepreneurial artist to waste! So, if you take home one lesson from this article, then make it this one... Choose your paper carefully!

Well anyway, the good news is that he got a great calendar, and I learnt how important it is to PLAN a project from the ground up. So when you decide to make your own calendar, make sure you factor in the cost of things Okay! This includes stuff like ink and printing costs, paper and binding, other unseen factors, calendar templates, graphic design, and YOUR time to make it all happen!

Below you'll find where to get free calendar templates that'll allow you to make your own calendar easily...