We have discovered that college students may know what they want, but do not necessarily have access to a high-quality school logo to create college-themed laptop skins, car decals and room décor.

To help you out, we have compiled a short tutorial on where you can access a logo for your school (or university) and how you can get that image into the sticviews designer to create your own custom skins and decals. First try checking your school’s website to see if high-resolution logos are available.

(Disclaimer: This tutorial involves using school logos which are subject to copyright protection. Please check with your booster club or school officials to ensure that you have permission to use your school’s logo. Always respect all copyright laws, and be aware that by uploading images to sticviews, you are verifying that you have permission to use any images that are subject to copyright laws.)

Part I: Getting Started

To get started, visit Chris Creamer’s sportslogos.net website. Here you will find various logos for all types of professional sports teams, but our focus today is on the College and NCAA logos.

1)      Click on the NCAA logo on the homepage or on  the ‘College’ link under the ‘Sports Logos’ heading in the left-side menu.

2)      Schools are divided up alphabetically into categories, so click on the letter range that includes the first letter of your school name (Ex: Florida State students click on ‘NCAA Division I (D-H)’)

3)      Now you will see a page filled with school logos, in alphabetical order by school name.
Browse through to find your school and click on the logo image.

4)      You are now taken to that school’s page with various past and present logos.
Click on the logo that you desire to use for your skin or decal (Although several schools have older logos available, newer logos seem to have higher resolution for better print results in most cases).

5)      Now you should be viewing a larger version of the logo image, but notice how you cannot just right-click and select ‘Save Image as’ in your browser.
To get around this dilemma, you will have to use one of two methods (assuming your are running Windows), both of which are described below.

Part II: Saving the Logo

Method 1: Using the Windows Snipping Tool (Windows Vista, Windows 7)

If you are using Windows Vista or Windows 7, you have access to a neat tool called the Snipping tool. You can access this program through the start menu or quick launch bar in Vista, or directly on your Start bar in Windows 7 (Look for the icon below).

This tool enables you to quickly take a screenshot of a portion of your screen, to be saved as an image on your PC.

1)      Make sure your web browser (with the logo open) is visible and run the Snippin g tool.
Your entire screen should fade out and you will see a box appear in the upper-right corner of your screen (your arrow mouse cursor will also turn into a cross-hair cursor).

2)      Position your cursor at the top-left corner of the logo, click and hold down the left button, and drag the cursor down to the bottom-right corner of the logo. Now let go of the left mouse button (this may take more than one try to make sure you capture the entire logo).

3)      Your selection (the logo) will now open in a new window. Click ‘File > Save As…’ (or the purple floppy disk icon) to save the logo image somewhere on your PC. Be sure the save as a .JPG file or .GIF file, as these are the only file types allowed for upload on sticviews.

4)      You are now ready to move on to Part III: Uploading to Sticviews

Method 2: Using the ‘Print Screen’ keyboard button

Although the Windows Snipping tool is the simplest way to save a logo image from sportslogos.net, the ‘Print Screen’ button on your keyboard (sometimes PrtScn) will work as well, with a few extra steps. This key is usually right next to the Scroll Lock button, on the top right half of your keyboard.

1)      Make sure your browser window (with the logo) is visible and click the Print Screen button on your keyboard.

2)      Open any image editor of your choice (Paint,Photoshop, etc.) and press CTRL + V to paste the image (or right-click and select ‘Paste’). You will notice that not only is the logo there, but also everything that was displayed on your screen.

3)      Crop the image down to just the logo (process varies depending on image editor used).

4)      Save the image somewhere on your PC (Be sure the save as a .JPG file or .GIF file, as these are the only file types allowed for upload on sticviews), and move on to Part III: Uploading to Sticviews

Part III: Uploading to Sticviews

Once you have the logo saved on your PC, the rest of the process is fairly straightforward to upload onto sticviews.

1)      Go to the sticviews image upload page (http://app.sticviews.com/startuploadimage.aspx)

2)      Click ‘Choose File’ and find the logo image that you just saved on your computer. Click ‘Open’ to load the image.

3)      Agree to the conditions by checking the box, and click ‘Upload’.
Once the image details and screen shot appear, click ‘Continue’.

4)      You will now be taken into the Sticviews designer with your image. Here, you can add any text you desire (or add other images), finalize your design, and complete the checkout process.

Congratulations! You have now created your very own custom College skin or decal. Be creative and design one for anything!

So, you’ve started a blog or a business and you’re building a following -- now what?  Now is the time to start really learning from the experts.  Tradeshows and conferences are a great way to meet other entrepreneurs in your business area and learn from the best in the industry.  For example, conferences such as Blissdom and BlogHer are for the women bloggers, SxSW for music, film and interactive, Blog World Expo for all bloggers, and many more tradeshows are great opportunities to learn from others.  Sticviews is sponsoring Amy Locurto and Angie Arthur of I Heart Faces for the Blissdom conference this February, and we wanted to pass along some useful hints for being prepared to attend your conference.

1. Business Cards – We just got some really awesome business cards from moo.com and we’re really excited to get them shipped in. Hopefully we’ll have them in time for the next Social Media Club Dallas event with Chris Brogan on the 21^st!  Business cards are a great way to give your contact information to people you meet and helps you follow up with people after the conference is over.  You can always go with innovative creative designs like the ones on Web Designer Depot.  TIP: Make sure to put your social network contact information on your cards (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc) -- many people forget! And you could always be creative. Amy Locurto handed out her business cards with a little Valentine’s Day sticker gift -- no one threw those away!
   
   

   

2. Create a list before you go of questions you’d like answered or specific people you want to seek out. You don’t want to miss the opportunity to talk to someone who has more experience in particular areas that could really be of benefit to you and your website.  TIP: You can tweet about your questions too!  If you don’t have a smart phone or a laptop for the weekend I recommend you borrowing one for the weekend.
3. Laptop skins – If you are a known blogger, or a beginner, getting a laptop skin with your blog name or banner on it really helps people put a face to the name of your blog. What a great way to promote your blog through technology.  Angie and Amy from I Heart Faces received their laptop skins from sticviews. Remember…it’s hard to recognize faces, but it helps when people can recognize your blog banner or twitter profile photo.  Amy Locurto recommends putting your blog banner and your Twitter photo on the laptop skin works great.
4. iPhone skins – Do you have an iPhone or another smart phone? You can get custom decals to fit on the back of your phone (see below) to also promote your blog.
   
5. T-shirts – This is always a fun thing to have around. Another great way to make your brand known while walking around a conference. Nomee handed out free t-shirts at the Twestival event last year -- great way to build awareness and recognition of your brand.
   
6. Camera – You never know who you are going to meet at the conference, and it’s a great way to showcase things you saw when you blog about your experience.
7. Do some research on the presenters of the conference. It’s good to come in well prepared to soak up the knowledge they have to offer without having to figure out who the people are before hand.
8. Mints or gum – you are going to be doing a lot of talking, and you should pay the favor to your neighbor!

There are always lists on the conference sites of extra things to bring, but this list is pretty comprehensive of things you need to bring!  Is there something you won’t go to a conference without?  Let us know.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GX5WS5JpODk

Custom Home Decor - DIY China Cabinets using Window Stickers and Window Decals

Cathe Holden, author of the Just Something I Made blog did a wonderful review of sticviews furniture decor skins, and she had a great concept for sticviews to help with home decor.  I’ve uploaded some of the image she used for her blog, The sticviews Giveaway and the China Hutch.

She ordered a reversed image to stick on the inside of her cabinet and then taped the backing paper to the inside of the cabinet as well to take away the transparency of the clear vinyl sticker she installed. 

This is a picture of the items that came along with her order.  It’s easiest to install with water (hence the small water sprayer) because it allows you to move the material around on the “stuck” surface until you have it just right.  A white foam squeegee helps smooth the air pockets from the middle of the sticview.  And the blue plastic razor blade helps pick up the image if you need to move it around a little more before it’s completely secure.  And remember, the best part about sticviews is they stick anywhere and come off clean!

Cathe said in her blog that it only took thirty minutes for her to install the sticview from cutting to taping, and it looks absolutely fantastic!  What a wonderful idea for a sticview -- and a great way to spruce up an old China cabinet!

You can go to her blog about the review to view her steps and the downloads for the trading cards.  The giveaway is already up and I’m eager to see what the winner is going to order.  The contestants definitely had some great sticview ideas -- the possibilities are truly endless!

Cathe is also a graphic designer and owner of Home Grown Logos. You can also read her design blog at Farm Fresh Creative.  She definitely has wonderful creative talent.  And I’m excited to see her uses for sticviews as time goes on!

Keep Sticin’

www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmzYQDkvrwE

Halloween Stickers for Home Decor With Wall Decals and Kids Wall Murals

Steps to create your own Halloween decorations with sticviews:

1) Record the sizes of the current picture frames you have in your living room (or any room to decorate)

2) Go on to the sticviews website and select your own Halloween stickers in the gallery section.  I found my sticviews in the Halloween Playful section.

3) Select the size of each sticker you are ordering, and then send in your order.

So, you have your sticviews -- now what?

4) Carefully peel the sticviews off the backing paper and apply a little bit of water (don’t worry it won’t damage anything!).  The water helps with easy installation!

5) Stick the halloween sticker on the glass of the picture frame and use a credit card or ID to smooth out the edges.

6) Then set them back out in your living room!  And there you have it, folks.  Quick and easy Halloween decorating!

What do you think?  I’d love to hear from you about Wall Decals and Kids Wall Murals!

Keep sticin’

www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDMV5Pkh3M0

Illustrator
1. Check your that your color settings are in RGB by going to IMAGE > DOCUMENT COLOR MODE and selecting RGB.

2. So, you’ve made your image and added your text.  Now you need to make the fonts recognizable on all computers by going to TYPE > CREATE OUTLINES. This will ensure your type will print the way you see it.  Sticviews, along with other online printers request a JPG and then the printing software can convert the JPG into a PDF.

Now you can save it as a JPEG and upload it to your sticviews account to order your custom decals!

Once your on the sticviews webpage you will add the cut line to your image and you are good to go!

Keep sticin’

Follow me on twitter – Kat Farmer

Below, we have put together a series of images and instructions on how to trim to fit a laptop:

1. (A boring looking laptop and a custom laptop skin that’s over sized.)
   Step 1: Apply the sticviews laptop skin like you would normally.
   Align the center of the laptop skin to the center of the laptop
   (check our previous blog article for specific instructions, or watch our video tutorial).

   (See how the laptop skin extends beyond the length of the laptop?)

   

   Making Your Custom Laptop Skin, Laptop Stickers, and Laptop Decals Fit

   

   Making Your Custom Laptop Skin, Laptop Stickers, and Laptop Decals Fit

   

   Making Your Custom Laptop Skin, Laptop Stickers, and Laptop Decals Fit

2. Step 2: Cut off the excess laptop skin
   Using a razor, exacto knife, or box cutter (and a ruler if you want to be perfect) and gently cut along the entire shape of your laptop. If you like, you can cut and peel off small sections at a time.
   

   Making Your Custom Laptop Skin, Laptop Stickers, and Laptop Decals Fit

3. Step 3: Gently tug and peel the excess
   If you want to be perfect, continue to use the ruler -- place the ruler down on top of the parts of the skin you want to keep, and peel the excess along the edge of the ruler.

   (The final product. See how we cut it to fit around corners?)

   

   Making Your Custom Laptop Skin, Laptop Stickers, and Laptop Decals Fit

   

   Making Your Custom Laptop Skin, Laptop Stickers, and Laptop Decals Fit

Visit sticviews.com to create your own custom laptop skin, poster, car graphic, window

sticker, and whatever else you can think of!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GX5WS5JpODk

Sticviews are easy to install, move and remove.

Please look at Installing a sticview pt. 1 for additional tips and instructions.

the wet installation method

use this method for installing the white stic and clear stic materials
ONLY if your surface is water-safe.Consider this method for smooth finished surfaces such as glass, cars, plastic, painted wood and metals. Warning – please stic responsibly. Do not use water on or near electrical outlets, appliances or electronic devices.

you’ll need a:

• spray bottle filled with water
• a squeegee or a credit card
• a lint-free towel for this method
• a sharp flat tool to lift up under the sticview to remove it off the surface without damaging it.
• share the fun – an extra set of hands is also recommended for large sticviews

1. Prepare your work area.
   Make sure the installation area is free from dust, lint or debris that might stic to the adhesive surface. Don’t forget to wash your hands!
   

   Custom Decals, Auto Stickers and Stained Glass Window

2. Clean your surface.
   Clean off any dust or grime from your surface with a lint-free towel, and be sure to remove any excess cleaner before installation.
   

   Custom Decals, Auto Stickers and Stained Glass Window

3. Wet the surface and the sticview generously with lots of water.
   Spray the surface with water, remove the sticview backing paper and spray the adhesive side with water.
   

   Custom Decals, Auto Stickers and Stained Glass Window

   

   Custom Decals, Auto Stickers and Stained Glass Window

4. Place the sticview.
   Place the sticview aligned where you want it. Lightly apply the sticview starting from the middle. Avoid trapping any air by applying it outwards from the center. The water acts as a buffer and allows you to arrange and re-arrange the placement of the sticview.  It floats on top of the water so you can easily move it around.
   

   Custom Decals, Auto Stickers and Stained Glass Window

   

   Custom Decals, Auto Stickers and Stained Glass Window

5. Check for trapped air and apply the sticview.
   If there are air bubbles, lift the sticview up from the surface, spray more water, then reapply.  Use a squeegee to push out the water and apply the sticview.
   

   Custom Decals, Auto Stickers and Stained Glass Window

6. Allow to dry
   (note: the adhesive will first appear milky but will become totally clear as it dries completely over the next several days).
   

   Custom Decals, Auto Stickers and Stained Glass Window

7. Note for Cars! Please don’t drive fast for 24 hours after first applying your sticviews to cars. Once they dry, they can go through the car wash, will not fade or melt in the sun, and last for years.

** If you wish to save your sticview after you remove it, save the backing paper. Then, place your sticview on the backing paper after your remove your sticview from its surface.

Look to our previous blog, Installing a Sticview pt. 1 for dry installation instructions – for electronics and not water-safe surfaces.

The video tutorial below shows the wet installation method:

Sticviews custom stickers are easy to install, move and remove.

These tips will help you get great looking results with any sticview material.

warning – please stic responsibly!

• Due to surface variations, sticviews cannot be held responsible for damage to surfaces.
• Test your surface before stic’n anything to it.
• Sticviews are not recommended for use near sources of heat, electrical or artificial light.
• Keep all plastic films away from young children and animals.

the dry installation method

use this method for installing any of the stic materials.
note: if you’re using the white stic and clear stic materials, and your surface is water-safe, we recommend the wet installation method instead to best remove the potential for air bubbles under your print. Instructions for wet installation is in pt. 2 of “Installing a Sticview.”

1. Prepare your work area.
   Make sure the installation area is free from dust, lint or debris that might stic to the adhesive surface. Don’t forget to wash your hands!
   

   Custom Decals, Wall Decals and Car Vinyl

2. Clean your surface.
   Clean off any dust or grime from your surface, and be sure to remove any excess cleaner before installation.
   

   Custom Decals, Wall Decals and Car Vinyl

3. Peel your decal.
   Peel the the top edge of the backing paper approximately three inches and align the top of the sticview to where you want it placed.
   

   Custom Decals, Wall Decals and Car Vinyl

4. Place the decal.
   Lightly apply the sticview starting from the middle. Avoid trapping any air by applying it outwards from the center.
   

   Custom Decals, Wall Decals and Car Vinyl

5. Check for trapped air and apply the decal.
   If there are air bubbles, lift the sticview up from the surface to let the air out, then reapply using a squeegee.
   

   Custom Decals, Wall Decals and Car Vinyl

** If you wish to save your sticview after you remove it, save the backing paper. Then, place your sticview on the backing paper after your remove your sticview from its surface.

Look to our next blog, Installing a Sticview pt. 2 for wet installation instructions – for windows and flat surfaces.

The video tutorials below show the dry installation method:

1. Your image file in paint (or windows image editor, iPhoto, Photoshop, etc.):

**Note: For best results, make sure your file is large enough for how big you want your sticviews custom decal to be. For example, if your custom sticker is going to be 10” x 20”, the printing will look best if the image you upload was originally 10” x 20” at 150 dpi or higher (dpi is the resolution). If your file size is good quality, we will give you a green light that looks like this:

Design Your Own Custom Decals, Wall Stickers and Auto Decals on Sticviews.com

If the resolution is not high enough, you will get a yellow or red light, and you won’t have the guarantee of a photo-quality print.

2. Your image in the sticviews image editor:

Design Your Own Custom Decals, Wall Stickers and Auto Decals on Sticviews.com

The sticviews image editor has several tools that allow you to further customize your image. In the example above, I made the sticker have rounded corners using the custom shapes and choosing “rounded rectangle.”

3. Your image printed as sticviews custom decal:

Design Your Own Custom Decals, Wall Stickers and Auto Decals on Sticviews.com

This is what your sticview will look like when it comes in the mail.

Ready? Then start designing your own custom sticker on sticviews.com!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIofN4we-70

Of course, some materials are better for some surfaces than others.

Below is a description of each material and what surfaces they stic best to:

cloth stic: a fabric-like material that is best for any surface that’s textured i.e. rough walls, clothes, and furniture. Also works on smooth surfaces.

This stuff is magic! It’s our most durable material and it stics to most anything. It can be reapplied over and over again, and even get washed off! For example, if you’ve stuck it and re-stuck it on your clothes, and it starts picking up a lot of lint, simply wash off the lint and it becomes sticky again! We’ve never actually worn one out yet to the point it loses its stickiness (because it just keeps getting sticky again!), but we challenge you to use your cloth stic sticviews until it poops out (and let us know how much of a beating it can take).  The print quality is like canvas and is great for photos, art, and reusable graphics.  Works indoors and out.  White areas of the image will come out white on your prints.  Light shines through it for beautiful affects over windows.

white stic: a solid white vinyl material that is best for flat, smooth surfaces. Perfect for decals of all shapes and sizes, window coverings, laptop skins, and car decals.

They let light through if you put them on windows, store fronts, or light boxes. This is currently our most popular material because it’s kind of the catch-all material for sticview decals. When designing your sticview, white areas of your design will come out white on white stic. White stic shows up best compared to the other materials when stuck on dark surfaces.   Prints come out photo quality and they last indoors and outside in the sun.  They don’t fade even on the hood of a car in Texas.  *refer to photo below

clear stic: a see-through material for glass, paint,  and flat, smooth surfaces. Perfect for stained glass simulations and car windows and car paint because you can see through them.

Great for stickers where you want to see the background color come through like on cars. When designing your sticview, white areas of the image will be crystal clear on clear stic (we don’t print white ink). Clear stic does not show up well on dark surfaces but they show up really well on light surfaces. *refer to photo below

art paper: a non-adhesive, firm, 200 gram thick paper that has a satin/glossy finish. Excellent for posters, trade show graphics, photo enlargements, art reproduction, and room decorations.

Art paper is a high quality paper that is most often used for posters and prints. This is the only material that we cannot cut into custom shapes (circle, semi-circle, rounded rectangle, etc), and it is our only non-sticky material. It can only be cut into rectangles -- of course, you can customize the dimensions of the rectangle. This is something you cannot do with most custom printing services – sticviews is special even when working with paper.

How sticviews look on a dark surface:

Wall Stickers and Wall Decals

How sticviews look on a white surface:

Wall Stickers and Wall Decals

www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPKE6FImgU0