Tips & Tutorials - BottleYourBrand Blog

How to Remove Labels from Water, Wine & Beer Bottles

September 4, 2015 by Jenny Walters Leave a Comment

At BYB we usually recommend removing the existing labels from bottles before adding a custom label. Because after all, you spend money on custom labels to get a great looking result, not a mediocre one. We’ve been doing this custom label thing for over a decade now and here are some tips on how to remove labels from different kinds of bottles and get the best outcome.

HOW TO REMOVE WATER BOTTLE LABELS

For paper water bottle labels simply find the end of the label and peel back. You’ll see only a small amount of glue holding the ends together and no glue on the rest of the label. It’s a fairly quick process to remove the labels and not as daunting as you might think.
For synthetic or shrink labels either find a seam or lift the label edge with a snap-off utility knife like this one and cut the label being careful not to pierce the bottle, then peel it off. Most of the time you will only find glue on the label ends and not on the bottle.
If there is a small amount of glue left on the bottle don’t stress about it. Our labels are thick and made from a synthetic material that will cover it. Just make sure the label you purchase is wider than the area of the glue residue. Caution: Do not use solvents on plastic bottles. It will fog the plastic and may cause it to melt.

Find the label ends and peel off the label. It’s fast and easy too.

HOW TO REMOVE WINE LABELS AND BEER LABELS

Fill your kitchen sink with lukewarm (not hot) sudsy water to above the top level of the label. Let the bottle soak for an hour. It can sometimes help to score the label very lightly in a diagonal pattern.
After it has soaked peel back a corner to determine what it will take to get the label off.
If the label is coming up easily and comes off in one piece then take a scrubber sponge to the bottle to remove any remaining glue residue.
If the label comes off in pieces and leaves remnants then you may need to use a plastic scraper to scrape the pieces off with the help of Goo Gone or Goof Off.
If the label is really stuck and soaking doesn’t work. Pull the bottle out of the water and let the label dry.
Next, Spray Goo Gone or Goof Off on the surface of the label. Do this in the empty sink and let the label sit for as long as recommended on the product instructions. Then take the plastic scraper and scrape away the label. Apply more Goo Gone or Goof Off on the remaining residue and let it sit for a few more minutes. Then scrape away any left over stickiness.
Finally, make sure you wash the bottle in lukewarm soapy water and dry completely before applying the custom label. If there is any glue remover left on the bottle you run the risk of the new label not sticking or having the color compromised. The label can withstand ice, water and even some soaps, but solvents will ruin it.

We recommend using one of these products to remove label glue from wine and beer bottles.

Here are some wine bottles with new custom labels on them. We removed the existing labels following the steps we shared with you.

These are the bottles we removed labels from in the photo at the beginning of the post, but with new custom labels.

For any questions on how to make custom water bottle labels, wine labels or beer labels email us at [email protected] or visit our website to live chat with one of our helpful staff weekdays Monday through Friday from 9 am to 4 pm Pacific time.

You Need to Know This Before You Buy Water Bottle Labels

July 2, 2015 by Jenny Walters 8 Comments

Personalized water bottle labels are a great way to get the word out about your business or provide water with flair for guests at parties or weddings. You’ll save a lot of money by ordering just the labels instead of custom bottled water for the simple reason water bottle labels are a lot less expensive to ship than cases of bottled water. They also take less time to make so we can ship them out to you faster. That’s why we offer self-adhesive, waterproof water bottle labels printed with your design to put on bottles you source locally. It’s easy to go to the grocery store or Costco and pick up a few cases of water. Removing the labels is usually fast since major bottlers use as little glue as possible on the ends of the labels. This is good news for you and for us because getting the bottle free of the label takes no time at all. Personalized water bottles are great for hand outs and parties, but please don’t resell them. It’s not legal. Buy our custom bottled water if you plan on reselling.

Before you proceed here are some things you must know to make your purchase of water bottle labels a good experience.

#1 There Is No “Standard” Water Bottle

People in general have the misguided idea there is one bottle that’s a standard size. That’s not the case. Bottles come with standard content sizes like 16.9 ounces (500 ml), 12 ounces (355 ml) and 8 ounces (240 ml), but the bottle shapes themselves can be very different. See the photo below:

Bottles come in many shapes and sizes. There is no standard bottle.

So I guess what most people think of as “standard” is a 16.9 oz. bottle of water. That’s the size you probably pick up at the store when you’re stocking up. Just to illustrate how different bottles with the same fluid ounces can be, refer to the photos below of three brand name bottled waters in three content sizes. Even though they are all the same size in fluid ounces, they are different heights, different shapes, and different circumferences.

There is no standard water bottle even if the bottles hold the same amount of water.

Examples of 16.9 oz. bottled water

Examples of 12 ounce bottled water

Eight ounce water bottles without labels

Examples of 8 ounce bottled water

#2 Pick Your Bottle Before You Order Your Labels

You wouldn’t shop for shoes or a shirt without knowing your size. Neither should you order labels without knowing what bottle you’re going to put them on. You’d be surprised how many people do just that however. Then they call us all confused as to why the labels don’t fit their bottles. But hey, they bought the water bottle labels before knowing what bottle they were going to use. Kind of like buying shoes for your kid who’s at home and then finding when you get home they don’t fit. Hmmm.

Check the size of your bottle before you buy labels.

Mom and Dad what were you thinking? Why didn’t you measure first?

#3 How to Measure for Custom Water Bottle Labels

Not only are bottles with the same fluid ounces different shapes and sizes, to make matters even more confusing, they have different label panels. The label panel is the area where the label is applied to the bottle. See the illustration below for further reference to what that area looks like.

Find the Label Panel Height

Label panel size on three 16.9 oz. bottles

Notice how the bottle on the far left has a significantly taller space where the label can be placed on the bottle and on another the label panel gets as small as 1.75 inches in height. Now not many commercial bottlers spend the money to make a label that’s 4.5 inches high. Dasani and Aquafina have the tallest labels I’ve seen and those are only two inches high. Water bottled by Nestlé Waters’ may have labels as narrow as 1.5 inches high.

Find the Distance Around the Bottle

Besides the height of the area where the label fits you also need to know the measurement of the circumference (the distance around) the bottle. You can measure with a cloth measuring tape or use a piece of string, wrap it around the bottle, cut it, and lay it flat against a ruler. You can also pull the existing label off to get a good idea, but generally the existing label is smaller than the label panel. We give you lots of space to show off your design so our label might be slightly taller in height, but still fit the bottle.

Measure your bottle before you buy water bottle labels.

Measure the bottle first before you buy labels.

Once you find these two measurements; the height of the label panel and the distance around the bottle, compare these measurements to our water bottle label sizes, 8.25 x 1.75 or 8 x 2.125, to see which size works best.

The two water bottle label sizes to choose from.

We recommend you download our Sticker and Label Size Guide and print it out. Cut out the two water bottle labels and take them to the store with you to test them on bottles.

Measure your bottle first then choose the label size.

Check for Gaps or Overlaps

If you don’t like a gap between the ends of the label make sure you get the label size to achieve the look you want. I think it looks good if the label overlaps slightly or the ends butt up against each other, but that’s always a matter of preference. If the label ends do overlap keep that in mind when making your label artwork. You don’t want to cover up important text or images.

We Sell Quality

There are thousands of companies selling water bottle labels from small online shopkeepers to printables you download and print yourself. You need labels that are waterproof not water resistant, so the bottles can be placed in ice or water. You need labels that are synthetic not paper or coated paper, for a polished look. You need labels that are printed on a commercial press not an inkjet printer, so the colors won’t run and the clarity is sharp. Sure, you can get water bottle labels for cheap, but they won’t last or look professional. We print on a quality, synthetic material that has a self adhesive backing. The ink is electrostatically set into the label. Plus the ink is commercial grade and the color is crisp. Whether you’re celebrating Aunt Mary’s birthday or giving bottled water to your patients, you want to be sure you’re ordering the best water bottle labels you can find.

We have customers that order labels in quantities of thousands at at time for their business. We also have folks who order as little as ten for a small celebration. Where ever you fall on that spectrum we want you to get the water bottle label size that’s perfect for you. I hope you’ve found this guide helpful. For more info please visit our website or email us; [email protected] or Live Chat with us weekdays, 9 to 4 Pacific time.

Incorporating Custom Color in Wedding Favors

January 9, 2015 by Cindy Springer Leave a Comment

Welcome 2015! With the new year comes the announcement from Pantone® that Marsala is the color of the year for 2015. In the spirit of Pantone’s announcement, we at BYB want to share how to incorporate such a fabulous custom color in your wedding favors, specifically wedding wine labels, water bottle labels, and hang tags.

Color plays a key role in a bride’s life as she plans for her “best day ever.” Many brides either consciously or unconsciously follow the latest color trends when selecting their wedding colors. As a result, popular wedding colors come and go, but this year Pantone announced a color that veered from the familiar when it chose Marsala as the 2015’s color. It’s not like pastel colors of the past or even bright contrasting colors seen at many weddings. This color is bold, but sophisticated and embodies a natural earthiness. Even the most ambivalent groom will appreciate a color like Pantone’s Marsala.

You know, of course, that wedding planners, florists, stationers, and dress designers, are all scrambling to include this sophisticated color in their current offerings to brides.

What Colors Harmonize with Marsala?

According to Pantone, “Whether in a flat or textured material, or with a matte or gloss finish, this highly varietal shade combines dramatically with neutrals, including warmer taupes and grays. Because of its burnished undertones, sultry Marsala is highly compatible with amber, umber and golden yellows, greens in both turquoise and teal, and blues in the more vibrant range.”

You can easily have Marsala as your wedding color when you create your own wedding labels with our online designer. Whether you want to make wedding wine labels, mini wine labels, circle monogram stickers or favor stickers, adding Marsala is easy to do.

How to Change Color on Your Wedding Labels

When changing the text on an existing wedding template make sure you bypass the text fields on the product landing page and click “Customize It” to enter the design online studio as in the example below.

To change your text color to Marsala, follow these steps as illustrated:

Select the text by clicking on it. You know it’s selected when the box appears around it.
Next click on the color box on the Text Options tool bar.
Then either pick a point on the color box or to select Marsala type in ae5352 in the box where arrow number three is pointing.
To finish click OK to commit to the color scheme. Your text will change color when you click OK.

When working with templates that allow for background color changes. The process is even easier. Click on the Background tool on the left of the screen and select Color. A color box will appear like the one for changing font color. Follow steps 3 and 4 to change the background color.

Need Help with Color?

When it’s your turn to create wedding favors and you need help with color, be sure to contact us. We’ll go over the options and explain the design process. We’ll also help you with the common question of why the colors you see on your screen and print colors don’t always match 100 percent. Our graphics team and press will do their best to get the color you want on your labels and stickers. Live Chat with us weekdays from 8 am to 4 pm Pacific time. Email us any time at [email protected].

Now You Can Have Small Quantities of Your Labels with Short-Run Printing

April 21, 2014 by Cindy Springer 6 Comments

When you only need a few labels it can be frustrating to see minimum order requirements of 100 or even 1,000. That’s where we come to the rescue. Think of BYB as your one-stop short-run printer for any sticker or label you need, from your latest wine label design to a one-off bumper sticker. We know not every project demands hundreds of labels. I’ve talked to home brewers, wine makers, even brides ordering wedding labels who find our low quantity requirements to fit their needs perfectly.

Low Minimums

Ten labels is our minimum order number. For bumper stickers, order as little as one. Twenty-four bottles or one case for custom bottled water is the lowest case amount we require, which you’ll be hard pressed to find anywhere else on the internet. We cater to the guy who needs 12 beer labels for his home brew and the mom who wants 10 water bottle labels for her child’s birthday party.

Low Prices with High Quality

Our prices are low, but our quality is high. So even though you’re ordering only 10 labels you get the same high quality material customers receive that order 1,000 labels. We use premium label material, not the cheap paper you find on other websites. Check out our reviews to see the comments about quality. Our prices are some of the best you’ll find on the web.

Order as few as ten beer labels any design, unlimited colors.

No Color Charges

We’re often asked if there’s an extra cost for lots of colors in a print project. The answer is NO. We print our short-run orders digitally in full-color. There are no charges with this technology as there were in times past when a print plate had to be made for every color.

Fast Order Turnaround

Turnaround time is fast as well; two business days for stickers and nine days for personalized bottled water. When you order by 1 p.m. Pacific time your label order is printed that day and shipped the following day. If you order after 1 p.m. Pacific time your label is printed the next day and shipped the following day. Personalized bottled water takes a little more time, around 9 days for production and then allow for shipping time. We produce all custom bottled water orders every Wednesday morning. Get your order in by Tuesday evening and on Wednesday it goes into production and ships the following week.

Web-to-Print Technology

Bottle Your Brand’s web-to print solution is a streamlined process that allows for this amazing short-run print capability. You create and control the artwork. The canvas is your screen and you’re the designer. Your print proof is in front of you on the screen, although we do send proofs upon request. When you hit the final submit button your order goes right into the print queue. The artwork is pulled into a design program to check for any obvious cropping or image quality issues. The file is digitally tagged with your order number and quantity and uploaded to press every weekday afternoon. Each evening the day’s orders are printed, cut, tagged and stacked for shipping the next business day. Your order gets a quality check one more time before it’s packaged and shipped.

Print Any Design You Create

If you’re looking to print your unique design and not a pre-made website template, if you want a test run before you order massive label quantities, if you want to do a color check on your design, then you’re in the right place. We’ll print ten labels of any design you want. Whether you have four design variations or one design we’ll print as little as ten .

What Does Short-Run Printing Mean to You?

The service is top notch for your small print-run.
The latest web-to-print technology saves you time and money.
You control the design.
You spend very little to get the same product you would if you ordered thousands.
Your labels arrive fast.

Contact us with any additional questions about short-run printing. We’re always happy to help either through Live Chat or email at [email protected].

What Size Water Bottle Label Should I Buy?

February 3, 2014 by Cindy Springer 2 Comments

We sell a lot of water bottle labels at Bottle Your Brand. We discovered sometimes it’s more economical and faster for our customers to buy water bottle labels instead of cases of water. When customers buy our labels for their events, they put them on bottled water brands they buy locally. Probably the number one question we get asked here at Bottle Your Brand is, “What size water bottle label should I buy?” If only we could gaze into a crystal ball to answer that question. To be absolutely sure, you have to buy a bottle of water in your area, pull the label off and measure it, then choose our label size that’s the closest match. We sell water bottle labels in two sizes: 8 inches x 2.125 inches and 8.25 inches x 1.75 inches.

Here Are the Facts:

There is no “typical ” or “normal” water bottle. There are standard fluid ounces sold in bottles, for example 16.9 oz., 12 oz., 8 oz., but the bottles they come in can be very different.
A brand sold in one state, may not be available in the same bottle as that very same brand in another state.
A 500 ML bottle purchased in Houston, is not necessarily the same as a 500 ML bottle purchased in New York.
There are a lot of brands unique to certain geographic areas. Stores in our city don’t sell Ozarka, Poland Springs or Deer Park. We can buy Arrowhead, Refreshe and Crystal Geyser however.
The area on the bottle where you place the label, or the label panel, is different on every bottle. It may be flat or ribbed, wide or narrow.

Reasons Why Bottles Are Different

Why would a a 16.9 ounce bottle sold in Atlanta, come in a different bottle shape than a 16.9 ounce bottle sold here in Seattle, even when the brand name is the same? There are a couple of reasons. One reason is co-branding. Co-branding is a partnership. Sometimes companies form an alliance to work together to produce a product. This enables a company to hold down prices. It’s an efficient way to produce a product as heavy as bottled water. Shipping water from one side of the country to the other can be expensive.

The other reason bottles are shaped differently is because of the blow mold used to manufacture them. The blow mold determines the shape of the bottle. Not all bottled water companies use the same blow mold and some even have custom blow molds made for their brand, ie: Fiji and Evian. You’ll see evidence of this by walking down the bottled water aisle at the supermarket. There are smooth bottles, shaped bottles, ribbed bottles and bottles with raised designs.

Image courtesy of mitaplas.com

Take a look at these bottles we found when we did a search for bottled spring water. These bottles all hold 16.9 fluid ounces (500 ML). Notice their shapes are all different and so are the size and placement of their labels. They were all made with different blow molds, yet they all hold the same amount of water.

The same is true for 12 fluid ounce bottles from major brands.

After reading this post you should have a better understanding why we can’t tell you a brand name when you ask us what label size you should buy. But read on, we have one more thing to help you.

Printable Label Size Guide

To further assist you we have made available a downloadable PDF of all our label sizes. Print the guide and cut out the two water bottle labels. Keep in mind your printer settings should be set on “print to scale” but to be certain, check the guide you printed with a ruler to make sure it printed to size. Take the label cut-outs to the store and wrap them around the bottles you plan to buy.

If you’d like an actual label sample in either size please email us at [email protected] and ask for samples. We’ll need your name and address. We send out free label samples upon request. Please allow ten days to receive your sample. Happy Labeling!