Creating Custom CD Labels

The compact disk may very well be on its way to becoming a relic of the past, but for the moment it still remains a reliable way for me to get pictures from my computer to a paying customer.  When I first checked into custom labels I honestly believed I NEEDED to purchase a program to create the design and print evenly on a round label, as well as an apparatus to apply the labels to the CDs.

After playing with a label maker my dad had been using, I decided I was crafty enough to come up with my own way to get pretty labels onto CDs and still make them look straight and semi-professional.

Here's the tutorial:

I like my disks to be completely covered, so I use Stomper CD Labels because you can either remove the center ring to expose the clear portion of the CD or use them as I have for full coverage.

The only material you need (besides a computer and blank labels) is an empty CD tower and the clear protector that comes in the bottom of it.

Using Word, I scaled down my document so the page on the screen was the same size as a normal sheet of paper, which in my case was 94%.  If you don't know how to do this, click 'View' on the top panel, click 'Zoom', and then play with the 'Percent' until you find the number that will display the true size of your document.

Using the same method, I lined up my blank CD label sheet to ensure that my design was going to thoroughly cover the disk and nothing important was going to fall into the center hole.

Print your label.

Drop the clear protector onto your empty CD tower.  This keeps your data-filled CD from getting scratched.  Place your CD on the tower label side up.

Remove the label from the paper.  Hopefully, the brand you choose has the handy little holders like mine did because they can be quite useful.

Carefully slide the label down the tower and let the center pole help you line up your label.

Once your label is applied, tear away the holders and smooth down all the edges of the label so nothing will get off balance when the disk is spinning in a machine.

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