Five questions, answered before you click Print.

Question 01

What paper weight should I use?

Use 24–32 lb / 90–120 gsm copy paper for the line work. Most office reams are 20 lb / 75 gsm and that's fine for a single sitting, but on 24 lb / 90 gsm+ the line-art sits flatter and the ink doesn't feather under heavy pencils or fineliners. If you plan to use markers or wet ink, move up to 32 lb / 120 gsm card stock so the page keeps its shape.

Question 02

Should I print double-sided?

Print double-sided if your printer flips on the long edge— that's the option labelled “flip on long edge” / “long-edge flip” / “long-edged paper” in most printer dialogs (Windows: Flip on long edge; macOS: Long-edged paper). The other option — short edge — mirrors the back of every page and makes the line work unreadable, so if short edge is the only duplex option in your menu, print single-sided instead.

• Long edge — back of page lines up the way you read it. Recommended.
• Short edge — back of page is upside-down; skip for line-art.

Question 03

How do I save ink?

Two print-dialog toggles get you most of the saving. Turn on Draft (sometimes labelled Economy or EconoMode) and switch the colour mode to Grayscale (or Black & White). Draft lightens the ink laydown; grayscale stops the printer from mixing colour inks to reach grey tones. The line-art is tuned for ink-and-paper so the slightly lighter draft lines still read cleanly.

Question 04

Do I need “fit to page” on?

Turn it off. The toggle — Fit to Page, Shrink to Fit, Fit to Printable Area, or a similar phrase — sits at the bottom of the page-setup pane in every printer driver; the exact wording varies by make. The PDFs are sized to the exact paper (US Letter 8.5 × 11", A4 210 × 297 mm), so “fit to page” re-scales the line work by roughly 4% and quietly misaligns the botanical detail at the edges.

Question 05

How do I put it together?

Two simple choices. A long-arm stapler down the spine — one or two staples, the pages folded — keeps the edition slim and travels well in a bag. Or a simple coil(a 19-hole plastic comb or any office-supply Coilbind) if you want the pages to lie flat while you work. Skip glue and skip heavy three-ring binders — the page weight isn't built for them, and a coil opens the book to a single plate.