Custom Roll Labels Printed to Shape

Choosing the Right Label Stock

Paper labels are the most economical and take print beautifully. Uncoated paper has a soft, natural feel and suits artisan food and candles. Coated gloss or matt paper gives sharper detail and brighter colours. Kraft paper labels have a brown, rustic look that pairs well with simple one-colour designs.

Film labels in white, clear or metallic finishes resist water and oil. They are the right choice for bath products, drinks bottles that go in ice buckets, sauces and anything stored in a fridge. Clear film gives a no-label look on glass, where the print appears to float on the bottle. Ask us which stock suits your product if you are unsure, especially for chilled or wet conditions.

Textured wine-style papers are another option for spirits and premium preserves, giving a tactile, uncoated finish. Bottles that sit in ice or a fridge need the film stock on our BOPP labels for wet conditions page.

Adhesives, Cores and Winding

The adhesive matters as much as the face stock. A standard permanent adhesive works for most glass, card and plastic. Freezer-grade adhesive holds on frozen and chilled packs where ordinary glue would let go. Removable adhesive peels off cleanly, useful for price labels or reusable containers. Highly curved or textured surfaces, such as small vials or kraft pouches, may need a more aggressive adhesive.

If your product is filled hot, chilled after labelling or kept in damp places, mention it when you ask for a quote. A quick test with a sample label on your actual container is the best way to be sure.

When labels go onto a machine, two details are essential: the core size and the wind direction. The core is the cardboard tube in the middle of the roll, and machines take specific internal diameters. The wind direction describes which way the label faces as it comes off the roll, top first, bottom first, left or right leading. Getting this wrong means labels come out upside down or sideways.

If you apply labels by hand, these details matter less, but a sensible roll size still helps. Smaller rolls are easier to handle on a busy bench, while larger rolls save changeovers on a machine. Tell us how you apply them and we will set it up correctly on the proof. Round containers on a semi-automatic labeller are covered by our jar labels applied by machine.

Printing and Finishing

Full colour digital print handles detailed artwork, photographs and multiple designs in one order without extra setup. That makes it ideal for brands with several flavours or scents, where each design is a separate version on its own roll. Spot colours can be matched for strong brand colours. Finishes include matt or gloss varnish and lamination for scuff resistance, foil for metallic accents and embossed texture for premium products.

Leave space on the design for information that changes, such as batch codes and best before dates. Many producers add these with a small hand stamp or a date printer once the label is applied.

Planning a Label Range That Grows

The labels you order for one product often become the template for a whole range. It pays to plan for that from the start. Keep the label shape and size the same across products that share a container, and change only the colour panel, flavour name or illustration. That keeps the shelf looking like a family and means every new product slots straight in without a new cutter or a new machine setting.

Think about what information sits on the front and what goes on a separate back label. A clean front label with the brand and product name sells better on the shelf, while ingredients, allergens, barcodes and legal wording usually live on the back. Printing front and back labels on the same roll, in order, saves time for anyone applying them by hand. Candle makers running a scent range use the same approach on our candle labels for a scent range.

Check Your Applicator Before You Choose the Wind

Roll labels are specified by the machine that applies them, so before anything else, find out from your labeller the core diameter, the maximum roll diameter and the wind direction it needs; applying labels by hand needs none of that, and a 76 mm core with a standard wind is fine. Then measure the container: for a wraparound, the circumference and the height of the flat area, deciding if the label meets at the back or leaves a gap. List every design and a quantity for each, because several designs run in one order. Artwork is a vector file per design with a clear area left for batch codes, and the free proof shows every version with the roll direction marked. A custom quote comes by email within one working day and minimums are quoted per job, so a new producer can order a few hundred of each design. Rolls are produced in 4–7 working days after approval and delivered free and tracked on the UK mainland. Seals, tags and sheet labels for the same shelf are with our other labels and stickers.