Is there ever a bad time for metallic print? It looks as great on a business card as it does on a flyer, a handout, or any other type of promotional material. It even adds a touch of elegance to wedding invitations and a bit of gravitas to shareholder reports.
With a shine and shimmer that puts a flat ink print to shame, metallic print is just outstanding. Here’s some great information on how to use metallic print to punch up your next print run.
Practically Perfect in Every Way
Using metallic print to put some pizazz into your next print project is highly effective if you’re trying to draw the eye. Capturing the imagination is great, but remember: there are still a few drawbacks that you have to keep in mind regarding this otherwise near-perfect approach.
Metallic ink needs the right type of paper in order to shine its brightest. A coated paper stock is ideal, as these types of stock will not absorb as much ink. This leads to your metallic print providing extra shine by sitting closer to the surface. An aqueous coating treatment is also a great way to keep your metallic print on the page, as it keeps flaking and chipping of metallic print to a minimum.
Non-Traditional Look, Still Easy and Accessible
You would think that relying on metallic print to give your project a non-traditional look would be difficult. Yet even with the different cardstock and coating requirements, achieving this non-traditional look is easier than you might suspect! In fact, foil stamping, the alternative method to getting a similar look is so cumbersome and labor-intensive that metallic print methods were developed as a workaround!
Metallic inks are much more effective on large printed areas and so these types of design considerations should be made in the early stages of the project.
Graphic Arts Mag
Foil stamping can be exhausting. You have to take metal foil, like gold leaf, and use it to emboss text or designs onto a piece of paper that’s already been printed on. Foil stamping is incredibly gorgeous. It’s much more beautiful than ink with a metallic print. But even with the fastest artisans capable of doing this it still is generally a slower process – and the associated price tag is incredibly high.
Hunting Down the Right Metallic Print Partner
There’s so much to like about metallic print methods. So much more inexpensive and faster than foil stamping, it’s a lot more accessible as a result. It also has a lot more versatility as well, as you can get metallic ink in just about every color. Despite all this, though, not every print house out there will be able to handle metallic print as well as another. Instead, you’ll need to find one that knows what it’s doing.
While hunting down the right metallic print partner, don’t be shy: ask directly if they have any experience in metallic printing. Offer examples of designs, both in plans and finished product, for them to look at. Make sure they will agree to print a proof or a sample for you before you sign on the dotted line. A good print company can promise you anything, but a great one can back it up with proof of their expertise. The best print houses are willing to show you they have what it takes, well before they ask you to sign a print run contract!
Need Metallic Print? Turn to Las Vegas Color Graphics!
There’s a reason we’re known as the Las Vegas area’s premier community print shop. Here at Las Vegas Color Graphics, we’ve been an industry leader in specialty print methods and execution for more than 40 years. Over that time, we’ve seen and done it all — and that includes perfecting our approach to metallic print.
We have what it takes to show you just how good your next print run will look with the touch of metallic inks, and our experienced graphic design staff and 24-hour print studio will provide you with the professional-level quality and quick turnaround our business partners have come to expect from us over the decades.
Don’t just choose any old partner for your next print project. Why settle for the rest when you can have the best? Contact us today and we’ll show you just how much elegance and shine we can add to your next project with metallic print!
