Fabulous
Foiling
A bit of shine always gives print a prestigious look and feel. Foil blocking is regarded as one of the most* tactile effects, with nearly two out of five (38%*) people claiming the physical properties of a mail piece influence how they feel about the sender.
* Royal Mail MarketReach Private Life of Mail
Putting a glamourous stamp on things.
Hot foil printing, otherwise known as hot foil stamping or hot foil blocking, is a process where metal foil or pigment is heat-stamped onto paper or card to produce an eye-catching and luxurious special effect.
At OLRO, we use the best machinery and a wide range of foiling materials in metallics, satins, pearl, and other special effects. Foiled print can be recycled.
When requesting a quote, please specify the quantity, whether required on one or both sides of the sheet, flat sheet size and weight, area size of the images to be foiled, and describe what foil you want e.g. gold.
Our production team would be happy to advise on specific requirements. To apply the foil, we’d need a PDF file in black of the exact image area(s) to be foiled to make a die, full out to the tick marks so we have the exact position.
Blockable grade varnish is used when foiling over a UV varnish
We use different grades of foil depending on the substrate but all have complete compatibility with our film laminates
We can process sheet sizes SRA5 up to B1, with stock weights from 90gsm to 400gsm
Types of Foiling
Metallic Foil
There are few designs that cannot be transformed by foiling, whether it’s classic gold, silver and copper metallics or vivid colours. Whatever your needs, we will deliver a quality finish.
Pigment Foil
This is the perfect solution for when you want a deep, solid colour, usually black or white. Other colours are available on request but they require a minimum order quantity. Pigment foils are opaque and will add a richness and density to your stock.
Quoting Information
When requesting a quote, please specify the quantity, whether required on one or both sides of the sheet, flat sheet size and weight, area size of the images to be foiled, and describe what foil you want e.g. gold. Our production team would be happy to advise on specific requirements.
Foiling FAQs
What’s the best die material to use?
A lot will depend of the effect your client wants to achieve as some, like copper, have different characteristics. Our production team would be happy to advise.
What are the main benefits of hot foiling over cold foiling?
It’s more versatile in that you can combine it with other processes like embossing to achieve greater tactility. Hot foiling is better quality than cold, more vivid and not prone to pinholing.
Can it be used on fine print?
Our advice is to avoid foil blocking on small type and certain fonts as it’s not really suited to fine detail. Again, our production team would be happy to advise.
What’s registration like?
The process of heat and pressure can affect registration by ±1mm, which is why we require you to supply a PDF file in black of the exact image area(s) to be foiled to make a die, full out to the tick marks so we have the exact position.