by Nicholas Meadows

From King Tutankhamun’s beautifully gilded coffin to elaborate, mass produced packaging design of the 20th century, metallics and foils have been widely used throughout history to apply ornament to a surface. Until recently the most popular way to produce a metallic lustre to a printed substrate has been hot foil stamping. Other methods include the use of metallic spot colour inks and metalicised paper. This may all be about to change with the introduction of cold foiling. While cold foiling technology definitely invites new and exiting graphic opportunities, there are also limitations that should also be considered (as there are with any production method).

(more…)