Traditionally, to achieve get the glowing effects of metal in a printed piece, a thin layer of silver or gold metal would have to be applied through a process known as foil-stamping. While the results of foil-stamping are much admired and desired, the additional turnaround time it adds to a project means last minute changes/additions or one-day turnaround is not possible. However, multiple color digital printing presses (i.e., presses that can print colors in addition to the standard CMYK colors) are making it possible to print pieces that achieve effects similar to foil stamping by incorporating a metallic toner as a fifth color.
What is Metallic Toner?
Metallic toner is similar to the regular colored ink toners used in digital presses except it incorporates granular flakes of silver, gold, or white metals. When applied to a paper substrate the metallic flakes create a uniform surface that reflects light to create the desired glimmering sheen.
Quick Turnaround Times
Because the metallic toner is not applied in a separate process after other inks have been allowed to dry, projects can be turned around in the matter of a day or a few hours making it possible to create and produce pieces incorporating metallic effects on much shorter time scales.
Additional Benefits to Using Metallic Toner
Metallic toner can be used as a fifth color on a digital press to create pure metallic effects or, if applied as the first color, be overlaid with the other CMYK colors to create a broad range of colors and effects. In addition, the metallic toners are opaque which enables their use on different colored paper stocks without the color of the paper stock bleeding through.
If you have any questions about Metallic Toner, give us a call at 330-597-8560. We’re happy to help you get the most out of your printing project.
Photo by Beth Macdonald
