Some print pieces stand out from all of the others. Maybe the color is more brilliant. Maybe the gloss has a shine that catches your eye. Or perhaps it’s the reverse—the piece has a luxurious matte finish but with brilliant accents that you can’t seem to look away from.
“Wow,” you think. “There is something special about this piece. I wonder what it is?”
The answer is likely UV coating.
Whether you’re looking for a high-impact shine or a more subtle effect, UV coating is a specialty finish cured instantly using ultraviolet light. It creates a brilliant finish that is precise enough to highlight even the fine details of images or text. UV coating is also highly resistant to scuffing and moisture and helps to protect the piece over time.
Whether UV is used to flood the piece or simply to provide highlights, you can’t miss the effect. As soon as light hits the areas where the coating is applied, they dazzle.
- If you’re an automotive manufacturer, you might add UV spot coating over the entire body of a car to enhance its gloss and shine.
- On a business card, you might use spot UV coating over the top of your logo to make it leap off the page.
- If you’re a nonprofit raising money for a clean water project, you might use spot UV over water droplets falling from the spigot on a newly drilled well. Your eye is immediately drawn to those droplets, which sparkle like shimmering rain.
Spot UV can be used on a wide range of stocks, but for maximum impact, try using it on matte-finished paper. Thicker weights are generally preferred. This will create the most remarkable contrast with the glossy coating.
Here’s another benefit of spot UV: The process emits no VOCs, so it does not release toxic compounds into the air. This means it does not contribute to environmental pollution.
Need more reasons to love spot UV? Ask us for samples!
