Foil Stamping and Embossing | Creating Impactful Product Stickers

Foil Stamping and Embossing

Foil Stamping and Embossing is a unique service that adds a touch of sophistication and luxury to your designs. Today, we would like to introduce how we applied this service to a recent project.

Recently, we assisted Heso Corporation, a company that offers total support from planning to production, creating products with flexible ideas and storytelling.

This time, we produced package labels for "Nadeshiko Supplement" by Respect Corporation, designed by Heso Corporation. The products are "Ayame" and "Tokiwa."

The material used is No Coat 55 Paper, with adhesive for wet grinding. Special processing includes embossing and gold foil stamping.

Examples of Foil Stamping and Embossing

Nadeshiko Supplement product labels, from left: "Tokiwa" and "Ayame." They feature gold foil stamping and embossing.

No Coat 55 Paper is a type of Western paper with a 100% chemical pulp composition. It is mainly used for printing and classified as a high-grade uncoated printing paper. Compared to other coated papers, it has a rougher surface, allowing you to enjoy the texture of the paper itself.

The drawback is that since it has no coating layer, the ink can bleed, and the colors may slightly darken due to ink absorption (e.g., gray becomes a slightly darker gray). We chose general adhesive. Additionally, since we applied embossing, we selected a slightly thicker 70kg paper instead of the usual No Coat 55 Paper. It pairs well with foil and is a versatile paper material.

No Coat 70 Paper (manufactured by Lintec: 70PW) is popular for its natural texture. It is available with general adhesive, strong adhesive, and weak adhesive. The separator (backing paper) comes in two colors: yellow and blue.

Foil Stamping

Foil stamping is a printing technique that transfers foil using a heated metal plate. It creates a luxurious feel that cannot be achieved with ink. Foil stamping offers a wide range of gold variations, so you can find the gold color that matches your image. There are also vibrant primary colors and pastel-colored foils. For more details, please refer to Foil Stamping Stickers: Explanation of Processing, Color Varieties, and How to Identify Quality Products.

The foil used is matte champagne gold. We used Glean Foil No.111 from Murata Gold Foil. It’s a subtle gold but has a luxurious feel and is a popular product number. The Glean Foil series includes 13 types of gold.

Embossing

Embossing is a printing technique that applies pressure to a material with a plate to create a raised design on the surface. The biggest attraction is the freedom to design the raised pattern. It’s a relatively inexpensive process, but its significant impact is why it’s so popular. For more details, please refer to Embossed Stickers: Create a Premium Impression and Stand Out from Competitors!.

The raised pattern creates shadows, adding a three-dimensional effect. It provides both visual and tactile experiences.

Special Colors

Special colors are created by mixing multiple inks to produce colors that cannot be replicated by four-color printing.

The special colors for Nadeshiko Supplement are from DIC’s “Traditional Japanese Colors.” This series includes over 1,100 colors based on Japan’s unique color sense and historical references. They are N831 Hiwamoegi (Yellowish Green) and N860 Usuasagi (Light Blue Green). To highlight the embossing, some parts are designed to be printed with a mesh.

Tokiwa: N831 Hiwamoegi (Yellowish Green) - A color that is greener than Hiwa color and is between Hiwa color and Moegi color. The name has a particularly beautiful sound.

Ayame: N860 Usuasagi (Light Blue Green) - The hue, dyed lightly with indigo, tilts towards green and becomes Asagi color, but Usuasagi refers to an even lighter color. The DIC Traditional Color series also includes Traditional French Colors and Traditional Chinese Colors. It’s a useful reference when you’re stuck choosing colors in PANTONE.

The Heso Corporation, which we assisted this time, is a unique design company that engages in a wide range of product creation. Their products are unique and wonderful, so please check out their website.

design:Heso Corporation
Our team designs spaces in a variety of ways, embracing flexibility without limitations. By interacting with people, we expand our network and create products with innovative ideas and storytelling. We provide comprehensive support from planning through to production.

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