SPECIALTY PRINTING: Special Effects for your Printed Pieces

Specialty printing involves using creative techniques and materials to improve functionality and make your printed materials truly memorable. Whether you’re looking for luxurious invitations, eye-catching business cards, or unique promotional materials, specialty printing can elevate your brand and help you stand out from the crowd.

Our newest offering to our specialty line-up is an 'on-demand' digital sheet cutter with no physical dies or time-consuming machine setup costs. Perfect for creating unique and memorable shapes - think small runs and prototypes of packaging, custom-shaped business cards, door hangers, labels and so much more.

Here are some of the most popular print finishes we offer at Allegra:

• Laminating: At Allegra, we have a few different options for laminating, including gloss, matte, dry erase, and the increasingly popular soft or velvet touch. Lamination is used for a number of reasons, often to add an engaging tactile experience, or to enhance the appearance as the laminate helps make colours more vibrant. It is also helpful in increasing the durability of an item, offering protection against fingerprints, spills, and tears. It also adds thickness, giving the finished piece more structural strength. When the item is laminated with a lip, the printed item is completely enclosed resulting in a waterproof piece that can be used in humid or wet environments. Dry-erase laminate can completely alter the functionality of an item.
• Raised Foil: Combined with a matte or velvet laminate, raised foil is available in silver or gold and adds a stunning accent detail, perfect for business cards, postcards, and invites that need the wow treatment.
• UV varnish: This is a specialized varnish or coating applied on printed materials to give a high gloss or a matte coating finish. This process can be used to cover a complete piece or on specific areas (called Spot UV) to make certain elements pop. The UV varnish finish is a clear liquid that bonds and dries when exposed to UV light. This finish not only improves the texture and appearance of the finished products, but also seals the printed paper and acts as a resilient topcoat. This type of finish is often found in magazines, high-quality books, brochures, and more.
• Die-cutting: This finishing technique results in a unique shape that can't be achieved with a standard guillotine. With this process, you can cut out shapes, add perforations and creases, to create unique mailers, custom packaging, and more. With our new digital die cutter, we now have even more flexibility as we can create prototypes and tweak the template until things are perfect! It also allows us to kisscut sheets of adhesive so your labels and stickers are exactly the size and shape you need.
• Folding: This finishing technique is often used to modify the size of printed products and fit the piece into another element, such as an envelope. Interesting folds give print pieces a “pick me up and play with me” appeal and can include gate folds, half folds, letter folds, and more. The advantage of professional folding is that it gives the end product a finished and professional look.

On top of these specialty printing processes, Allegra also offers various binding options. Rely on Allegra for amazing printed marketing pieces and post-print options; the possibilities are endless. Our print finishes can give your designs that something extra and take them from good to amazing.

Start thinking about your next print project; our team will help you formulate the best plan for your print job. Call the Allegra team to discuss the texture, presentation, and impact you want your print products to have.

Consider what an impact your business can make with Allegra’s highly customized print and finishing services. Not sure what you’re looking for? Contact us today for samples and advice.