subject: The Processes in Sticker Printing [print this page] The Processes in Sticker Printing The Processes in Sticker Printing
As sticker popularity rises, the popularity of the sticker printing business does as well. Many people think printing stickers at home will be good enough, but soon find that if they want a professional looking sticker, home printers just can't do the job. Without the paper and right process, stickers printed on basic printers just won't last.
Sticker printing has improved immensely over the years. No longer are we limited to simply black and white, rectangle or square, thin paper stickers. Instead, we have a large variety of shapes, sizes, colors, and paper options from which to choose for our sticker printing.
Process Posibilities
Sticker printing processes have included several types over the years: screen printing, letterpress printing; flexography; offset printing; four-color process; and digital printing to name a few. The oldest and most common method of printing is still screen-printing. The ink is pressed through the screen and onto a stencil on the paper. The process must be completed for each color. This process is time consuming and not intended for large quantities.
Letterpress and flexography are two types of relief printing. Letterpress uses a reversed, raised surface inked and then pressed into the sticker paper resulting in a right sided image. Flexography is a quicker process which allows for larger quantity sticker printing. A master print is created and rolled over the paper pressing the image into the sticker paper. It is a popular process for sticker printing.
In offset printing the image is transferred from a plate or rubber cylinder to the paper. With offset printing the printer has several color options and colors print very well. Another color process, four-color process printing separates the colors of an original artwork into a four color format using cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. Separate files are created for each and printed onto the paper with special inks. The sticker image looks like the original image.
The final process to be discussed is digital printing, the most technological advanced of all the processes. In some instances, digital images are transferred to the press plate, cutting out a step. The process still involves pressing the ink into the paper. However, most people think of digital printing as their printers at home or work. While you can print stickers with these, the durability and quality suffer.
For professionally looking stickers, it's best to use a sticker printing company found on the Internet or in your hometown.
