How are paper cards and print items printed?

Offset printing makes a plate for each color and prints in large volumes, and digital color printing outputs the file directly without plates. Paper print items are usually made with digital printing for small quantities and with offset printing for large quantities or when spot colors must match exactly.

How it works

Offset printing makes a plate for each color and prints in large volumes, and digital color printing outputs the file directly without plates.

Color

Offset printing and digital color printing both produce CMYK full color. Pantone spot colors can be matched exactly in offset printing with a dedicated ink and plate, while digital printing approximates spot colors with CMYK.

Good for

Offset printing and digital color printing are good for placemats, cards, packaging boxes, and dessert picks and straw picks (single-sided color on PET).

Avoid when

Avoid digital printing when an exact Pantone spot color is needed, and avoid offset printing for small runs of a few hundred pieces or fewer.

Durability

The durability of paper print items depends more on the paper type and finishing such as coating than on the print method.

Watch out for

Digital printing is limited to the paper types the equipment supports, and thick paper printed digitally can crack along the fold when folded.

Cost pattern

Offset printing has high plate and setup costs, so the unit price drops sharply as quantity rises, while digital printing has low setup costs but a similar unit price at any quantity. Which method costs less depends on quantity and paper, so O-SEAN chooses the method at the quote stage after receiving the quantity.

O-SEAN items

O-SEAN paper and PET print items include placemats (80 g woodfree paper), dessert picks and straw picks (white PET, single-sided color) and the packaging box (New Eco Black 300 g, gold foil inside and outside), and the print method is chosen by quantity and color requirements.

Lenticular printing makes an image change or look 3D depending on the viewing angle, and lenticular printing is used to add visual interest to cards and merch.

How it works

Lenticular printing cuts two or more images into thin strips, prints the strips interlaced, and laminates a ridged lens sheet over the printed surface. Tilting the card changes which strips the lens shows, so a different image appears.

Color

Lenticular printing uses full-color images. How the design is prepared depends on the effect type (flip, animation, 3D).

Good for

Lenticular printing is good for lenticular cards, postcards, and designs that show a before-and-after change or motion.

Avoid when

Avoid lenticular printing for designs with a lot of small text.

Durability

In lenticular printing, the lens sheet covers the printed surface, so the print is not touched directly.

Watch out for

Lenticular printing requires aligning the lens direction with the image layout, so dedicated file preparation is needed.

Cost pattern

Lenticular printing needs a lens sheet and alignment work, so lenticular printing involves more preparation than standard printing.

O-SEAN items

O-SEAN items that use lenticular printing are the lenticular card and lenticular keyring.