Laminating cards.....

baba-prague

I'm not wild about lamination for cards either, but if you do go that way LB (and I can see that it would protect the card) then I know there is a big difference in quality between "hot" and "cold" lamination - I'm sure it's been discussed here but can't remember the thread.

Also, maybe you could go for a semi-matt lamination? The really shiny stuff just looks and feels so plastic, but I think some alternative laminations are much better.
 

Little Baron

Thanks Karen.

I got a relatively well-priced laminator. And am going to give it a go this afternoon. The ones I had already printed got into a bit of a state. The fingerprints looked scruffy and I think, wiped some of the black ink away. And because they are quite dark, it looked messy. I am not keen on plasticy look either, but for now, to protect them, I will go with that. See how it goes.

LB
 

gregory

baba-prague said:
I'm not wild about lamination for cards either, but if you do go that way LB (and I can see that it would protect the card) then I know there is a big difference in quality between "hot" and "cold" lamination - I'm sure it's been discussed here but can't remember the thread.
There certainly is. DON'T ever go for cold. :mad: It's rubbish. A professional print shop told me the same.

Also - I got a deck from Jason Lang recently - he'd gone for semi-matte for a change, and it peels away more than the shiny (he has had others tell him the same.) Sad but true; I have run them through my own laminator to fix them - it took three passes before they were really solid.... He also told me that the semi-matte cost more, so he was not a happy bunny !
 

DraagonStorm

I use the cold laminator, and so far have no complaints. The lowest mil I found for the hot laminate to be to thick, whereas I'm able to go to 1.5 mil on the cold.

After I run the paper thru the cold laminate, I run it thru the hot laminator once more, just to be sure of the seal and such.

BB
DraagonStorm
 

playtimeinmt

clear coat for cards

There is an "artist fixatif" that can be sprayed on your cards. This will enable you to continue working on them without smudging the backround. You can also get a permanent coating. These sprays are available at Michaels store. Sometimes they can also be found in store like Kmar, and Walmart. I have use both of these on my chalk drawings, and they worked great! Just make sure you spray them at a distance so no drips fall on your cards. The drip marks would be permanent. Good luck!