Printing Tips - Coating Options

Coating is often applied to glossy papers to protect the ink from fingerprints, smudging or scratches in areas with heavy ink coverage. Sometimes coatings are also used for aesthetic purposes when you want a super shiny surface to your inks.

PrintingYouCanTrust.com offers two types of optional coatings on certain jobs when you use a glossy paper stock: aqueous coating and varnish.

Aqueous Coating

Like its name suggests, aqueous coating is water-based. Aqueous coating is more environmentally friendly than other coatings and is used for an overall coating.

Varnish

Varnish is essentially ink without pigment. It is applied as an ink color on the press.

PrintingYouCanTrust.com chooses which coating to use on your project depending on the design, area of coverage, usage and press. All you need to do is indicate that you want to have coating added on your project by clicking on the Yes button in the Coating Options section of the product estimate page.

Coating Tips

• Dried inks show fingerprints and scuffing, especially in dark solid areas.
• Use coatings to avoid fingerprinting, scuffing, smudging or cracking on glossy paper stock.
• Some coatings deepen the ink color they cover, yellow with age and/or may discolor white paper.
• You cannot glue or foil stamp over some coatings.