Decoration Focus - Foiling

The process of foil blocking is ageless and suits almost every industry when looking to exude luxury from packaging or promotional materials.

Cosmetics and skincare brands are always discussing with us about how we can truly give their product’s packaging the wow factor. It’s the near primal instinct of being attracted to shiny things that can almost always guarantee a memorable first impression with a would-be customer!

Foil Blocking Development - What is foil blocking?

Originally, foiling was done by hand using gold leaf. This made it an expensive process and reserved only for the finer things in life. Technology since developed which brought along new machines for stamping and alloys which were cheaper than gold. The process of foil blocking became much more accessible allowing small and large companies alike to give their designs the shine and sparkle to stand out.

Foil Blocking Design - How can I get foil on my packaging?

Once you have established the design for your packaging - whether it’s a bottle, jar, lid, or any other container – it is then etched onto a foiling die. A die is much like a rubber stamp, however it is made out of metal.

Generally the process is to heat the die up in a hot stamping press and a roll of thin foil comes between the die and your packaging. The two are then stamped together using a great deal of pressure, and the combination of pressure and heat transfers the foil to your packaging.

Foil blocking is primarily used for text and design, but foil banding is also available if you’d like a simple but elegant strip of foil around your container.

Another method is by using adhesive. This is particularly useful when using foil on material such as glass or if you have other elements of design like acid-etching or print. This is due to the heat and pressure from the general method potentially damaging the existing design, or worse, the container itself.