Although letterpress printing is the oldest printing process, it is being used more and more to create an exquisite image for social stationery, invitations and announcements. With letterpress, it is possible to drive the image into the paper, which is something that can't be achieved on a digital or desktop printer. There's still no better method for certain jobs. In many cases it is the only practical way to handle specialties such as imprinting, numbering, perforating, scoring, die cutting, and embossing. Letterpress printing has seen a resurgence recently, whereby many designers are specifically requesting that process.
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A letterpress works much like a sophisticated rubber stamp. The raised image area is inked by large rollers and the ink is then transferred directly to the paper sheet.
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An offset press operates at much greater speeds than a letterpress and many presses have the ability to print two or more colors at the same time. Offset printing is the first step in most thermography jobs, as well. In thermography, the printed sheet, with the ink still wet, goes through another machine which sprinkles a resin powder on top. The resin sticks to the wet ink and the excess powder is vacuumed off. The sheet then goes through a heat tunnel which causes the resin to rise, simulating a more expensive engraved look.
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Offset presses use flat, chemically-treated plates. The image on the plate accepts ink from rollers while the non-image areas are kept clean with rollers dampened with a water solution. The ink is transferred to a rubber blanket and then onto the paper. The majority of the printing you see everyday, was printed offset.
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No matter what process we use to produce your job, we can keep the type or negatives on file to use for repeat orders. This will save you money on preparation charges and insure that each reprint will be the same fine quality as the original order.
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