Austin and his team got my project done in record time in order to meet a tight deadline. The cards turned out gorgeous, and I am so pleased with their work!
Gold edge gilding: foil on the edges instead of the face
A mirror-metallic band running the entire perimeter of the card — the effect a Bible has, or a bespoke book from a bindery. Used well it feels like heraldry.
Pricing — gold edge gilding on 32pt cotton
| Quantity | Per card | Total |
|---|---|---|
| 250 cards | $1.20 per card | $299 |
| 500 cards | $0.90 per card | $449 |
| 1,000 cards | $0.70 per card | $699 |
Prices from our live price list. Free proof, checked by a person, before anything prints.
Gold edge gilding: foil on the edges instead of the face
Edge gilding is what happens when instead of painting the edges of a card, you apply foil to them. The result is a mirror-metallic band running the entire perimeter — the effect a Bible has, or a bespoke book from a bindery, applied to a business card. It's the loudest and most old-world thing we make; used well, it feels like heraldry, used badly, it feels like a Vegas menu.
The process is different from face-side foil stamping. The cards are clamped in a tight stack, the edges are burnished flat, and gold leaf (or a metallic foil equivalent) is heat-transferred onto the exposed edges under pressure. Because it's a stack process, the entire perimeter of every card in the run gets gilded in one pass — which is why the price scales with quantity more forgivingly than face-foil.
Where it works: 32pt cotton is the minimum; on thinner stock the gilded edge is a hairline and the effect is lost. Gold edge gilding on a cream cotton card with a small letterpress monogram on the face is the wedding-invitation-adjacent spec that founders and law firms have been ordering for a hundred years. Silver, copper, and holographic edge gilding are all possible with the same process — silver reads modern-editorial, copper reads warm-craft, holographic reads maximal-fashion. Every gilded run is finished by hand and inspected edge-by-edge; a chipped or uneven gild is the difference between the card looking heirloom and looking cheap, and we'd rather remake one than send a bad one.
Common questions
- How is edge gilding different from painted edges?
- Painted edges are Pantone ink hand-applied to a stack. Edge gilding is metallic foil heat-transferred to the stack under pressure — a fundamentally more premium (and more expensive) process. The result reads as mirror-metallic rather than as color.
- Does the whole card have to be gilded, or just parts?
- The whole perimeter, because it's a stack process — all four edges of every card in the run get gilded in one pass. Partial-edge gilding isn't something the process supports. If you want a partial metallic element, foil-stamping on the face is the right choice.
- Silver or copper or holographic edge gilding — same process?
- Same process, different foil. Silver reads modern-editorial. Copper reads warm-craft. Holographic reads maximal-fashion. Gold is the classic. Every gilded run is inspected edge-by-edge and remade if we find inconsistency — a chipped gild ruins the object.
The next step
Not sure this is the exact spec you want?
Upload your logo and the Studio lays it out on real papers and finishes. It's a design exploration, not a proof: a person checks your final file before anything prints.
Stamped inHolographic
Every painted and gilded edge, priced: painted edge business cards.
Client notes
3.00 from 4 matching notes
Just got the square cards with the black edge. GREAT! love the thickness and quality of the cards!
I am very disappointed with my print job. I agree with the other reviews in regards to the paper stock, what you read is what you get, thick card stock is great. BUT the print quality is TERRIBLE. My print quality was a simple design, JUST black ink. The black ink looks like I printed the business cards at home printer, the black is not a solid black, it has a purple/brown tone to it. And some of the cards have a 3/D effect to them, as it looks like the print is not 100% clear and off set. Maybe you get what you pay for. SEPARATELY, I filed a complaint and Peppermint Print offered $25 refund or they "think" they can reprint for free. As a Branding/Marketing consultant, I have 500 bad quality business cards on my hands, poor reflection of the extension of my brand, end result cannot utilize any of the cards. I definitely do not recommend Print Peppermint.