Hot foil on flat pieces
Hot foil scales straight from a business card to a 6×9 — the limit is the die size, not the piece.
Foil is a film stamped into the sheet with a heated die. It sits on the surface and catches light in a way ink cannot, which is why a foiled flat piece reads as an object rather than a handout.
We keep a house set of films on a physical swatch card, and anything outside it can be ordered in. Foil on dark uncoated is the most reliable pairing at this size: the film stays bright and the stock absorbs any halo.
Coverage is the real variable. An accent stamps evenly every time; a large solid field is the hardest thing to hold flat across a big die.
A fold through a foiled area will eventually hairline. Keep foil off the score, or choose a stock that folds soft.
Looking for cards rather than flat pieces? Foil business cards.
Hot foil — questions we get
- What is the largest piece you can foil stamp?
- The die sets the limit, and our die size covers the whole flat-piece range up to small-poster format. Exact maximums are confirmed per job before tooling is cut.
- Can foil go on both sides?
- Yes, as two passes. The second pass is registered to the first, and we keep the two stamped areas from sitting back to back so neither flattens the other.
Pieces that take hot foil
- PostcardsFlat, two-sided, mailed at postcard rate up to 6×4¼. Letterpress or offset.
- FlyersThe piece someone takes from a counter. 8.5×11 and 5.5×8.5, flat or folded.
- Rack cardsTall and narrow, built to stand in a holder. 16pt and up so it doesn't slump.
- Folded mailersBi-fold and tri-fold, scored on press. Self-mailer sizes that pass USPS.
- Menus & insertsHeavy stock that survives a table. Uncoated takes a pen; soft-touch doesn't.
- Small postersUp to 12×18 on cover weight. Letterpress runs at this size; foil does with a big die.