Hi! I’m going to design a business card that includes embossing, and I’ll be working in Adobe Illustrator. How should I prepare the file so the printer clearly understands which areas need to be embossed? Any additional advice would be greatly appreciated.
Another question: Is the file setup for debossing the same as for embossing?
Also, do I understand correctly that embossing will create a dent on the back of the card, so I should avoid placing any important graphics in that area? And with debossing, the back stays mostly flat, so it’s safe to place graphics or important elements there?
Thanks!
I’m attaching an example I found online (not my design—I haven’t started yet).
Make a spot colour and name it Embossing. Set it to overprint.
Create your emboss design using that spot colour and keep it on top of the artwork. You do not strictly have to put it on top, but since it is overprinting it is simply good housekeeping.
Check with your printer because every shop has its own way of doing things. Some want the emboss as a separate file. If that is the case, export your artwork with the emboss layer turned off, then export again with only the emboss layer turned on using the same settings.
Others are fine with everything in one file or sometimes they ask for separate pages. It really depends on their workflow.
If you are embossing specific elements on the page, the emboss layer must be an exact copy of those elements placed on top, coloured with the Embossing spot at 100 percent and set to overprint.
Yes, but it will be more than a dent; the back will, in essence, be a debossed version of the embossed front.
Why do you think that? When something is debossed, the reverse side is, again, essentially embossed. There is one important exception, though. When very thick and rigid paper stock is used, the stock can sometimes absorb the entire indentation without it appearing on the reverss side.
