One of the ways to create a unique and colorful promotional product is a decal, which can be applied to almost any hard surface. This way of creating images on various products is quite popular among consumers. For example, branded dishes, souvenir figurines and other items are most often branded in this way.
What is a decal?
Decals are actually decals known to everyone since childhood. They are printed on sheets of special gummed paper and fixed with varnish. If such a picture is immersed in hot water, the varnish and paint layer will easily come off and the picture can be moved to the object. To consolidate the result, the item to be decorated must be placed in a special oven.
If you decide, for example, to place your company logo on a large number of items in this way, you will have to be patient. The fact is that decaling is done only manually. Companies that promise you to print in a daythousands of copies, most likely, they are cunning - it is very difficult to implement this in practice.
Hot application method
The implementation of hot decolouring is most suitable for applying logos to products made of ceramics, porcelain, glass and other materials that can withstand high temperatures. The hot decal is applied using paints that are absolutely harmless to human he alth, so you can safely eat and drink from dishes branded in this way. The procedure of subsequent firing allows to significantly increase the service life of the product, to preserve its attractive appearance for a long time.
Of course, the hot decal is a bit more expensive than the one used for cold-processed items, but the workmanship is an order of magnitude higher. Application technology usually consists of three steps:
- printing the picture itself by silk screen printing;
- sticker printed image on a souvenir or dishes;
- fired product using high-temperature equipment.
This method of application has quite clear advantages:
- durability - the baked paint will not be rubbed off or scratched, it can only be destroyed together with the product;
- durability - a branded product can be washed, washed and rubbed using any household chemicals, the image will not go anywhere;
- clearness - bright colors do not fade, do not fade even after many years of use.
When applying images in this wayyou can use natural precious metals in the edging of drawings, achieve a matte finish or imitate laser engraving.
Cold decolour
This type of decal application is used in cases where the product cannot be fired for various reasons: inability to withstand high temperatures, size and dimensions, and other qualities. In this case, a cold decal is applied. The picture for decaling is printed on special paper coated with water-soluble glue. After the drawing is printed, it is coated with a special colloidal varnish and dried thoroughly.
This is the usual sliding picture, which moves on the object with the help of ordinary water. If it is impossible to wet the branded item, then a dry decal is used. Cold decolouration, although much cheaper, has significant drawbacks. For example, many components used in the application are prohibited for use in the food industry, which means that it will not work to decorate your favorite plate or cup in this way.
Advantages and disadvantages
Like any other way of applying information to objects, decolorization has both positive and negative features. The pros include:
- decal is an opportunity to decorate objects of any shape and size;
- individuality of the decor, the ability to order a print run from 1 piece;
- use of various forms and printing methods;
- long life brandedproducts;
- durability and colorful print.
Of course, the decal is not only advantages, but also certain difficulties. For example, these:
- due to the use of manual labor, a large percentage of marriage is likely;
- labor and complexity of printing;
- possibility of distortion of selected colors during baking if paint of inadequate quality is used;
- Long prepress.
How do you tell a decal from a hand-painted one?
Despite the fact that the decolouration of items is very practical and beautiful, it is still mass production. However, sometimes unscrupulous manufacturers try to raise the already considerable cost of the product, passing off the applied pattern as handmade. How do you know if it's a decal or hand-painted?
This is not always easy, so you need to be very careful. First of all, a decal is still a print, so the picture will definitely have at least minimal graininess. True, sometimes, to see this, you have to use a magnifying glass.
For handmade work, they often try to give out a decal with a painting. This means that the main picture is still printed, but individual, especially important details are drawn by hand. But what if there is no magnifying glass at hand, and the ornament is very small and the dots are not visible? In this case, compare the repeating parts of the pattern with each other - if they are absolutely identical, then you have a decal. Not a single, even the most skillful master is able to repeat with millimeter accuracyonce painted motif.
