Special finishes course – spot varnish (Spot UV)
Spot varnish
Spot varnishes are liquids that are applied to a portion of a printed sheet and then cured with Ultra Violet (UV) light to create contrast to the surrounding texture. Gloss varnish is normally used in conjunction with matte lamination and matte varnish in conjunction with gloss lamination. It is common for people to mean gloss when they say, ‘Spot UV’ even though it also comes in matte and satin finishes.
Things to consider
- Use a 100% spot colour tint for spot varnished elements. Although tints are technically possible in some instances it is not recommended as results are inconsistent.
- Bitmap tifs should be used when creating masks from photoshop files (https://www.dkhandbook.com/?p=4823)
- Spot varnished elements should not contain any gradients or feathering.
- All spot varnished elements should be set to overprint.
- The minimum recommended stroke weight for fine details is 0.5pt.
- Spot varnishes can crack when placed over folded areas.
- Spot varnish is less effective on uncoated paper as a lot of it gets absorbed, which reduces the sheen effect. Clear foil can be a good substitute.