Business card of today have proven that it can be another important piece to improve a portfolio, whether it’s created for your own or for a client. The idea of a rectangular business card with just typography with necessary information is completely gone and the business cards of today have a lot of design to offer.

In many occasions a business card will represent your work and yourself in other hands, so you have to use all the tools available to make the best out of it.

The print finishes are now a big part of making a business cars extra special and one of the biggest tools to enhance the design, here you will see 5 different ways of finish that you can use on your next business card project.

1. Varnish and Spot UV

This is one of the most used finishes on business cards, today most of the cards printed in any graphic place already include a varnish finish instead of the old paper feel.

A varnish finish is a coating of matte, silk or gloss that can be applied to the business card to protect the paper making it last longer, and also enhance the look and fell of the design. A varnish card has the plastic feeling to it and it’s also very shine.

Spot UV is a ultraviolet varnishing that is used to enhance certains areas of the card making the color appear richer and shine with the varnish coating feel to it.

Niki Brown

Andy Westwood

Chirstin

Jaclyn Studor

Ivan Altman

BadAssIdeas

Hidden

Ricky Carmichael

Green

Tesoro

2. Cut Die

Die cutting is becoming very famous along business cards as we notice that the business cards of today don’t necessarily have to be on the rectangular shape anymore. The creativity of designers are making business cards of any shapes according to its business needs.

Die cutting is simple process of cutting the card into different shapes, it’s very used to see beyond the card or to give a different shape to it.

LD50

Cafe Java

Mineral Spring Water

Baba Pongo

Charles Agosti

Lisa Walker

Vive Tile

Printed Proof

Koji Sueyoshi

Davide Gasperini

3. Foil Bloquing

Foil bloquing gives a touch of elegance to the business card with a nice texture feel and look. This process is created by pressing a colored foil into the card paper with a heated die. It’s mostly used to enhance typography and logos.

Evolution Structures

Timothy Garrett

PCG

Taste of Ink

Arbogast

Fridge Works

Taste of Ink

Blink

Low Ink

Alberto Design

4. Fold

We all know what folding is, there is various types of folding but business cards are starting to appear with a single fold as an option of finish that gives double the space to put information on the card and an extra touch of uniqueness to it.

Michael Butt

Steven Hylands

Nation Builder

Huntington Beach Chiropractic

Don Carrol

Helena Mitchell

Hinge

Retail Shop

Construct

Le Reflect

5. Emboss and Deboss

Embossing is created by heat pressing into the card paper without any use of ink or foil. It gives a very strong texture feel to the card and in some cases a 3 dimensional visual effect to it.

Debossing is the opposite effect of embossing by depressing the print. It gives the same fell but the paper is actually pressed in instead of poping out, and also creates 3 dimensional visual effects.

Tactix

Christine Cerniglia

Taste of Ink

Fabio Prata

Baxter of California

The Mandate Press

Adam Taylor

Remixed

Stadium

Choosing the Right Finish

You noticed that each one of these finishing print options give a different look and an extra edge to the cards, having a good finish can set you apart from everyone else. As you can see, you don’t have to go with only one finish, you can mix them up with a lot of creativity and come up with a total unique business card.

Where to Print it

Taste of Ink Studios – One of the best online based studios to print business cards. Most of the cards shown on this selection were printed by Taste of Ink, and you can check out their website for more.

The Mandate Press -  Also one of the best online based studios to print, their portfolio speaks for it self, and you can see the high end result on their prints.

All Time Print – This studio also gives you plenty of finishing options.

MOO – This studio gives you endless options for you business card prints, you can even print mini cards.

Hot Cards – Another good studio that present different print finish options.