Soft Touch Lamination: The Luxury Finish Explained
Soft touch lamination is a thin plastic film applied over printed packaging. It leaves a velvety, matte-suede feel under your hand. It’s the finish behind most boxes that feel expensive before you even open them. Run a finger across a soft touch box next to a gloss one. The difference is immediate. One feels like […]
What Is SBS Paperboard? (C1S vs C2S Explained)
SBS paperboard stands for solid bleached sulfate. It’s a bright white, virgin-fiber board made through the sulfate (kraft) pulping process. That pulp gets bleached until the board is white all the way through, not just on the surface. Printers like it because it takes color sharply and consistently. Brands like it because it looks premium […]
Aqueous Coating vs UV Coating: Which Protects Better?
Aqueous coating and UV coating protect a box in different ways. UV coating cures into a hard, glossy shell with strong resistance to chemicals and scuffs. Aqueous coating is water-based. It dries softer and more flexible. Neither one wins outright. UV holds up better against wear on a flat panel. Aqueous holds up better along […]
What Is Kraft Paper? Types, Weights & When to Use It
Kraft paper is a strong, tough paper made through the kraft process. It comes in two main looks: natural brown, or bleached white. Brands use it for bags, wraps, and box exteriors. It’s known for its tear strength and its raw, honest look. The name “kraft” comes from the German word for strength. That’s fitting. […]
GSM vs PT: Paper Thickness & Weight Explained
GSM and PT measure two different things. GSM stands for grams per square meter. It tells you how much a sheet of paper weighs. PT stands for points, a measure of physical thickness. One point equals 0.001 inch. The two are related, but they’re not interchangeable. A common shortcut divides GSM by roughly 25 to […]
Cardstock vs Cardboard vs Corrugated: Picking Box Material
Cardstock, cardboard, and corrugated aren’t the same thing. Cardstock, also called paperboard, is a single dense sheet. Cardboard is a casual term. People use it to mean either paperboard or corrugated. Corrugated is a three-layer structure. It has two flat liners with a fluted layer sandwiched between them. That fluting is what gives shipping boxes […]
Offset vs Digital Printing for Packaging: Costs & Quality
Offset printing wins on per-unit cost once you’re ordering in volume. It also covers the widest color range, including most Pantone spot colors. Digital printing packaging wins on low minimums, faster turnaround, and zero setup cost. For a typical four-color box design, the breakeven usually falls between 1,000 and 5,000 units. Where it lands depends […]
What Is a Dieline? A Beginner’s Guide to Box Templates
What is a dieline? It’s a flat, two-dimensional template that shows exactly how a box folds together. It marks every cut line, fold line, and safe zone on one file. Your artwork sits inside that template. The dieline itself never gets printed. Think of it as the blueprint your design has to fit inside. What’s […]
Custom Packaging in Phoenix: What Arizona Online Sellers Are Getting Right
Shipping from Phoenix, Scottsdale, or Tempe? Here’s what Arizona ecommerce brands need to know about packaging for the desert heat and monsoon season.
CMYK vs RGB vs Pantone (PMS): Printing Colors Explained
CMYK vs RGB vs Pantone: what’s the real difference? CMYK and Pantone are both print color systems. RGB is a screen color system instead. CMYK builds colors from four inks layered together. Pantone uses a single pre-mixed ink matched to an exact shade. RGB builds colors from red, green, and blue light instead of ink. […]