Adding pop and sizzle to print is not new—it goes back to Gutenberg! The 42-line Gutenberg Bible from 1450 was printed with black ink and then embellished by hand to add the color and ornamentation found in traditional hand-rendered Bibles. By 1457, the financiers behind Gutenberg had acquired his assets due to his failure to repay loans and continued to experiment. The result was the Mainz Psalter produced in three colors, and the innovation never stopped.

Fast forward to the modern era of digital printing, and it is no surprise that there are a host of digital embellishment solutions to add textures, highlights, coatings, and other effects to print products. There are solutions available for packaging, books, mailed marketing, and static print in various sizes. Finding your way through options takes planning and an understanding of options, so here are three ways to plan for successful embellishment so you can repeat your success repeatedly!

Embellishment becomes part of the project plan for many reasons. The customer may see embellishment as an essential element for their project; their designer may suggest embellishment options or the printer may offer embellishment to enhance the project. The starting point is the purpose of the embellishment. What are your goals: