Awards showcase Diamond’s folding carton decorating capabilities, including cold foiling and embossing.

Rochester, N.Y. – Diamond Packaging today announced that it won seven awards in the 28th Annual FSEA Gold Leaf Awards Competition, the industry's premier showcase for foil stamping, embossing, and other specialty effects. Awards were announced last month during the 2021 FSEA Online Learning Experience.

The competition celebrates the quality, added value, shelf presence, security, and brand recognition that specialty finishing processes lend to the printed sheet. Entries are judged by a panel of industry experts on several criteria including design, execution, and level of difficulty.

Diamond won a Gold Leaf award in the “Best Use of Foil/Embossing – Rigid Box (Best Engineered)” category for its Diamond Lockbox™ certified child-resistant (CR) packaging.

Diamond Lockbox™ folding cartons are an upscale, certified child-resistant (CR) packaging solution for medical or recreational marijuana products. Diamond Lockbox™ cartons combine beauty and strength for the ultimate in cannabis packaging design. The single- and dual-lock options feature finished edges and ample billboard space and can be decorated with a wide range of printing and finishing effects.

Diamond’s award-winning team of design engineers and packaging experts developed Diamond Lockbox™ folding cartons for cannabis brands looking for a user friendly and compliant packaging option luxurious enough to rival that of high-end cosmetic brands.

The patent-pending designs were tested by a third party laboratory using the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) protocol and standards for Poison Prevention Packaging and fulfill the requirements of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 16, Part 1700.20.

Diamond Lockbox™ cartons were converted utilizing tear-resistant paperboard, and offset printed with three PMS color inks, in-line with UV matte coating, UV gloss spot coating, and DiamondTouch soft touch coating.

The overall DiamondTouch soft touch coating adds an appealing tactile quality that promotes consumer interaction. The UV gloss spot coating is tightly registered to the embossed accents and provides a striking contrast to the overall matte finish surrounding it.

Multi-level embossed accents, including the Lockbox™ marijuana leaf logo mark and intricate scroll detail (blue carton), add dimension and provide an upscale appearance unique to cannabis products. The debossed keyhole component of the Lockbox™ logo adds an additional tactile effect.

Diamond won Silver Leaf awards in the “Best Use of Cold Foil” and “Best Use of Foil/Embossing – Calendar” categories for its 2021 corporate calendar.

The 2021 calendar pays tribute to Susan B. Anthony, a Rochesterian leading social reform, women’s suffrage, and the abolitionist movement. The header features an image of the Susan B. Anthony House on 17 Madison Street in Rochester, NY, where Ms. Anthony lived from 1866 until her death in 1906. The image was designed by Laura Wilder, an award-winning local artist, who also collaborated on the design of the calendar.

The calendars were converted utilizing Clearwater ReMagine™ paperboard made with 30% post-consumer recycled (PCR) fiber, cold foiled, and offset printed with four color process and two PMS inks, in-line with UV matte, UV satin, UV gloss spot coating, and soft touch coating.

Tightly-registered UV coatings enhance the design and highlight the individual calendar components. Matte UV coating is used on the house and background. High gloss UV spot coating brings out the reflection in the windows. Soft touch coating adds a tactile effect to the clouds. Satin UV spot coating enhances the backers (monument, sign, wagon). Cold foil delivers shimmering metallic effects in the header.

Multi-level embossing lends distinction and depth to the design. Many of the header components were embossed, including the house, cantilever windows, shutters, flag, posts, steps, front gate, trees, and text. Select backers components (including the Women’s Rights Pioneers Monument of Sojourner Truth, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony in Central Park, NY) were also embossed to add more depth and realism.

The calendar pages were converted utilizing French Paper Natural Parchtone 80# Text parchment paper and offset printed with four color process inks and aqueous coating. The watermarks continue the image printed on each of the three panels underneath, complement the design, and fit in with the time period of the subject.

The recyclable shipper was converted utilizing Clearwater Candesce® SBS paperboard laminated to E-flute corrugated fiberboard, and offset printed with four color process inks, in-line with and aqueous gloss coating. It is tastefully decorated with handwritten script as if Susan B. Anthony had picked up her quill pen and written her dream on parchment paper, over and over again.

Diamond won a Silver Leaf ward in the “Best Use of Foil/Embossing – Folding Carton (Difficult)” category for Inter Parfums’ Dunhill Icon Absolute packaging.

The cartons were converted utilizing metalized polyester film (laminated to FSC-certified SBS board) and offset printed with opaque white, dense black, and transparent gold inks, in-line with aqueous satin matte coating. The inside was printed with process black ink, in-line with aqueous coating.

The graphic design incorporates an exquisite, embossed diamond pattern that is tightly registered to the black borders, which frame all of the panels. An embossed signature logo on the front panel adds distinction and reinforces Dunhill as a prestige brand.

Diamond won a Silver Leaf ward in the “Best Use of Specialty UV Coating - Screen (Raised, Textured, or Glitter)” category for Parlux Fragrances’ Gold Rush Man Paris Hilton packaging.

The cartons were converted utilizing metallized polyester board and offset printed with UV gold, black, and opaque white inks, with UV flexo glitter pearl coating, and UV matte coating.

The graphic design incorporates clean, minimalist graphics and bold colors that convey luxurious branding. The glitter pearl coating contributes to a unique visual and tactile presentation. The embossed Gold Rush logo is framed by an interlocking geometric pattern, which is tightly registered to the front and rear panels.

Diamond won a Bronze Leaf ward in the “Best Use of Cold Foil” category for P&G’s Head & Shoulders Royal Oils Instant Soothe Scalp Elixir packaging.

The cartons were converted utilizing Clearwater Candesce® SBS paperboard, cold foiled, and offset printed with four color process and three PMS inks, in-line with UV matte coating, and UV gloss spot coating.

Overprinting transparent inks over cold foil creates shimmering metallic effects, including gold and cyan ribbons that wrap from the front to the side panels, and gold borders that frame the product benefits call-outs on the side panels. The UV gloss spot coating provides a striking contrast to the overall matte finish surrounding it.

Diamond won a Bronze Leaf ward in the “Best Use of Foil/Embossing – Folding Carton (Creative)” category for Parlux Fragrances’ Illuminare Intensa Vince Camuto packaging.

The cartons were converted utilizing FSC-certified Stora Enso Ensocoat™ SBS paperboard and offset printed with PMS and dense black inks, in-line with UV matte coating.

The graphic design incorporates soft gradients that simulates radiating light. A subtle overall multi-level embossed linear pattern adds unusual dimension. The combination gold hot foil stamped and embossed accents add distinction to the packaging and reinforce Vince Camuto as a prestige brand.

All of Diamond’s winning entries were designed utilizing recyclable or recycled paperboards and manufactured using 100% clean, renewable wind energy, in a Zero Waste to Landfill (ZWL) facility.