Foiling Problem with Toner

[dfwscrapper]

I love the look of foiling and so far have had the best luck with Deco Foil transfer gel. I do not have a laser printer so I went to Kinko's to have some images printed. When I tried foiling them, they were all splotchy. The foil did not stick to all of the image. I am using a Royal Sovereign laminator and tried both Minc and Deco Foils. Very discouraging. Any tips?

[Buzybunny]

Sometimes it is the toner used at the printing store. It's not a heavy enough toner thus the incomplete results. Often it's simply the toner they're using...can't be a "color" toner either. Check out the Deco Foil Adhesive Pen so you can make your own items. Hope that helps.;)

[somall]

You need to have it printed as Black and White otherwise it will use all the color toners to make black giving you the splotchy look. Hope this helps

[Savagetwin]

Make sure it is toner. Some copiers do not use toners. If you are using a printer at Kinko by all means make sure it is monochrome. Also, the paper is very important and should be very smooth. Georgia Pacific has some smooth paper.

[contrapat]

When I print on my Brother Mono laser printer at home, I select best quality, 1200 dpi. I also use a Minc, everything I've read says it does the best foiling. Once in a while I'll have problems, it just doesn't like the paper or cs I'm using. I use the Heidi Swapp foils mostly- Tuesday Morning has had them lately for $3.99.

[slr56]

Make sure your laminator is very hot (let it heat at least 20 mins.) and put a piece of cardstock under the cardstock you are foiling so that it gets better contact when you are running it through. Hope this helps.

[Savagetwin]

I think it can also be the cardstock. Pick a very smooth one. The Mind is the best in my opinion because it is dedicated to foiling as opposed to laminator. The Minc has more temp levels also.

[Savagetwin]

Here is the blog article I have found most helpful:
http://www.pinkimono.com/2015/10/20/3-tips-for-using-your-minc-foil-applicator/

This is the black paper I used for gold foiling. It was beautiful foiling.
Core'dinations Value Pack Cardstock 8.5"X11" 50/Pkg-Black Cat-Smooth
It comes in 12x12 size. I did a 25th Birthday card by doing the numbers with a thick font, printed out on my momochrome Brother HL-L2360dw on the black cardstock, foiled, and then cut out the numbers. It was perfectly even coverage. I do not use the carrier folder that comes with the Minc which I find too thick. I just use regular copy paper. Hope this all helps.

[BohemianBelle]

I've had my laser printer & minc for around 2 years (I think?), so here are some tips from me... some of them will just be confirming what others have suggested above:

- Cardstock is VERY important. Try some different cardstock & see what happens. Sometimes the cheap stuff works best, believe it or not.

- As someone mentioned above, it could be that the Kinko printers are not printing out the toner heavy (black) enough. Are the images on your paper super-duper solid black? Or do they look grayish? They need to be as black as a serial killer's soul.

- Try running your items thru the laminator twice and wait until they cool before peeling your foil off.

- If you are using plastic carrier sheets, try something thinner like a folded piece of regular printer paper, or vellum.

- Make sure there are no greasy finger-prints or tiny pieces of dust or lint on your laser printed designs. These can cause the foil not to stick.

[ctychick]

I am having the same problem and it is so frustrating. I'm definitely using a toner laser printer with a Scotch laminator. I see so many YouTubers demonstrating this and claiming that it is so easy. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong.

[Savagetwin]

Hi there. I have learned a lot dealing with laminators and finally a Minc machine. Here is what I think produce the best results.
1. None of the results are forever perfect. You still get those tiny imperfections no matter what you do. But you can improve your chances.
2. The iCraft foil is better than the Minc foil.
3. I got the Minc when it was on clearance and it was WAY better than my Scotch laminator.
4. Use the smoothest paper that you can buy. This is essential.
5. You printer is key too. Use a monotone printer. Believe it or not, makes a world of difference. I had to buy a Brother printer that was on sale and cheap. But works very well. I tested it before buying. You want a good black toner. Or you can copy with a professional copier that uses toner. Make sure to ask.
The above has made foiling much better for me.
Hope it helps!

[lylacfey]

Make sure your laminator is very hot. Try to run it through twice if you can.

All laser printers are not created equal. Some are going to be more finicky than others. Try to use a deep black so the foil has something to stick too. I agree about the monotone printer. Color printers mix colors to make black so it is not a true black. Some spots will have more red in them, for example, and the foil just won't be able to stick. A black printer is black. That will be consistent.

I know everyone keeps saying the Minc. I don't recommend things if there is a better alternative but I went with a Minc too. I am lucky my printer and laminator give me consistent results. I wanted to do more with my foiling and did a lot of research. The foil machine on the market heat at different levels for the different kind of papers you will use. You will get much better results consistently. A foil machine is configured for these kind of applications and that is why people can not laminate with them. There are different foil machines on the market. You don't have to settle for the Minc. I picked the Minc because it was a good fit for my needs.

I don't mean to come off elitist. Look for good foils. Hobby foils are not going to be as high quality as foils used by professional foiling artists and businesses. I use Ebay for finding these kind of things, if that helps. If you are foiling small items look for foils used in nail art.

I hope that helps.

[gingerd]

Following to learn about the foil process!