Multicolor or Single color printed ribbon?

A client recently asked us which was a more elegant way to display their artwork; Should they print in multi color (their logo had 3 colors) or convert the logo to a single color and print that way?

As our clients already know, we can do both kinds of printing so it all comes down to the client's personal preference as well as what their ultimate aim is when it comes to using the printed ribbon for their decorations.

For sure, both kinds of custom printed ribbon - single color or multiple color - will be pristine and perfect. However, after years of experience, I have a tendency to lean more towards single color printing. The reason why I lean towards single color printing is simply because some aspects of ribbon decorations look better and trendier with a more minimalistic approach. Consider that when printing on ribbon, we're usually dealing with narrow sizes, and so while all the designs will print perfectly on ribbon, in narrow ribbon sizes such as 1/4", 3/8" or 1/2", there simply is not much space for the full details or a logo to show properly. Again, the printing will definitely be perfect, but those fine details of a logo will be so tiny to show properly at small sizes. That's why we recommend doing the printing in single color because that way the shape and lines of the artwork will come across perfectly and the brand or logo will be immediately recognizable. Not to mention that lately, clean and sharp lines seem to be the trend so the printed artwork will look elegant and modern at the same time.

That does not mean that multi color printing has no place or should be disregarded completely. Quite the contrary, there are a lot of cases where multi color printing is the best way to proceed. For example we recently did the printing for Telus Winter Classic and their logo had to be printed in actual colors due to their decorating criteria and so by using a 1.5" satin ribbon, we were able to print the logo perfectly on the ribbon and since the ribbon size was the widest size possible, the printing came out just perfect! Another example is when a wedding party needs to print their photos on the ribbon - which is something we can do very easily - and in this case it makes no sense to use single color printing so by doing the multi color process (with unlimited ink colors), we are able to reproduce all digital photos perfectly. Of course in cases like this it's best if we use 1.5 inch size ribbon or larger.

Ultimately, as I mentioned in the beginning of this blog article, it all comes down to personal preference. We are happy to be able to offer the best results no matter what kind of printing our clients need on their ribbon and we always welcome new challenges! Our ribbon is intended to make your decorations a memorable one, and that's the ultimate goal - that and our client's total satisfaction of course.