5 Hot Products to Try in 2018

If you haven’t experimented with some of our top-selling products, now’s the time to get to know them. Check out how our customers have used these five options for photo reproduction, signage, canvas wraps, wall murals, innovative art installations and more. Over the years, our customers order these products time and time again, so you know they’re tried-and-true favorites.

Artisan Craftsman Books
LexJet Premium Archival Matte Paper

LexJet Premium Archival Matte Paper is a long-time favorite for both photography and fine art reproduction. Artisan Craftsman Books relies on the smooth matte finish for gorgeous, coffee table-style fine-art giclee-printed books. This is a paper tailored to high-end work, with accurate color reproduction and high-resolution output. The heavy-weight 9.5 mil base dries instantly, making it an easy-to-handle, smudge-resistant choice that’s compatible with latex and aqueous printer techology.

Printing promotions, posters and banners with polypropylene
LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Polypropylene

TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Polypropylene is a versatile media that provides tear- and water-resistance that can work for a variety of applications, such as banners, posters, banner stands and even backlit displays. “Water-Resistant Polypropylene from LexJet prints nicely, it’s scratch-resistant, easy to work with and quite economical,” says photographer David Ziser, who prints hanging display banners for special events and promotions. Bonus: This product has a 125° white point, which delivers colors that really pop.

LexJet Print-N-Stick Fabric wall mural

LexJet Solvent Print-N-Stick Fabric is one of our most versatile products that is the answer for promotions, displays and graphics of all kinds. It’s super easy to just print and stick, plus you can reposition and remove it without leaving any residue behind. Our customers have used it for wall murals, window graphics, floor graphics, menus, temporary menus, sporting event signage and even elevator graphics. Check out the inspiring project, UNIFY, during which the owners of Robert Charles Photography used Print-N-Stick in a number of creative ways. It’s also available in an aqueous- and latex-compatible version: LexJet Print-N-Stick Fabric.

Canvas Gallery Wraps
LexJet Sunset Reserve Bright Matte Canvas

LexJet Sunset Reserve Bright Matte Canvas is a go-to, consistent canvas for high-end prints. When PostNet Norfolk needed to create art reproductions on canvas, they turned to the Sunset favorite to create canvas wraps that were eventually auctioned off during a Navy SEAL Foundation fundraiser for $18,000. The art pieces were topped with LexJet Sunset Satin Coating for a stunning finish. This best-selling product is a poly/cotton blend with a slight texture that turns out a wide color gamut.

LexJet 8 mil Absolute™ Backlit

LexJet 8 Mil Absolute™ Backlit film is another uber-versatile product that printers and artists alike have discovered for a number of innovative applications. Last year we met the creative minds at Lumii who incorporated Absolute™ Backlit in their 3D prints, pairing it with another film, backlighting and their groundbreaking software to create the 3D effect. New York artist Karin Giusti created breathtaking light columns printed on Absolute™ Backlit in her 9/11 First Responders exhibit, Three Seasons at Black Forest Farm. In 2017, the film achieved a Class A Fire Rating, which made it an instant favorite with Octo Lights, who create customized fluorescent light covers for hospitals, office buildings, schools and more.

Want to show off your creative work using LexJet products? Comment below or email us today!

On Target with Inkjet Canvas Reproductions Benefitting Wounded Veterans

Canvas Gallery Wraps
Gallery wrap reproductions by PostNet Norfolk for the UNTIL It Hurts project benefitting Wounded Wear.

Amanda Crow, who owns a PostNet store in Norfolk, Va., knows the value of teamwork. She’s part of a team dedicated to honoring the 74 Naval Special Warfare members who have fallen in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as another team helping out Purple Heart recipients called Wounded Wear.

Wounded Wear provides free clothing and modifications for combat-wounded warriors while raising awareness about their sacrifice. PostNet Norfolk does Wounded Wear’s printing and graphic design and brought the print shop’s expertise to a joint fundraising program featuring art reproductions on canvas and archival paper.

The artwork was created by Dave Hall, a retired Navy SEAL sniper and Ellwood T. Risk, an artist based in Los Angeles. Hall set up a target 911 yards away on 9/11 2012 and fired a shot to the target for each fallen SEAL teammate. Risk took that target and combined it with newspaper clippings to create a 50″ x 73″ piece of artwork.

That artwork was then auctioned off at a benefit for the Navy SEAL Foundation and Wounded Wear called Toast to the Heroes. The artwork was sold to local philanthropist and business owner Todd Grubbs for $18,000.

Printing Canvas
The canvas reproductions of UNTIL It Hurts were printed on LexJet Sunset Reserve Bright Matte Canvas on PostNet’s new Canon iPF9400 inkjet printer from LexJet.

As if that wasn’t enough, Grubbs began looking for ways to provide a steady income stream to Wounded Wear through the artwork. Enter Amanda Crow, who would provide printed art reproductions that would be sold through the Wounded Wear website.

“We wanted to reproduce the artwork, and because it’s art we wanted it done right; it’s not just a poster,” says Crow.

In order to get the printing just right, Crow starting doing research on the most effective and efficient way to do it.

She spoke with Chris Shigley, her customer specialist at LexJet, who provided a plethora of resources and advice on materials, print settings and workflow.

The first order of business was a new printer that could handle the 50-inch width she required. Shigley was able to tie in all the available rebates, promotions and bundle packages for a Canon iPF9400 60-inch inkjet printer that fit Crow’s budget.

“Chris got me an amazing deal on the Canon printer. I never could have done this project without Chris. Or, if I could have done it, it would have taken a lot more time. Chris was great about getting me the information I needed,” says Crow. “In addition to videos on how to use the Sunset Stretcher Bars for our canvas prints and setting up our printer, Chris even sent us videos on how to use the Photoshop driver to print at a higher resolution.”

Coating and Wrapping Canvas
After printing, PostNet’s Amanda Crow applied Sunset Satin Coating and then wrapped the canvas onto Sunset Stretcher Bars.

Crow would reproduce the artwork, entitled UNTIL It HURTS, on LexJet Sunset Reserve Bright Matte Canvas wrapped onto LexJet Sunset Pro Stretcher Bars and finished with LexJet Sunset Satin Coating. Framed reproductions are printed on LexJet Sunset Hot Press Rag 310g.

“The stretcher bars are similar to what we were using before, but you couldn’t get custom sizes like you can with the Sunset Stretcher Bars, and I can get them right away from LexJet,” says Crow. “Plus, the bars that go in the sides that keep the canvas taught are actually screwed in; the other ones we were using before don’t have those. We would see problems where the canvas started to sag and I had to beat the bars back in; the Sunset Stretcher Bars alleviate that issue.”

Crow adds that she had a laptop by her side to watch the how-to videos while she wrapped the canvas onto the Sunset Stretcher Bars. “I’m glad we had the videos and that such a valuable resource is available from LexJet. If I can find the information, rather than calling someone to walk me through it, I would rather have that video or blog resource. I think the videos are amazing. They’re very professional, and I know that making a good video is difficult,” she adds.

Now that Crow has an efficient production process in place, the orders are taken directly from the Wounded Wear website, they wrap the canvas, finish it with Sunset Satin Coating and ship them out. Crow says the print quality “has been amazing;” so good, in fact, that you can see where the names of each fallen Navy SEAL were penciled in, even though they’re faint on the original.

“As soon as we made the prints live, people started purchasing them. The Facebook page has been up for three or four weeks; we have 1,800 likes and we’ve sold 22 prints,” says Crow. “We also sent some prints out to the artist to sign and those will be auctioned off as signed limited edition prints.”

For more information and to help the cause:

UNTIL It Hurts Facebook Page

Wounded Wear

Navy SEAL Foundation

Sunset Stretcher Bars Demonstration on YouTube

LexJet’s YouTube Site

Canvas Wrap Guide

Building Business with In-House Inkjet Printing and Samples at Arc Studios

Printing Promotional Graphics with an Inkjet PrinterAaron Thomason, owner of Arc Studios Photography in Dalton, Ga., knows the value of a print. It’s what helps showcase and sell his artistic portrait photography.

With a variety of inkjet-printable media from which to choose through LexJet, Thomason is able to present his work in a variety of formats, each with its own unique look.

“I don’t have to do any advertising other than the promotional printing I do for my studio and storefront. I can place a banner stand next to the street so people driving by can see it, so I get a lot of people stopping in who saw it when they drove or walked by the studio,” says Thomason. “I typically use a big image with just a few simple words so that my studio is in the back of their mind when they need something I can provide.”

For banner stands, Thomason uses a LexJet Blizzard Outdoor Stand with LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Polypropylene, and on his storefront windows he uses Photo Tex Repositionable Fabric. “I change those images up regularly and they work great. They see some rain and other weather, but the images have held up fine,” says Thomason.

Printing Promotional Graphics Inkjet PrinterOn the inside of the studio, Thomason showcases canvas gallery wraps printed on either LexJet Sunset Reserve Bright Matte Canvas or LexJet Sunset Production Matte Canvas, and Photo Tex for wall murals.

He also uses LexJet Sunset Photo Metallic Paper for images that lend themselves to the pearlescent pop of the paper.

“Before I started doing my own printing I was lucky if I sold one canvas print per session. Now I’m able to sell three or four canvases per portrait client since I was able to bring the price down by doing it in-house,” explains Thomason. “We stretch the canvas here on a 1 1/2″ frame and add the UV coating, so I’m able to produce canvas less expensively for my customers, deliver it on time and ultimately sell more canvas.”

Custom and Unique Interior Décor Creation and Printing at Kahler Photo

Lobby Decor Printed on Canvas
Custom lobby art created by Kahler Photo for the Radisson printed on LexJet Sunset Reserve Bright Matte Canvas, stretched on frames and then set in a floater frame.

 

A photographer by trade, Danny Kahler, owner of Kahler Photo in Minneapolis, has taken those skills and his signature style and applied them to various interior environments, adding printing, framing and installation to the mix.

Printing on Wood Veneer
Kahler printed on maple veneer and applied it Gator Board for a corporate boardroom.

Kahler’s first interior décor project was for a hotel. His sales pitch was to photograph site-specific images that would be used as room art at the hotel. He did the photo shoot in Omaha and the client selected their favorite images, which Kahler then printed for them.

Kahler expanded on that concept, creating and printing public space art, like lobby and conference room artwork for corporate offices, assisted living centers, schools, hospitals and so forth. Since that first big project, Kahler has concentrated on providing only custom décor printing with all the tools necessary to do it right and on time.

“We thrive on custom artwork. I like to give a client, or a designer working with a client, the option to do color abstraction or color replacement images. In this case, you’re basically taking existing colors in the image and replacing them with colors that coordinate with the interior space of a building. Rather than just converting an image to a black-and-white or sepia tone, we’re going beyond that,” explains Kahler.

Printing on Pine Veneer
This was printed on pine veneer, applied to Gator Board and mounted in a floater frame for a local art foundation.

Going beyond that for Kahler means that, in addition to printing on fine art papers, photo papers and canvas, he prints on thin sheets of various materials, like wood veneer and aluminum. For larger substrates, like plywood, acrylic, PVC and Dibond, Kahler contracts the printing to local print shops with flatbed UV-curable printers.

“With our Epson printers we can print on veneer or aluminum, apply contact adhesive on the back and then apply it to another substrate as a backer, like MDF and Gator Board,” says Kahler. “We then select mounting hardware that works well with the existing hardware in the space.  This may be standoff hardware, wire suspension or security hardware.”

Over the years, Kahler Photo has expanded from just printing to providing framing and installation services. Kahler doesn’t do all project installations, such as hotel guest room art, but installs the more unique pieces that require that extra detail.

Pine Veneer Print by Kahler Photo“Adding framing services opened up a lot of doors, because we became more of a one-stop shop; they didn’t have to hire us to do photography and printing and someone else do mounting and framing,” says Kahler.  “No project leaves the studio until we’re happy with it, even if it means that we have to re-do part of it. You put in extra hours if needed to get it right so that the client says it’s more than what they imagined; that’s what it’s all about.”

For the more typical décor printing, Kahler uses LexJet Sunset Reserve Bright Matte Canvas, LexJet Sunset Photo Semi-Matte, LexJet Premium Matte Paper and LexJet 8 Mil Production Satin Photo Paper.

“We started using LexJet papers about a year ago. I talked to Rob [Finkel, Kahler’s LexJet customer specialist] last week about incorporating LexJet fabrics into our production for particular projects,” says Kahler. “We’ve been very happy with the canvas and paper. LexJet products have helped us save money and opened up a wider selection of media, especially for hotel projects.”

Though Kahler has the production system down, he says the photography is the foundation of the business. Most of the décor work Kahler does is renditions of his or other photographers’ work that draw from the architecture and areas surrounding the space being decorated.

Maple Veneer Print by Kahler Photo“I like to explore more deeply into a theme, rather than just capturing an overall shot of a landscape. There are some beautiful landscapes out there, but I like to look deeper at what’s happening under my feet; the small things that people tend to walk by: real interesting elements of nature or architecture in a particular setting,” explains Kahler. “The abstract subject matter is what I like to capture most. Still, it’s important to get many other perspectives. This is why we use many contributing photographers.  Some clients don’t like the abstract nature of a scene and some like the overall scene, so we want to be able to give them the option of a variety of styles.”