Foil Stamping: Some laminators are available which can be used to simulate foil stamping. The document must have been already printed: the "foil stamping" is done before the document is laminated. The foil is placed over the area that's to be affected; it is run through the laminator then the foil is removed: the selected area will now look like it has been foil-stamped. It's then laminated in the ordinary fashion.
To employ this process, the laminator must be protected by a carrier. This is a folded piece of cardboard with a nonstick coating on one side (the glossy side). It keeps any excess adhesive from getting on the laminator rollers and thereby reducing its overall life span and performance.
Embossing: A pattern can be impressed on the exterior of the laminate - such as a logo or "watermark" - for enhanced impressiveness of the lamination. This is accomplished by use of a special roller, which has a reverse-relief image of the desired pattern impressed upon it; preparation of the roller is a separate process defined by the laminator manufacturer. The embossing machine usually does not laminate - therefore imposing a two-step process - but there are machines which can do both (although not at the same time). These latter machines have controls to switch from one roller to the other easily: one example is the Sagitta.
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