Metallic inks shine on

"Standard metallic ink like 877 in the Pantone Book is a gray looking metallic, with a little sparkle and sheen to it," said Dedman. "Compare that to the super bright of VMPs, and the difference is like night and day. It's like the difference between standard metallic inks and foils."

VMPs are produced differently than standard metallic inks, explained Mike Buystedt, Akzo Nobel Inks' director of new market development. While standard inks are produced through a flaking process, Buystedt said, "VMPs actually consist of pigments taken off something that has been vacuum metallized on film, and those pigments are made into ink. They have a very high sheen because they lay flatter when they orientate themselves on the ink film. They orientate themselves very smoothly, which gives them a high reflective level. Standard metallic inks orientate themselves more rigidly so their reflectance is more scattered, and therefore less brilliant."