While the world is crazy outside and we are all stuck in our houses self isolating, I thought what better time than to start creating a series of tutorials on how to use your Heidi Swapp foiling machine.
I have had mine for several years and use it pretty much every week on many different projects. People seem to think that the Minc machine is mainly for foiling card and creating basic projects, but there is so much more you can use it for! Combine it with say a Silhouette Cameo or other cutting machine and the possibilities are limitless!!!
Today I will be showing you a little bit on the basics of the machine. What it is, how it works etc.
You can also check out a previous post I did a while back on the Minc machine HERE
The Heidi Swapp Minc Machine is a product that uses heat and toner with foil to create a beautiful foiled effect.
There are 2 types of foiling on the market. Heat reactive foil and toner reactive foil. The Heidi Swapp Minc uses the Toner reactive foil.
The 2 main brands of toner reactive foil are The Heidi Swapp Minc brand and Deco foil brand.
The other requirement for using the Heidi Swapp Minc machine is a laser printer. A mono laser printer is best, but a color laser can also be used.
Remember, if using a color laser printer, everything that you print will foil no matter what color you print in. The foil cannot distinguish between colors.
There are many laser printers on the market which work great. From experience I have found that the genuine toner cartridges work better than compatible cartridges. This may be due to the quality of toner in the compatible ones may not be as good as the genuine ones. Keep this in mind when replacing the cartridges.
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| HP1102w laserjet |
The media/cardstock you use is also a important factor when foiling. Especially with toner based foiling like the Heidi swapp minc.
To get a perfect foil you need the toner to "pool" on the surface of the cardstock/media you are using. You do not want to it get absorbed into the cardstock. Therefore the fibres need to be close together not apart or the toner will absorb into the fibres of your media/cardstock.
Think of the toner like glue. The toner will be printed onto the cardstock. The toner dries on the surface of the card. When you place foil over the toner/card and then place through the Heidi Swapp Minc machine it will reheat the toner to a liquid form. This will adhere to the foil and when you remove the foil sheet the foil will stick to the now dry toner.
If the toner has absorbed into the cardstock/media there is nothing for the foil to adhere to when you reheat through the Minc machine. Below is an example of what happens if the toner is absorbed way too much into the cardstock. You will get a uneven foiled effect. Heidi Swapp Minc foil used.
Cardstock which has a smooth surface work best. Brands like X-Pressit Blending card works really well as it is designed for copic markers to pool and blend on its surface, so the toner does the same. I have also had success foiling with Quill and Canson brands of cardstock.
The Heidi Swapp Minc machine has 5 settings. These are used to change the heat of the machine. Depending on what you are foiling will determine on what heat setting you use.
If you use a heat setting too low, the toner will not remelt and the foil will not stick.
See below image.
If you use a setting too high the media you use may get damaged or the toner may overheat and absorb into your media. This can also lead to uneven foiling.
Here is a general guideline of what setting to use with different medias.
(Setting may vary due to the minc machine,media used and toner used)
Setting 1- Transfer Adhesives, thin vinyl.
Setting 2 - Glassine paper, clear overlays, vellum, lightweight coated paper, copy paper,
shiny sticker paper.
Setting 3 - Non coated papers, coated cardstock, some unloaded cardstock with tight fibres, 3mil laminating pouches.
Setting 4 - Uncoated cardstock, 5mil laminating pouches.
Setting 5- Chipboard.
Always do a sample test first before creating your whole project.
If you do everything correctly and still get black dots where the foil has not stuck, you could have an issue with dust or another outside contaminate. This could be something as small as the tiny particles of paper that are created when the manufacture plant cuts your cardstock into size.
See below image.
To avoid these issues, try to keep your foils in their original packaging, and keep your cardstock and different media in plastic zip lock bags. You can even go as far as to wipe your cardstock with a antistatic cloth to remove any dust particles that may be around.
The Heidi Swapp Minc machine will create amazing projects if the above steps are used.
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