Letterpress is a beautiful process that can achieve amazing results. But it's important to remember that letterpress is an old process and has some limits as to what style of design works best.
| Suitable | Not suitable |
| Small number of one or two spot colours | Large number of colours or full colour photographs |
| Dark text on a light paper background | Light text on a dark printed background |
| Pen and ink style linework illustration | Photos, gradients, washes or tones |
| Vector artwork from Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign or Affinity Designer | Raster artwork from Adobe Photoshop, Corel Paint or MS Paint |
| Good for Letterpress | Not Ideal for Letterpress (Better for Full-Color Printing) |
|---|---|
| Simple typography (especially bold fonts with clean lines) | Intricate designs with fine details |
| Few elements (minimalism is key) | Large solid areas of color or "floods" (can appear uneven) |
| Line art and illustrations with bold strokes | Photographs or images with gradients (lose detail in letterpress) |
| One or two colors (each color requires a separate plate) | Designs with many colors (more cost-effective with full-color printing) |
| Thick paper stock (at least 300gsm) with a textured surface | Thin or smooth paper stock (won't hold the impression well) |
| Blind debossing (creating an impression without ink) | Fine halftones or screens (can be difficult to reproduce accurately) |
| Embossing (creating a raised design) | Light inks on dark paper (inks are transparent and may not show up well) |
| Edge painting | Spot UV coating (a high-gloss finish applied to specific areas) |
| Duplexing or triplexing (layering different colored papers) | Foil stamping (metallic or pigmented foil applied to the surface) |
| Rounded corners | Thermography (a raised printing technique that uses heat) |