The Red-Hot Requests for Awards: Color Fill

On New Year’s Day 1954, technology and marketing teamed up to broadcast color television coast-to-coast for the very first time. The event was the annual Rose Parade and several thousand Americans lucky enough to be equipped with the latest devices tuned in and watched the floral festivities cruising along in Pasadena, California.

As color TV took hold in the years following, a collective awe was felt by an increasing number of viewers who found themselves captivated by the vibrance and realism displayed on their screens. People and images sprang to life, with an accompanying sense of brightness and optimism. Color was changing how we saw the world, quite literally.

Few things have the same visceral impact as color. It evokes feelings. It strengthens branding. It conveys information. And, in the world of crystal awards and gifts, it does all of these things for recipients — making it an increasingly popular way to elevate graphic and text design features.

Deep etch + color fill

“Color fill is a treatment where the deep etching on a piece is filled in with a color, and it really enhances parts of artwork that customers would like to have stand out,” said Kyle Nordby, production manager at Crystal D. “Our orders including this option have increased 25% every year since 2020.”

Nordby says the company, which has been offering color fill as one of its customization options for a few decades, has researched, innovated, and perfected its application process over time. Crystal D began by working with an outside vendor to develop its range of colors — eight translucent tones that let light through and create an embossed effect, and five opaque shades with three metallic options. (In case you’re curious, the most sought-after colors customers request are gold and blue.)

A precise application technique is another key to performing flawless color fill services, and is Crystal D’s proprietary method. Every piece of color-filled crystal requires a deep etch to create the recess needed for the pigment to saturate, and the process is performed meticulously by hand, one color at a time, and one piece at a time.

Because it’s such an exact art, at Crystal D, Nordby said, employees are trained on it and practice their skills over the course of about six months.

“Our artisans who do color fill have a real eye for coloring and quality control,” he said.

Hints about tints

While it’s true that the desire for the use of color is ramping up, it is also true that a little can go a long way. For that reason, it’s important to understand and plan for the best ways to incorporate hues.

For example, if a customer would like a crystal award with a 3D subsurface image in it, you will want to recommend that they color fill any etching placed in front of the 3D image, to help the etching stand out and provide some contrast so both components can shine.

Another consideration is black crystal. Color fill isn’t required for etching that’s done on the shiny black “piano” finish, but when a color is used to make the imprint stand out, it must be opaque: gold, silver, bronze, or white.

On the other hand, pieces that include white crystal do require color fill so the etching on the clear area doesn’t “disappear” against a milky background.

With pieces that have colored crystal, color fill is included on each of the blocks/discs used to commemorate achievements that occur incrementally — like years of service, sales goals, or employees of the month.

Crystal D includes one color fill into the pricing of any products that require it for design purposes, making it easier for you to know when to bring color into idea discussions about crystal awards and gifts. More colors can also be incorporated for an additional fee.

Here are a few more things to consider when planning how to incorporate color fill:

• Bold, open, sans-serif fonts work best.
• Avoid small, script fonts.
• You can add one or more colors to your deep etch imprint to make text stand out or showcase your branding/colors, but keep in mind that multiple colors next to each other do require clear space between the colors.

At the risk of talking about color fill until we’re blue in the face, here’s one more hot tip: Check out crystal-d.com and look under “Sales Tools” for more ideas and inspiration.