Aluminium foil decoration, and crafts, especially in bright metallic colours. Metallic aluminium, normally silvery in colour, can be made to take on other colours through anodisation. Anodising creates an oxide layer on the aluminium surface that can accept coloured dyes or metallic salts, depending on the process used. In this way, aluminium is used to create an inexpensive gold foil that actually contains no gold, and many other bright metallic colours. These foils are sometimes used in distinctive packaging. Foil is used by organic/petroleum geochemists for protecting rock samples taken from the fields and in the labs where the sample is subject
Cold foil printing transfer. The best results are obtained on glossy coated papers and papers with a smooth surface. Weights from about 80 to 500 g/m^2 are possible. The process does not require stamping tools, but instead uses printing plates, which are cheaper and can be made in a few hours. In contrast, delivery time for an engraved or etched stamping tool can be up to two weeks. More importantly for the designer, gradients and halftone images can be introduced. Cold foil evolved from hot foil stamping. Hot foil stamping is mostly used offline when foil is required on a preprinted substrate, such