Signage Education | Window Graphics

The term “window graphics” covers a range of products from simple vinyl lettering and designs to complex full color vinyl or window perforation. Window graphics are commonly used on vehicle windows, storefronts and entry doors. In this week’s article, we’ll present a range of offerings and tips for making the most of your investment.

Vinyl Film

Perhaps the most commonly requested, and least expensive type of window graphics are vinyl lettering and logos cut from solid color vinyl film. Vinyl film is available in a variety of colors and grades. Your color choices are limited to the colors that are readily available – those made my a variety of manufacturers, and those on hand or available to your sign manufacturer. Vinyl film is commonly sold on rolls from 12″ to 48″ wide, and in lengths from 10 yards to 50 yards.

Most sign manufacturers have standard colors on hand at all times. These standard colors include red, blue, green, black, white, and yellow. If you chose a non-standard color, check with your sign manufacturer on availability. For a small job, it may not be feasible for your sign manufacturer to purchase a small quantity of film, and they’re not likely to purchase a minimum of 10 yards of seldom used film to fill your order if you only need a couple of feet of material.

Vinyl film is cut with a computer controlled plotter. As such, the artwork for your window graphics must be in a vector format. Though it is possible to have more than one color, each color will be cut separately and registered to one another for installation. The use of multiple colors will increase the cost significantly. Beyond the additional film being used, all colors will need to include a means of being registered to other colors. As such, there’s more film used, more waste, and more labor to facilitate installation of vinyl window graphics that use more than one color. At some point, perhaps more than 2 colors, the use of digitally printed and contour cut graphics may be a more economical solution.

The artwork for your cut vinyl graphics can be a combination of lettering and simple logos in vector format. If you are providing the art, text should be converted to outlines prior to submitting to your sign maker for production. Converting text to outlines eliminates the need for your sign maker to have matching fonts and the possibility of inadvertent font substitution.

Digitally Printed Window Graphics

An alternative to vinyl graphics cut from solid color film, adhesive vinyl film can be digitally printed, optionally laminated and contour cut. If your graphic will be a simple rectangular shape, either bitmap or vector artwork will be suitable. If your design is to be contour cut, your artwork should ideally be in vector format.

Window Perf

Window perf is an adhesive vinyl material that can be digitally printed. As implied by the name, the entire printed surface is perforated to allow visibility through the printed design. There are perforated films optimized for use on vehicle windows. These have more of the material removed to maximize visibility. Window perf designed for storefront displays have more material remaining than removed to maximize the printable area. The specifications for perforated vinyl will include a ratio indicating the amount, or percentage of material compared to the amount of perforation. For example, a 50/50 perf film has 50% material and 50% holes in the printable surface. For vehicle graphics, a 40/60 may be a better choice to increase visibility through the film. For commercial or retail storefronts, you might use a 60/40, or even a 67/33 ratio to maximize image area.

Installation

Regardless of the type of window graphics needed, your sign supplier can install them for you, or provide the graphics ready-to-apply. If you’ll be installing your window graphics, research proper installation methods to ensure the best results, proper adhesion and to maximize longevity.

In contrast to cut graphics, window perf typically covers a larger area of a window. When installing window perf on a storefront window, the window frame will need to be clean and relatively straight. If the window perf is to cover the entire window, the graphic will typically be printed slightly oversize and trimmed to fit the window during installation. If your window frame has warped or rotting wood, loose paint or other debris, you are better off having the window perf made slightly smaller than the window. If there isn’t a clean, sharp edge to trim against, you risk having debris picked up by the adhesive that will impact the appearance. Even worse, these contaminants will affect the adhesion at the graphic’s edges where adhesion is most critical.

About Spectrum Signs
Spectrum Signs is an independent, locally owned, full service sign manufacturing company located in south Orange County – Mission Viejo, California. We are affiliated with over 240 independent sign companies with access to resources nationwide. This affiliation provides significant discounts from sign suppliers, and allows us to offer competitive pricing without compromising in quality and service.

For more information, contact:

Spectrum Signs
23382 Madero Suite L
Mission Viejo, CA 92691
(949) 297-3800