Custom playing cards glossary
Every term we use in quotes, file reviews, and product specs — defined in plain language so you can confidently spec a job.
Card paper with an opaque black middle layer that prevents light from showing card faces through the back.
"Coated 2 sides" cardstock — a clay coating applied to both faces for sharper printing and a smoother feel.
Extra artwork extended 1/8" past the trim line so background color reaches the edge after cutting.
The inner 1/8" margin where critical artwork — logos, text, icons — must sit so it isn't clipped at trim.
A physical pre-production sample printed on the actual press and stock that will run your full job.
The smallest number of decks a printer will run in a single order — Mr. Playing Card's MOQ is 15 decks.
A small-batch print run — typically 10 to 500 decks — sized for prototypes, events, and small brands.
The folded paperboard case a deck ships in — front, back, top, bottom, and two side flaps of full-color print real estate.
Grams per square meter — the standard unit for measuring how heavy and thick playing-card paper is.
A finishing process that presses a thin metallic film (gold, silver, copper, holographic) onto a card or tuck box.
Painting or foiling the cut edge of a card deck — most commonly gold or silver — for a luxury collector finish.
A pressure-based finish that raises (or recesses, as deboss) artwork off the surface of a tuck box or card.
An embossed crosshatch texture rolled onto card stock that mimics woven linen and reduces glare.
Ready to print your custom playing cards?
15-deck MOQ. Free file review. Digital proof before press. Printed in Orlando, FL.