Patent ID: 8740367

Claim:
A printing system for creating a metallic effect image on a substrate having a surface, the system comprising: a first ink jet ink applied onto the surface of the substrate, wherein the first ink jet ink is registered on a region that comprises less than the entirety of the surface of the substrate to form at least one graphic object, wherein the first ink jet ink comprises a dispersion of reflective metallic particles in a carrier system, wherein the first ink jet ink forms a smooth reflective coating layer, and wherein a boundary is formed at the edge between a) the region covered by the first ink iet ink that comprises less than the entirety of the surface of the substrate, and b) a portion of the surface of the substrate not covered by first ink jet ink; and a second ink jet ink applied over at least a portion of the reflective coating layer, wherein the applied second ink jet ink is configured to spread across the reflective coating layer up to, but not extending beyond, the boundary to form a protective coating layer.