2-Minute Tuesday: Warning – DO NOT LAMINATE!

I worked at a Kinko’s while attending Purdue University back in the early 90s. Little did I know that this part-time job would eventually lead to a career in the Quick Print industry.

I’ll never forget my first day on the job. I had just completed a one-week training class and was ready to dive right in. One of my first customers was an expecting mother who brought in a copy of her recent ultrasound. She wanted it laminated – made perfect sense to me.

Without hesitation, I put her ultrasound into a lamination pouch and ran it through our laminator. Unfortunately, what came out the other end was not a laminated image of her new baby, rather a black piece of paper that had apparently replaced what I had originally fed into the machine. She was devastated and we ended-up having to pay for reprints, which we immediately recommend that she frame, not laminate.

I had no idea what a heated laminator would do to a thermal print like an ultrasound. So let’s take a moment to remind you of some items that should NEVER be laminated:

DO NOT LAMINATE any thermally sensitive paper – it will turn black. Examples include:

• Ultrasounds
• Ticket Stubs
• Holograms

While we’re at it, let me remind you that you should never laminate any official United States Government documents, such as:

• Social Security Cards
• Birth Certificates
• Passports

So use caution when laminating something that is one-of-a-kind – and when in doubt, just frame it!

Do you have a lamination nightmare to share? We’d love to hear your story!