Society 6 Shop
Metal Print Review
As of mid-2016, Society6 began selling metal art prints; yes, that's art printed onto metal!
I was very interested in this new product, as I don't think I'd ever actually seen a metal art print before, so I waited for a free shipping offer (of course) and ordered a print of one my own photos.
Please note that the links to Society6 from this page are affiliate links, meaning that I receive a small commission if you buy a product from Society6 via one of the links. This won't affect your order at all. Thank-you in advance if you do make a purchase :)
These photographs show the packaging it arrived in; simple and efficient.
The print was wrapped in a plastic sleeve, a thin piece of foam and bubble wrap, so it was certainly well protected.
This is the print I chose to order, and this is the view from the front of the metal print (the 'noise' is just on my photograph of the print rather than on the print by the way!)
The design is called Buttercup Flare.
On the Society6 website, you can choose between different sizes of print, and I went for the 'Mini' size which was labelled as 9" x 7".
Strangely, the metal on mine measured 9.25" x 7" instead (just over 23 x 17.75cm) but I'm not going to complain about getting more than I paid for ;)
The sizes available at the time of writing are as follows:
- Mini: 9" x 7" (8" x 8")*
- Small: 16" x 12" (13" x 13")
- Medium: 20" x 15" (18" x 18")
- Large: 28" x 21" (24" x 24")
* The sizes in brackets are the sizes available when the image provided by the artist is a square rather than a rectangle.
The cost starts at $49 and ends at $159, so it's not the cheap option, and if you're on a tight budget perhaps a paper art print would be the more realistic choice.
However, there are big advantages to a metal print in comparison to a paper print; one is that they don't need any additional support or protection in the form of a mat board or frame before they can be hung on the wall.
Another is that a metal print is more durable and generally less prone to damage.
And another is that a metal print can easily be leant against a wall, with the base resting on the floor or a table/mantelpiece, which is great for renters who (like me) can't just put nails or screws into their walls at will.
I do think that for a piece of art that you really love and envisage keeping for a long time, it's worth paying the extra for the metal printing. I will personally only be able to shell out for one occasionally, so my art display ratio will be more like
"many paper prints : few metal prints" :)
The metal front itself is very thin at 1/16" (just over 1mm) thick, and is made from aluminum sheet.
Using thin aluminium offers a further plus point; the prints are lightweight.
In the case of my 'mini' size print, it weighs just 200g, which is quite a lot lighter than I had imagined it would be.
The entire front of the metal is printed on, and it has a lovely smooth and glossy finish.
The wooden frame on the back measures 6" x 4", and is just over 1/2" thick. In between the wood and the metal is a black layer of what I think is an adhesive foam layer but it's hard to tell because it's hidden underneath.
The wooden frame is there to offset the print from the wall, so they will be a gap of about 3/4" between the print and the wall.
To hang the print up, there is a 2" sawtooth hanger on the back. Society6 states that your print could have a wire hanger instead, but I think this is for the larger sizes.
I have found a tiny imperfection on the surface of my print, but since I can only see it when I look for it by holding it up to a light, I decided not to get a replacement.
Society6 customer service is rather good though, so I’m sure if I wanted to, it would be no problem to put right...but it’s too small an issue for it to bother me. My point is that should you have an issue with your order from Society6, it’s not like Society6 are difficult to work with so you should feel nice and reassured by that :p
In terms of the print quality itself, the colour saturation is really excellent; just like my photo and how it appears on the screen, and even up-close the details are precise and sharp.
The high-gloss finish does help to enhance the colours and make them more vibrant, so I would recommend making full use of this by choosing a bold and colourful print!
It is a bit of novelty to have my photos printed on metal, I admit, so that’s part of the appeal! I like the modern borderless look, but that comes down to personal taste.
As far as the product construction and quality, I’m very pleased. Solid and sturdy, nothing flimsy about it.
So overall, I'm very happy, and I hope this review has offered a bit more insight into what your print will look like in real-life so you can make a more informed decision about buying one yourself.
Thanks very much for reading :)