Paper! The Various Types & How They Apply To YOU as a Designer

Paper! The Various Types & How They Apply To YOU as a Designer

Basics: How to Make Paper - Combine wood chips in hot water to soften. - Primarily wood fibers, but can also be linen, cotton, other plant fibers, or recycled material. - Diluted fibers, or pulp, is distributed over a fine mesh screen - Water is drained out through screen - Sheet is passed through rollers to either smooth or create texture, then through a series of dryers. - The resulting interlaced fibers create paper

The Papermaking Process Sappi papermaking video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4c3x26dxbm Recycled papermaking video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojkjrtsegl4

Paper Attributes

Paper Thickness Caliper - Thickness - measured in thousandths of an inch - (ex: 0.007 inches or 7 point) - Affected by basis weight, type of fibers, and finish

Paper Weight M Weight - Weight of 1,000 sheets of the given size Basis Weight - American Standard of Measurement - Each paper category has a specific basic size associated with it. Weight of 500 sheets in that size is the basis weight. GSM (grams per square meter) - Metric system to measure paper weight. - System in continuous, all categories use the same scale.

Sizes for Calculating Basis Weight

Example: Paper stock is 70 pound Text if 500 sheets 25 x 38 inches weigh 70 pounds. Pamphlets and brochures are printed on 50-to-100 pound text paper. Covers are usually 65 to 80 pound cover paper. The basic sheet size for cover stock is 20 x 26. The basic sheet size for text stock is 25 x 38 (much larger). therefore 80-pound cover stock is considerably heavier than 80-pound text paper.

Paper Sizes A Series Paper Sizes Defined The A series paper sizes are defined in ISO 216 by the following requirements: The length divided by the width is 1.4142 The A0 size has an area of 1 square metre. Each subsequent size A(n) is defined as A(n-1) cut in half parallel to its shorter sides. The standard length and width of each size is rounded to the nearest millimetre.

Paper Surface & Texture - Coated: Cast-coated, Gloss, Dull/Silk, Matte - Coated one side (C1S), Coated on both sides (C2S) - Uncoated: - Writing, Text, Cover, & Double Thick Cover (DTC): Premium uncoated paper in a variety of textures: Antique, Cockle, Eggshell, Felt, Groove, Laid, Linen, Smooth, Vellum, Wove - Specialty: glitter, metallic, translucent, synthetic, etc.

Paper Grades (Categorized by use) Writing (Bond) Paper - Lightweight, typically white or off-white. Ideal for stationary, bonds, legal documents Many contain some cotton fibers & a watermark Text (Book) Paper - Wide variety of colors & finishes. Suitable for text pages: books, booklets, flyers etc. Cover Paper - Wide variety of colors & finishes. Covers of booklets, pocket folders, calendars, menus, etc. Index Paper - Stiff, inexpensive paper with smooth finish Tag Paper - Heavy, utility grade for consumer goods (like clothing hangtags) Bristol Paper - Fine quality card board made by combining several sheets together. Other grades: Paper board, label, newsprint, lightweight, tissue.

Additional Paper Attributes Grain Direction - Majority of fibers align in the direction of the paper machine - Short Grain: fibers follow the long side of sheet - Long Grain: fibers follow the short side of sheet - Grain direction affects scoring & strength of paper - Grain should run parallel to the printing cylinders not perpendicular to them for best results (less stretch and even ink coverage). - Folding should be done with the grain % Recycled Content - Pre or Post-Consumer Waste Absorbency - Amount of Dot Gain - Ink Holdout Strength - Resistance to tearing Stretch - Distortion under tension Brightness - The amount of reflected light.

Environmental Certifications Lots of different certifications available: Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) EPA Green Power Partnership Green Seal Green-e Rainforest Alliance Carbon Neutral Plus Processed Chlorine Free Alternative Fiber Choices Recycling Symbol

www.ecolingo.com

How to choose the right paper: 1. How much bright color and sharp detail do you need? - Very smooth, glossy paper gives the best color and maintains the sharpest dots. - Rougher paper absorbs more ink and scatters more light, reducing both brightness and detail. 2. How important is color fidelity? - Blue-white paper gives great color fidelity except for warm-toned subjects such as skin tones. - Cream-white paper is best for warm tones & text readability - Cream-white can never produce the pure whites needed for snow or cloud pictures. 3. How much gloss do you want? - A glossy finish adds brightness to images but is hard on the eyes. - A matte finish is best for reading text but grays the colors, and ink tends to rub off easier. 4. How dense is the ink coverage? - Heavy ink coverage requires papers with a lot of opacity so you won t get show-through. - Free sheets are not as opaque as groundwood sheets. - Lighter-weight sheets are less opaque than heavier basis weights. 5. How much bulk do you need? - If you need a certain thickness (or to be within a specific weight), for example, to meet postal requirements you should always weigh or measure a dummy prior to printing. 6. How much folding strength do you need? - Coated stock can crack when folded, and it may tear more easily than uncoated paper.

How to choose the right paper (continued): 7.How stiff do you want your paper to be? - Board stock is milled to preserve stiffness and caliper. - Fine paper stock is milled to preserve smoothness and basis weight. 8.What is the intended use? How long does the printed piece need to last? Is the perception of quality important? - Some times a gloss coated sheet can look cheap, and an uncoated piece can feel luxurious, but sometimes it s the other way around. - What is the tactile experience you want the viewer to have? 9. What is the printing process? - Get printer involved right away to determine print method. - Some papers are specifically formulated for digital presses. - Some presses have limitations based on size, finish, or caliper. 10.Do you need matching envelopes? - Not all papers have the same availability 11.Do you want to send an environmental message? - Recycled paper or paper made with alternate energy sources may be the answer. - Some printers may already be using a environmentally friendly ink or paper source, ask to see what logos/certifications the printer carries. 12.What is the timeline & budget? - Paper availability may affect your choice. - Paper can account for up to 35% - 50% of total printing cost!

Specifying paper (Spec ing): The process begins by choosing a stock, finish and color. You then decide upon a basis weight. - Start by feeling the range of basis weights shown in the swatchbook. - Double check the chart in the swatchbook to make sure the color comes in the basis weight you prefer. It s important to be as specific as possible. You can ask your merchant or printer for plain paper samples or dummies (a complete bound version of your project but with no printing) of the paper you ve chosen. Once you ve specified the product, color, basis weight, your printer will decide on sheet size and grain direction as part of their estimating process. The printer then gets a price quote on the paper from the merchant and includes the price of paper on the overall printing quote.

Paper Swatchbooks