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Marbled Papers, Endpapers, Handmade Decorative papers, Bookbinding Papers

SKYCRAFT DESIGNS, INC.

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About Paper

These terms are useful in talking about commonly available paper.

Surface

Smooth

slick

Vellum

smooth too but feels velvety.

Eggshell

velvety but with slight tooth or roughness

Felt

slightly rough to pronounced surface texture that is irregular, like felt.

Wove

has a weave-like surface from the woven wire paper machine screen, and has a texture varying from slight to rough depending on the mill process.

Laid

has lines in the surface formed by the wire mesh of the machine screen. This type has parallel wires held together at intervals by a "chain" of twisted wire.

Linen

is a heat embossed linen-like texture on the paper surface. Other textures such as wove, laid and felt are often simulated in this way.

Calendered

sheets have been passed through two very smooth rollers which press and smooth the surface. If heeat is applied may be called "hot pressed", usually refers to a handmade paper.

Embossed

sheets have been passed through rollers which leave a raised textured surface

Type of sheet

Weight

numbers refer to the weight of 500 sheets 25 x 38". Text and cover weights are figured differently, so a 50 lb cover is not lighter than a 70 lb text

Text

is the type of paper used for printing book pages, brochures, and most better printing. It is usually identified by surface style and weight or "basis".

Bond

is usually lightweight and smooth, and is used for copy machine, laser printing and typing. Some bond used for stationery is quite elegant with a high rag content and watermarks. Laser printer paper is of higher quality fiber, not as likely to pick up fuzz so toner can adhere better. Color printer paper is also of better quality, with a surface that is less likely to bleed through with ink jet printing.

Cover

is heavy weight used for booklet covers, folders and cards. It can have any surface texture and often is made to match a line of quality text and envelopes

Duplex cover

is two sheets of quality cover laminated together, usually two colors. It can be quite good for artwork and book arts because of the stiffness and the design options offered by the two colors.

Treatments

Sized

means there is some gelatin or polymer applied to the paper surface or into the pulp to make the paper stronger and less likely to soak up moisture.

Coated

paper has a smooth clay surface coating which takes four color printing very well but is not much good for art. It is weaker, and is affected by moisture. Coated is used for printing magazines and shiny brochures. It is harder to recycle.

Content

Pulp

is the material paper is made from. Wood chips are cooked in acid to break up the fibers. Residual acid can react with things in the air and make paper weak over time. Plenty of water is needed to clean the pulp enough to make good paper.

Rag content

Rag content is rare today, and refers to the cotton content of some fine papers. Rag paper is more long lasting than most wood pulp paper. Linen used to be used in paper and is extremely stong and long lasting.

New fibers

Handmade paper is made from fiber combinations including cotton, linen, hemp, and many natural fibers such as mulberry, banana fiber, abaca, and hemp.
Some commercial paper from Crane has hemp or other "tree free." Some of their paper feature recycled US currency.

Chemistry

Ph

refers to the degree of acidity or alkalinity in paper pulp. Most machine made paper is acidic, and mills now put in things like calcium carbonate to counteract this and to allow a Ph neutral label. This treatment affects the performance for surface design, and I have found very little of this new Ph neutral paper to be useful. The pattern rinses off or the applied paints soak right through the sheets. I use the best of the slightly acidic commercial papers, and for most processes I neutralize the acidity by prewetting the papers in a buffering bath. My paints are slightly alkaline.

Other features

Watermark

is an image of thick and thin shadowing which shows on the finished paper when held up to the light. It is made by a wire insignia or logo inset into the paper making screen and usually identifies the maker and type.

Deckel edge

is the feather edge found on some of the finer papers, seen less and less now in commercial papers. It is an approximation of the feathery edge made in a handmade sheet by the papermaking screen frame part called the deckel.

Grain

refers to the orientation of the fibers in the paper. They lay parallel to the path the paper took coming out of the forming machine. Paper folds easiest along the grain. When it absorbs water (when gluing it) it expands the most perpendicular to the grain. Each fiber gets fatter.

Finding the grain

To find the grain, hold the sheet flat on your hand to see how the sheet drapes down more along the grain. The other direction it is stiffer. Also, the sheet will dish or curl up into a roll along the grain when wetted on one side. Grain direction is a crucial aspect when planning and assembling a book. In bookbinding, the all paper should expand away from the spine (the grain being parallel to the spine), thus avoiding stress to the book covers and warping.

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Email: type this in

Phone: 800.578.5608

Or: 503.630.7173

Snail Mail:

Skycraft Designs, 26395 S. Morgan Rd., Estacada, OR 97023 USA

Call to arrange reproduction, printing, use as computer or video backgrounds, or in printed materials. We do custom art for designers.

We are an Angel Company - artists may use our original handmade papers in their artwork, but any reproduction of art incorporating our papers requires formal name credit printed where the image appears or in the sources credits section. Such reproduced images made for resale must have Skycraft permission.

Surface	Smooth	slick
	Vellum	smooth too but feels velvety.
	Eggshell	velvety but with slight tooth or roughness
	Felt	slightly rough to pronounced surface texture that is irregular, like felt.
	Wove	has a weave-like surface from the woven wire paper machine screen, and has a texture varying from slight to rough depending on the mill process.
	Laid	has lines in the surface formed by the wire mesh of the machine screen. This type has parallel wires held together at intervals by a "chain" of twisted wire.
	Linen	is a heat embossed linen-like texture on the paper surface. Other textures such as wove, laid and felt are often simulated in this way.
	Calendered	sheets have been passed through two very smooth rollers which press and smooth the surface. If heeat is applied may be called "hot pressed", usually refers to a handmade paper.
	Embossed	sheets have been passed through rollers which leave a raised textured surface
Type of sheet	Weight	numbers refer to the weight of 500 sheets 25 x 38". Text and cover weights are figured differently, so a 50 lb cover is not lighter than a 70 lb text
	Text	is the type of paper used for printing book pages, brochures, and most better printing. It is usually identified by surface style and weight or "basis".
	Bond	is usually lightweight and smooth, and is used for copy machine, laser printing and typing. Some bond used for stationery is quite elegant with a high rag content and watermarks. Laser printer paper is of higher quality fiber, not as likely to pick up fuzz so toner can adhere better. Color printer paper is also of better quality, with a surface that is less likely to bleed through with ink jet printing.
	Cover	is heavy weight used for booklet covers, folders and cards. It can have any surface texture and often is made to match a line of quality text and envelopes
	Duplex cover	is two sheets of quality cover laminated together, usually two colors. It can be quite good for artwork and book arts because of the stiffness and the design options offered by the two colors.
Treatments	Sized	means there is some gelatin or polymer applied to the paper surface or into the pulp to make the paper stronger and less likely to soak up moisture.
	Coated	paper has a smooth clay surface coating which takes four color printing very well but is not much good for art. It is weaker, and is affected by moisture. Coated is used for printing magazines and shiny brochures. It is harder to recycle.
Content	Pulp	is the material paper is made from. Wood chips are cooked in acid to break up the fibers. Residual acid can react with things in the air and make paper weak over time. Plenty of water is needed to clean the pulp enough to make good paper.
	Rag content	Rag content is rare today, and refers to the cotton content of some fine papers. Rag paper is more long lasting than most wood pulp paper. Linen used to be used in paper and is extremely stong and long lasting.
	New fibers	Handmade paper is made from fiber combinations including cotton, linen, hemp, and many natural fibers such as mulberry, banana fiber, abaca, and hemp. Some commercial paper from Crane has hemp or other "tree free." Some of their paper feature recycled US currency.
Chemistry	Ph	refers to the degree of acidity or alkalinity in paper pulp. Most machine made paper is acidic, and mills now put in things like calcium carbonate to counteract this and to allow a Ph neutral label. This treatment affects the performance for surface design, and I have found very little of this new Ph neutral paper to be useful. The pattern rinses off or the applied paints soak right through the sheets. I use the best of the slightly acidic commercial papers, and for most processes I neutralize the acidity by prewetting the papers in a buffering bath. My paints are slightly alkaline.
Other features	Watermark	is an image of thick and thin shadowing which shows on the finished paper when held up to the light. It is made by a wire insignia or logo inset into the paper making screen and usually identifies the maker and type.
	Deckel edge	is the feather edge found on some of the finer papers, seen less and less now in commercial papers. It is an approximation of the feathery edge made in a handmade sheet by the papermaking screen frame part called the deckel.
	Grain	refers to the orientation of the fibers in the paper. They lay parallel to the path the paper took coming out of the forming machine. Paper folds easiest along the grain. When it absorbs water (when gluing it) it expands the most perpendicular to the grain. Each fiber gets fatter.
	Finding the grain	To find the grain, hold the sheet flat on your hand to see how the sheet drapes down more along the grain. The other direction it is stiffer. Also, the sheet will dish or curl up into a roll along the grain when wetted on one side. Grain direction is a crucial aspect when planning and assembling a book. In bookbinding, the all paper should expand away from the spine (the grain being parallel to the spine), thus avoiding stress to the book covers and warping.