Specialty Paper

Choosing a paper that suits your creative project can feel like an overwhelming task. You want your project to have the tone and appearance you imagined; yet finding this appearance in a sea of options may be difficult. Between color, texture, weight, and finish, there are several factors to consider before determining which paper best fits your budget and your needs. With so many options to choose from, it is no surprise that designers and do-it-yourselfers often feel daunted by paper selection. Fortunately, though this task is complex, it does not have to be difficult.

With her article 10 Easy Steps to the Right Paper, Sabine Lenz of Paper Specs most effectively addresses this issue by offering ten tips to simplify the paper selection process.

The article begins with an imperative piece of advice:

“. . .You shouldn’t think about choosing your paper based on the highest quality available, or the highest quality you can afford. Rather, you should figure out the most appropriate quality paper for your needs, because most appropriate equals best.”

In essence, to confidently choose the right paper, you must first examine your project as a whole. Just as paper has many aspects to consider, so does your project design. In coming up with design ideas, you should consider your project’s purpose, audience, and overall tone and appearance. For example, is your creative project a black tie wedding invitation, an invite to a casual baby shower brunch, or a promotional announcement for hundreds? You should also factor in any budget, printing method, or time constraints. The same factors you examine when creating your design can also be used to decide on its paper.

Seen below, Lenz’s ten steps discuss these principles, and can be found in full and original content by clicking the link above, "10 Easy Steps to the Right Paper."

Consider Paper Early On

Due to its vital role in your creative design, paper should be considered at the earliest possible stage of your design. After all, you would not want to have a paper in mind, only to find out it is not available in a certain color, or that you can not print on it. Worse, you would not want to have completed the ideal design for yourself or a client, only to discover it does not physically or aesthetically fit with the paper it is to be printed on.

Project Personality

As mentioned above, your project’s purpose, audience, and overall look and feel will inevitably impact your paper selection. Basically, you want the tone of your project to match the tone of the paper you select. To illustrate this point, the article uses the example of a philanthropic organization seeking donations. Requesting money, the organization should not print its letter on an expensive stock, because the message of the letter and the tone of the expensive stock do not coincide. Similarly, you would not print an elegant wedding or gala invitation on a flimsy, plain white paper. In this instance, you would seek card stock with a weight, finish, or texture that suggests a more opulent event.

Paper Textue & Finish to Enhance Project Tone

The paper is not only there to give the ink a foundation, but to enhance the design of the image you want to portray.

An average design can be refreshed and made to portray an entirely different image when printed on paper with a rich finish or texture. With such a large selection of specialty paper to choose from, this is an area that is truly fun to experiment with. In general, matte finishes portray softness, metallics allude to elegance, and textures and patterns can create a theme of their own.

White Paper Or Colored Paper, Its A Choice

Creative designers may seek a specific paper color for any number of reasons, including mood, theme, preference, or requirement. When working with color, consider any potential impact it may have on your design. To illustrate this tip, the article discusses printing on a pale shade of yellow paper, warning readers to be cautious with ink color; i.e. blue ink would appear green. You may also have a certain shade of a color in mind, yet when you see the paper in person, it does not quite match up. In these cases, it is suggested you order a sample first, because back-tracking is never ideal.

Paper Weight for Printing and Mailing Purposes

When deciding on paper weight, you must consider your project from start to finish. First, determine the method of printing you will use. Projects that will be foil stamped or printed on both sides will require a heavier stock. If you are printing with your own laser or inkjet printer, keep in mind you may have trouble with card stocks over 80lbs (216 - 270gsm). However, if you are seeking the services of a professional printer, this is not as much of a concern. Last, if you are going to mail your creative project, you must consider that a heavy stock may require more postage than a lighter one.

Environmental Considerations

With today's emphasis on going green, more people are seeking environmentally friendly papers. Fortunately, paper manufacturers recognize this growing trend and are responding favorably, resulting in far more "green" options than in the past. After briefly researching your prospective paper, you may find that it is both beautiful and environmentally conscious. For more information on LCI's "green" paper, please visit the following:

• LCI's Eco Friendly Recycled Paper
• Dictionary of Eco Friendly Paper Terms
• Interview with Chlorine Free Products Director Archie Beaton

Consider the Printing Process

Without the proper printing equipment, various finishes and textures may be troublesome to print on. Again, if you are using a professional printing service, the printer will likely have the knowledge and equipment to properly print your project. If you are unsure which printing method you will choose, you could always experiment on sample sheets. In this way, if you determine you need the services of a professional printer, you can appropriately plan for this ahead of time.

Price Of Paper

Lenz sums up the issue of price, with the following:

It has happened to us all. We have champagne taste on a beer budget. Paper averages thirty percent of the cost of a print project. That is not a small percentage and definitely one to take a closer look at, if you work on a tight budget.

Let's be honest. Though a specialty paper can really enhance a project, it can also enhance the price. If you find a paper you love, but it is out of your price range, do not be discouraged! It never hurts to ask for suggestions and suitable alternatives. Also keep in mind that fonts, graphics, and accessories can alter a project's tone as well. Please see the following article for examples of how simple changes in fonts and graphics turned four standard white cards into beautiful invitations.

How To Create Invitations with Microsoft Word

Availability and Additional Time

Stated simply, if you have a specific paper in mind, check its availability ahead of time. You certainly do not want to complete a design, only to find out the paper you wished to print on will not be available for three weeks, or worse, that it is no longer manufactured.
Now that you are aware of the factors to consider when selecting your paper, it is time to browse. Even if you have been briefed on paper basics, browsing through a vast selection of paper can still be overwhelming.

Tips To Navigate Our Website

Fortunately, LCI has simplified this process by providing tools for easy navigation on its site.

These tools include a neatly categorized Specialty Paper Page, a Interactive Paper Selector to specifically filter results, the option to order samples, and helpful customer service to answer any questions. For detailed information on this topic, please visit How Do I Find the Right Paper for My Creative Project? on LCI's Creative Blog.

Text Weight Paper, Card Stock Paper - Paper Density Explained

How can a heavier card stock and a lighter paper both weigh 80lbs?

When it comes to paper weight, our customers are generally concerned with paper thickness, how it feels in their hands, and whether or not they will be able to print the paper at home. So naturally, there is concern when a thick card stock and a thinner, lighter sheet are both listed at 80lbs. How can it be? To answer this common question, we're going to explain the standards used to attribute paper weight (also referred to as paper density--the mass of the product per unit of area).

What is the scale used to determine paper weight?

Unfortunately, there isn't just one scale; there are two systems used to measure paper weight. Which system you use depends on your country. If you're the type of person that likes to understand how things work, you'll want to learn about both.

(1) My country uses the metric system.

The simplest and most widely used convention outside of the US is grams per square meter (g/m² or GSM)--the weight in grams of a 1 meter x 1 meter sheet. If a 1 x 1 meter sheet of a particular line of paper weighs 120 grams, then that paper weight is 120 g/m². All grades and paper types use this simple scale. With the metric paper density system, you'll never run into a case where a heavier paper has the same or lower g/m² number as a lighter paper. The higher the number, the heavier the paper. If the number is lower, the paper is lighter.

(2) I'm in North America.

The weights of different paper grades are calculated using each grade's basis weight. First, let's define some key ideas--paper grades, base ream, and basis weight:

Paper Grades: Different types of papers with their own characteristics and end uses

Base Ream: The size and paper count used to weigh a particular paper grade to determine paper density, generally the manufactured size before the paper is cut to the consumer product dimensions

Basis Weight: The weight of a particular paper grade using that grade's base ream size and count

See chart for paper grade descriptions and the base ream counts and dimensions that are used for determining each grade's basis weight:

How can a text weight sheet and a card stock both carry the same weight?

Now we can finally answer the original question (which is only a scenario that would surface if the weights were calculated using the US paper density system). Since one paper is a text weight grade and the other is a cover stock grade, they use different size base reams when they are weighed. You should almost think of the two paper grades--text and cover--as being weighed on different scales. Like the product shown at the top of this article, there are often scenarios where a heavier, thicker card stock is rated the same weight as a lighter text weight sheet. We know that an 80lb cover stock is heavier than 80lb text paper because the cover stock uses smaller base ream dimensions than the text paper, yet still holds the same weight.

Paper Stock Weight Calculator

Now that you're familiar with the US density system of different base ream sizes for different paper types vs. the single scale metric system of grams per square inch, you can use our paper weight calculator with confidence. Use it to quickly convert from one system to the other.

If converting from pounds to grams, select "lb", enter the weight, and select the paper type. The equivalent grammage will display in the bottom field.

If converting from grams to pounds, select "grams", enter the weight, then choose the paper type. The weight in pounds will display in the bottom field.