Which Paper to Use For Letterpress Printing
This could very well be a log debate over which letterpress paper to use for letterpress printing. I think for most the operative word that comes to mind first is thickness. This is something to really consider because the thickness of the paper determines the amount of impression that is seen and felt by the user and the observer. Many boutique printers use Crane’s lettra, which I find is a terrible paper. Why? Well it is so dry and it can’t handle the impression without cracking. Many will wet or keep the paper in humid conditions and go the extra steps to try to make it work, but in a busy print shop this is just too time consuming. There are much better papers that are excellent and even less expensive and still 100% cotton. The thickness I like is the 600gsm or the 300gsm. Both papers show impression well and are thicker that most other papers on the market. To see some of the fine letterpress paper take a look here.