Time and time again I get asked how to print on my handmade paper. You see a lot of calligraphy and letterpress with it but many of you want to print it in a quick and easy manner, especially when you need many copies of the same design, e.g. for wedding invitations. So I asked someone who prints on Eliv Rosenkranz paper frequently: María of The Spaniel Studio, a wonderfully talented calligrapher and designer, how she prints with my paper. She wrote this very helpful guide that I'm glad to share with you today:
Most of us stationers (and our customers) love those wedding invitation suites printed on perfectly imperfect handmade paper, but the printing process might be a little bit of a hassle if you don't take into consideration some factors. Asked by Claudia, I'm glad to share what's working for me in the process of printing handmade paper myself, hoping that it could be useful for you:
- The first one is pretty obvious, but key: Choose a high quality handmade paper. Most of the handmade paper sheets have often rough textures that make it difficult to get good printing results. I can't recommend enough Eliv Rosenkranz's paper (not any kind of sponsorship here!). Its smooth surface makes it easy to print on while maintaining those characteristic natural deckled edges. Since I discovered Claudia's paper it's become my favorite one!
- Use a specific handmade paper printer which allows you to print on your own. Nowadays there are plenty of printer brands that offer this feature, and it may be worth investing in a good one if you're going to print on a daily basis. When it comes to setting printing preferences, choose the roughest paper option offered by the printer, in order to ensure a strong printing and to avoid missing the smallest details of your design.
- Print slowly. Most times I print sheets one by one to make sure each one fits perfectly in the tray. Keep in mind that each sheet may slightly vary in shape, so it may be worth spending more time in the printing process to guarantee the whole bunch is perfectly printed.
- Adjust the color preferences. When it comes to printing on handmade paper you should take into consideration how the color will appear on a paper with natural tones different from that pure white of the regular paper. In order to get the best results, it's mandatory (or at least highly recommended) to invest some time and paper in finding out which color preferences to set in the printing options of your design programs to get the most accurate results for your designs. Once you have this previous work done, it's all set up for all the prints to come!
- Remember, to maintain the high quality of your future printing work, to clean the internal mechanism of your printer frequently. Printing on handmade paper with deckled edges can sometimes leave some cotton particles in the machine, and it's important to ensure all of them are removed to guarantee the usefulness of the printer for the future works to come!
Thank you María, for this handy guide! I hope it inspires many creatives to explore different printing options and opens up a world of new designs. Happy printing!