Whether for personal use or as a marketing piece, your printed collateral needs to shine and convey your style. And that starts at the most important part of printing: paper. At Alexander’s, we offer as many varieties of paper and weights as you may need to help you craft the perfect product.
Cover vs Text
Choosing between cover and text means you’ll have to determine the utility of your paper and how durable you’ll want or need it to be.
Cover paper is a thicker, heavier weight paper useful for products that will see a little more use or long-distance shipping. Items like this might be invitations, cards, and direct mail pieces.
Text, on the other hand, is a lighter-weight paper of the kind you’ll find in journals and books. This kind of paper is good for shorter-term products, like flyers, if it doesn’t have a bound cover of some sort.
Matte and Gloss
Both of these paper types are essential to know when printing photos and other display pieces. Matte–paper that is not shiny–focuses on detail, making this essential for black-and-white photos. Colors printed on matte paper tend to be more subdued. Some people also dislike the shine of gloss and go for a “classy” look with matte paper.
Gloss makes vibrant colors pop, especially with digital photography. Colors on glossy paper look crisper and higher-contrast.
Ultimately, though, it all comes down to personal preference and what you would like for your photos or other printed images.
Laminates
Here at Alexander’s, we offer multiple types of laminates and coatings to match any need. Want a specific paper to have that special glossy shine? We offer a gloss laminate that really makes your photography or design pop!
We also offer velvet lamination, which gives your product a soft, touchable texture. Velvet lamination is great for book covers and other products your customers will hold onto for a long time!
Along with our lamination, we offer UV coating. Unlike lamination, UV coating sprays onto your product and coats evenly across it. This is a great way to enhance your product if you don’t want the risk of peeling and curling lamination!
Pearl Paper
Pearl paper is treated on both sides for a pretty, fancy shimmer. It’s almost glittery in the right light! That makes this paper absolutely perfect for wedding invitations and other special occasion products.
It’s also making its way onto the publishing scene! Pearl is great for dust jackets if you want to give your cover a subtle shimmer.
Alexander’s offers pearl paper in four colors: ice, champagne, silver, and gold. We can also provide a gloss laminate to really make your piece shine!
Textured Paper
Depending on your products’ needs, Alexander’s can provide a paper with texture! Or, if you want, the lack of. Wove/smooth paper feels much like your standard printer paper–completely even without much of a texture to speak of.
On the other hand, linen and ribbed papers have a definite, subtle embossing texture. This is amazing for touch marketing on products like business cards and other marketing collateral. You can also use this for more elegant items like menus and invitations.
Having a hard time choosing? Learn more about types of paper you can print on.
Don’t see a paper type on this list? Contact us today! We can work with you to create your ideal product.
