What kind of paper do you use for letters?

[vermillionpart4]

Jan petr obr for me. Or for my friends depending on how you look at it. It doesn't work with anything finer than a medium nib since it's handmade and a bit rough.

[robeck]

Years ago it used to be exclusively Basildon Bond champagne but I grew away from it because it was so toothy and made my pen feel very dry.

 

More recently I've moved onto Conqueror Wove Smooth/Satin in white or cream - both excellent 100 gsm, watermarked premium (cost and quality!) papers which have a bit of tooth but not too much.

 

Most recently, I've moved onto the ultra-smooth versions of Conqueror Wove in Diamond White and cream - both again excellent quality with an oh-so-smooth finish.

 

And most, most recently I bought some more Basildon Bond Champagne which has improved immensely from the last time I used it - it is now much smoother than I ever remember.

 

Then finally I picked up a pack of what I THOUGHT was Basildon Bond A4 in white. It was actually a proprietary brand to WH Smiths in the UK called Quality Bond. The packaging confused me into thinking it was BB so I guess it may be sourced from BB by Smiths - who knows? BUT...

 

I put this relatively no-name Quailty Bond in head-to-head tests with BB and Conqueror and it walked the floor in all departments - best smoothness, colour, lack of bleedthrough or feathering. I tried everything from my best inks and pens to my most ill-behaved dip nibs and inks. Quite simply it is the best paper that I have used. I am now trying to find more supplies since my local WH Smiths has sold out.

 

P.S. I would also use Clairfontaine Triomphe if I had some!

 

Regards,

Dean

[countrydirt]

I laugh when I think that I am new to writing letters since I my first pen pal was in about 1972. However, computers and e-mails took me away from the handwritten. I have recently rediscovered fountain pens and correspondence!

 

I am using paper from a BlacknRed notebook - fine perforation and half letter size. Works very well with F and M nibs. I also have a couple of Cambridge Grid pads for sketching project fabrication ideas. I have discovered that my pens like it. I cut each page in half to have a half letter size sheet. Smooth and no bleed or feathering. Works well with F and EF nibs plus the grid lines help with my elementary lettering!

[ZeissIkon]

Jeen, I just purchased a box of Crane unfolded notelets...can you please advise which side should one write on? eg. where and which direction should the watermark be facing? Thank u.

 

The usual advice I've seen is that the "right side" of paper is the side from which the watermark is "right reading". Where you place the watermark on the page is a matter of choice, since it's likely to be in different locations on different sheets unless it's pressed in after the sheets are cut (possible, but unlikely, since the paper would usually be fully dry by that stage and the watermark is usually pressed in when the paper is rolled, before final drying).

[Okami]

I'm using Crane's 100% cotton - I purchased a BIG box - 250 sheets, it was actually fairly inexpensive, considering (only $48 for the box).

 

I also have G. Lalo Verve de France pad and matching envelopes.

 

When all else fails I revert to my Rhodia pads.

[ZeissIkon]

The last two letters I wrote were on, first, my standard laser/inkjet printer paper, and second, on some Worklife 32lb light gray 100% cotton resume paper (which I found, after the ordeal of finishing a letter with an FP on this rough, fibrous paper, I had wrong side up; the good side feels like it'd be a bit better). Wish I could get loose sheet writing paper that feels like what's in my Office Depot composition books; that stuff is top notch!

[Snezhni]

The last two letters I wrote were on, first, my standard laser/inkjet printer paper, and second, on some Worklife 32lb light gray 100% cotton resume paper (which I found, after the ordeal of finishing a letter with an FP on this rough, fibrous paper, I had wrong side up; the good side feels like it'd be a bit better). Wish I could get loose sheet writing paper that feels like what's in my Office Depot composition books; that stuff is top notch!

 

I normally use standard printer paper. As for notebooks, I've rather enjoyed the very smooth Staples composition books. Haven't tried the Office Depot books. How much do they cost?

[ZeissIkon]

I normally use standard printer paper. As for notebooks, I've rather enjoyed the very smooth Staples composition books. Haven't tried the Office Depot books. How much do they cost?

 

The ones I have were on special, Buy One Get One after being marked down to $1.99 (so I got two for two bucks, wish I'd gotten eight or a dozen, as I'm sure they're sold out by now). I think they're normally $2.99, which is still a decent price for 100 sheets when you can use both sides even with a fountain pen, but I don't know if they'll get more in even at regular price until the "back to school" sales in August.

[carlc]

Years ago it used to be exclusively Basildon Bond champagne but I grew away from it because it was so toothy and made my pen feel very dry.

 

More recently I've moved onto Conqueror Wove Smooth/Satin in white or cream - both excellent 100 gsm, watermarked premium (cost and quality!) papers which have a bit of tooth but not too much.

 

Most recently, I've moved onto the ultra-smooth versions of Conqueror Wove in Diamond White and cream - both again excellent quality with an oh-so-smooth finish.

 

And most, most recently I bought some more Basildon Bond Champagne which has improved immensely from the last time I used it - it is now much smoother than I ever remember.

 

Then finally I picked up a pack of what I THOUGHT was Basildon Bond A4 in white. It was actually a proprietary brand to WH Smiths in the UK called Quality Bond. The packaging confused me into thinking it was BB so I guess it may be sourced from BB by Smiths - who knows? BUT...

 

I put this relatively no-name Quailty Bond in head-to-head tests with BB and Conqueror and it walked the floor in all departments - best smoothness, colour, lack of bleedthrough or feathering. I tried everything from my best inks and pens to my most ill-behaved dip nibs and inks. Quite simply it is the best paper that I have used. I am now trying to find more supplies since my local WH Smiths has sold out.

 

P.S. I would also use Clairfontaine Triomphe if I had some!

 

Regards,

Dean

 

Dean

 

Is the Quality Bond smooth or laid paper?

 

It's always sealed and I can't find out unless I buy a packet.

 

Cheers,

 

Carl

[Writer44]

The last batch of letters I sent out were written on the back side of old nautical charts. These charts are updated constantly and it's not legal to use out of date ones on a commercial vessel. I found a bunch of them that are at least 10 years old and simply rough cut them to letter size and began writing on them. They feather a bit and absorb quite a bit on ink, but they are very durable.

 

Along the same lines, I stopped by my local small airport and discovered that the aviation charts expire about every 6 months or so. Some charts are printed both sides but others are only single sided. The airport operator has agreed to give me a bunch. The paper is a bit thinner but seems to take the ink well.

 

Might as well recycle these directly instead of running them through the pulp mill.

 

44

[robeck]

Dean

 

Is the Quality Bond smooth or laid paper?

 

It's always sealed and I can't find out unless I buy a packet.

 

Cheers,

 

Carl

 

 

Sorry Carl, I've only just seen your question. The paper is smooth, oh so smooth. I highly recommend it.

 

Dean

[carlc]

Dean

 

Is the Quality Bond smooth or laid paper?

 

It's always sealed and I can't find out unless I buy a packet.

 

Cheers,

 

Carl

 

 

Sorry Carl, I've only just seen your question. The paper is smooth, oh so smooth. I highly recommend it.

 

Dean

 

Cheers Dean - I shall be hitting WH Smiths this weekend then!

 

Carl

[rogerb]

I liked the look of that WHS paper when I was in UK recently, but didn't try it....my bags were already too full and I have lotsa Conqueror Cream Wove and Crown Mill Cream to use-up!

[carlc]

I liked the look of that WHS paper when I was in UK recently, but didn't try it....my bags were already too full and I have lotsa Conqueror Cream Wove and Crown Mill Cream to use-up!

 

 

I should be getting some this week - if you want a sample PM me.

 

Regards,

 

Carl

[Bookman]

I found narrow-ruled 8.5x11 notepads at OfficeMax, slightly more narrow-ruled than college-rule. I bought one pad and used a sheet to copy the ruled lines onto 20lb HP multipurpose paper. So far, so good.

[inkyboy]

I have been using some Crane's. It works really well, the paper is great. Its kind of expensive though. What do you use?

 

Funny, I thought I would love Crane's but it does not work for me at all. 90% of my pens simply refuse to write on it!

 

I could never settle on a good letter-writing paper and would simply write on sheets torn from gridded Rhodia pads ...Until I discovered Elco paper. Elco is just perfect for me. It looks elegant, feels luxurious, and works flawlessly with all my pens. My favourite are the A5 vellum writing pads in white and cream with deckled edges. Mmm-mm, good!

QM2

 

Are you writing from the U.S.?

 

If so, where do you find your Elco paper?

[teadragon]

I've just ordered a few pads of G Lalo / Verge de France tablets, small size. I've used them before and loved them, so when I saw them on sale at Distinctive Stationery, I got several. I only bought one pack of envelopes, since those weren't on sale, but I'm sure the envelopes will carry me through the summer, and then I'll find more envelopes to go with the remaining paper.

 

I particularly enjoy G Lalo's ivory color, but since the tablets were half-price, I also picked up some blue, turquoise, and white. I'll eventually fine matching envelopes, but I don't mind sending the blue and turquoise paper in an ivory envelope.

[ccajackson]

For most "letter" correspondence (as opposed to Thank You cards), I have been using Southworth resume paper (in granite) from office supply stores. Because an 8.5 x 11 in page can be daunting at first, I cut them in half for 5.5 x 8.5 in pages - much more manageable! The resume paper holds the ink nicely, and bleed-through and feathering are minimal-to-none. I have some pads of Clarefontaine and G. Lalo, but for some reason, haven't pulled them out to use as much.

 

Cheers!

C-C

[inkyboy]

I also like the Wausau parchment finished paper. Another paper that takes FP inks well is Southworth parchment paper.

 

Paddler

 

This paper is going by the trade name Astroparche®. Online, I have found it listed as Wausau Astroparche® Parchment Paper — or some combination of those words.

Edited June 5, 2009 by inkyboy

[bookworm1906]

Because I reviewed this forum before buying paper, I have a bit of nervousness about Cranes, based on some of the comments I've read. I've just bought some Original Crown Mill Pure Cotton Correspondence Paper with matching envelopes. So far, I like it a lot. I wrote two letters today. I look forward to having enough experience with papers to be able to differentiate between great brands.