Review of three Neenah Classic Crest papers

September 22, 2008

I'd consider Neenah to be a "premium" paper company--their products are not sold widely in the big chain office supply stores, but their paper is available in specialty paper retail shops like Xpedx or through print shops (including Kinkos). Neenah paper comes in a variety of colors, weights, finishes, and "lays" (linen, laid, vellum, and so on) and with matching envelopes in a number of sizes and styles. All the Neenah paper and index stock I've used are guaranteed to print in laser and inkjet printers, which I've ground truthed (I've had no trouble with photocopiers, either). They are also acid-free and of archival quality.

Unfortunately, not all Neenah papers behave the same way with fountain pens and ink. For example, the Avalanche White paper (reviewed below) and the Solar White paper are nearly identical in their specs, but Solar feathers terribly and bloats the stroke width, whereas Avalanche is a champ with fountain pens. One can't assume that because one Neenah paper behaves a certain way another paper will behave similarly. As with most papers, pen and ink combinations will produce varying results, as John has found out in these three threads.

With that in mind, I hereby offer my thoughts on three kinds of Neenah paper that I've had luck with:

1. Neenah Classic Crest Writing, Recycled Natural White, smooth finish

2. Neenah Classic Crest Writing, Classic Natural white, super smooth finish

3. Neenah Classic Crest Text, Avalanche White color, super smooth finish

Note: The fuzziness in the images below is due to smearing/scuffing in transit, a water drop or two, poor white balance in the scanner, and artifacting in the jpeg compression. Honest!

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Neenah Classic Crest Writing paper

Recycled Natural White color, smooth finish

8.5x11, 24#/90gsm. "Classic Crest Recycled" watermark

$25.95 per 500 sheets online (5.2 cents/sheet)

Product number 07111

My alma mater and former employer uses this paper for official letterheads and second sheets, which is how I came across the Neenah brand. The recycled natural white color is a nice light ivory appropriate for business and personal correspondence.

The "smooth" designation of this paper is something of a misnomer. This paper is slightly textured; when I hold it to a light I see fibers and small indentations on the page but it is nowhere close to watercolor paper. If you prefer skating-rink smooth paper, this won't be for you. This seems to be a "thirsty" paper, meaning strokes are somewhat thinner than on other papers. I happen to like this and the feedback of the paper's texture. Your wants in a paper may differ...

I didn't take a sample to scan, but the color is quite similar to the Classic Natural white, shown below. It is lighter and perhaps more yellow than Moleskine paper. Neenah has color samples on their website, if you are are interested.

I use fairly "conservative" inks (Waterman, Skrip) and haven't had any trouble with feathering. See through is only visible when held up to a light! This is a very well behaved paper in that regard.

It's been so long since I bought this ream that I can't remember the purchase price; the price online seems steep. Because of the texture and price of this paper, I'd recommend trying samples before buying a whole ream, especially if you plan to use it for writing only.

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Neenah Classic Crest Writing

Classic Natural White color, super smooth finish

8.5x11, 24#/90gsm. "Classic Crest" watermark

$25.95 per 500 sheets online (5.2 cents/sheet)

Product number 03348

The difference between the smooth finish and super smooth finish is remarkable! I'd compare it to the smoothness of Moleskine paper, without taking the gamble that it might bleed through or feather (NB: this paper is much thicker than Mole). I can feel the texture of the above "smooth" paper between my fingers; this super smooth finish is noticeably smoother to the touch and when writing.

As above, there is little feathering and only slight bleed-through...just enough to know there is writing on the "back" side of the sheet, but not enough to read it or sully it on the "front" side. Feathering is not an issue with this paper, in my experience.

I'm delighted to write on this paper with a Binderized Pelikan M215 XF nib. I took this paper to Kiknos to be cut in half and padded a while back, and it is the perfect size for dropping a short note in the mail with the matching envelope.

The listed price online seems more expensive than what I paid at Xpedx a few months ago ($19 if I recall correctly). I don't have any trouble recommending this fine ivory paper. I've gone through several reams and will likely keep buying this as my standard go-to writing and note taking paper. Although quality differs across the Neenah product line, the reliability of this particular paper has been constant over the course of several purchases.

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Neenah Classic Crest Text

Avalanche White color, super smooth finish

8.5x11, 28/70# text/104gsm. No watermark

$27.95 per 500 sheets online (5.6 cents/sheet)

Product number 03390

Did I mention I love the super smooth finish on Neenah papers?! This is quite a fun paper to write with and is about as smooth as I can use before legibility goes out the window. Avalanche white is a true white; Neenah doesn't specify the whiteness rating. As noted above, the similarly packaged and labeled Solar White does NOT work well for FP use, but Avalanche White does.

The weight of this paper is heavier than the two previous papers, which is nice. I do my "deep thinking" and "important drafting" on this paper, whatever that means... There's a nice quality about this paper that appeals to my vanity!

Of course, there are cheaper papers of similar quality in this weight range. I bought this for archival/acid-free printing; Neenah is one of two papers recommended by my graduate school for this purpose, the other being Strathmore. I use Office Depot premium 28# paper and HP InkJet 24/28# papers for general use and printing. In a blind test I found that I liked the Neenah better than the Office Depot, but only slightly more so. I haven't tried forum favorite HP 32# paper (that thickness scares me!) so I can't compare it to that...

This paper, like the other two reviewed here, behaves very well with fountain pens and ink. I noticed only slight, yea, minimal "feathering" with one ink. This was only noticeable after scanning a sample at high resolution; my eyes didn't detect it on the page at a normal viewing distance. Bleed-through is not a concern even with darkish green ink from a wide italic pen. For a different perspective with other pens and ikns, see this thread with nice scans by John.

Again, the price listed online seems higher than what I paid at Xpedx last month ($24). I picked this up because I need it for archival/acid-free printing; the fact that it plays nice with FPs is a nice bonus. If price isn't an issue, I'd say try this lovely paper; otherwise, there are cheaper, more easily found comparable papers to be had. When this runs out I probably won't replace it.

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Hope these reviews are useful to someone. I love the Neenah paper that I've used and heartily recommend it is a "nicer" alternative to the office supply store brands.

-brandon