Paper types: why
weight matters
Whether you’re printing business cards or books,or
producing an advertising display or a flyer, every
product has a recommended weight. Choosing
the wrong type of paperfor printing your graphic
design or publishing project can ruin the final effect:
for example, if you choose too low a grammage
for a catalogue, the pages will be too transparent,
allowing you to see the images printed on the back
The Pixartprinting website gives the recommended
paperweights based on the product category in
question. For example, to print your business cards we
recommend a grammage of 280, 300 or 350 gsm,
although you can choose from the other available
weights if you prefer. If you’d rather feel the various
types of paper on offer with your own hands, you can
order Pixartprinting’s Paper Sample Packonline.
The difference
between the European &
American systems
While the European system for measuring
paperweight is based solely on the weight of a sheet
of paper for every square metre of its surface, in
the United States another unit of measurement is
used, either in its place or in addition: basis weight.
The basis weight is given in pounds and calculated
based on a ream of 500 or 1000 uncut sheets of
the size usually used for a certain type of printing.
Fortunately, there are various conversion tables
available online that help European users to find the
equivalent weight in the American system.
Different types of paper
for digital printing
As we said at the start, it is useful to know the main
processing types and finishes available before
choosing your paper. Here’s a short list of the most
common paper types:
90-gsm paper
The 90-gsm paper falls into the uncoated paper
category, and is a natural, wood-free paper, which
is not subjected to any chemical treatments. It is
ideal for printing large quantities of text, producing
a relatively light and thin printed document. It can
be used in either a white or ivory colour for the
inside pages of books and for printing documents or
headed paper.
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