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Twelve stocks on the shelf, each with its own opinion about ink. Paper is half of every print and the half nobody plans for. This page exists so you can pick with your eyes before you pick with your wallet, and because we got tired of describing paper colors over the phone like poets.
house white · warm white · toothy · 118 gsm
The house default and the paper most of the library is printed on. Warm white with just enough tooth to hold a halftone edge and forgive a sloppy registration. Riso ink soaks in evenly; fluorescents stay bright, blacks stay black.
the loud one · peach-tinged · smooth · 270 gsm
A peach-tinted cover stock that does something specific to fluorescent pink: turns it radioactive. The single best paper for two-color poster work we have ever stocked. Blues go deep and moody on it, which is a fun accident.
the fancy one · bright white · velvety · 297 gsm
For editions worth framing. Riso ink sits slightly proud on cotton, giving prints a hand-pulled screen-print feel. Priced like it, too. Hand-torn deckle edges available on request and worth every penny of the upcharge.
the tough one · grocery brown · fibrous · 244 gsm
Grocery-bag brown, the color of a good sandwich. Blues and blacks sing on it; pink goes muddy, and we will talk you out of pink on kraft every time. Metallic gold on black kraft is the exception that pays for the whole shelf.
the thin one · grey-white · absorbent · 49 gsm
For zines that want to feel like a journal found in a drawer. Ink blooms into the fibers and never fully dries dark, which is the charm. Halftones go soft. Type goes fuzzy. Intended effects only, please.
the green one · pale green · smooth · 178 gsm
A pale green cover that makes our violet look dangerous and our black look like a woodcut. Extremely divisive at the counter. We stock two boxes and they sell out every spring.
the loud one's sibling · deep pink · smooth · 118 gsm
A saturated pink sheet for work that is already pink. Same-color printing (pink ink on pink paper) produces a tone-on-tone effect that is a genuine trick and not a mistake, whatever Marisol says.
the moody one · cool grey · lightly textured · 118 gsm
Grey paper that makes single-color blue work read like a rainy day. Photographs beautifully. Purple overprints on it become something we do not have a name for yet.
the layered one · frosted · smooth · 105 gsm
Print on vellum and lay it over anything: title pages, layered posters, the classic zine split-screen trick. Ink dries slow on vellum, so it always rests overnight, no exceptions.
the sturdy one · tan board · rough · 406 gsm
Structural paper. Covers for bound zines, backing boards for print bundles, the occasional experiment. The drum feeds it about half the time and we feed the rest by hand like it is 1962.
the sunny one · bright yellow · smooth · 104 gsm
Yellow paper that makes black type look like a protest sign and blue look like a poster for the ocean. The rarest paper we stock, because nobody agrees to buy a full carton except us.
by the sheet · anything up to 110# cover
We test the first ten sheets for drum feeding. Some handmade papers just refuse, and we tell you before you buy 500 sheets of them. Bring a sample before you commit; the light table is right there.
Pairing notes
the house classic
The combination on our business cards and half the library. Clean, bright, and impossible to print badly.
the showstopper
Peach paper turns pink radioactive and blue nocturnal. The best poster we printed last year used exactly this.
the mood piece
One ink, one grey sheet, total melancholy. For photo halftones and songs about weather.
the antique
Looks 120 years old in the best way. Gold needs its own drying schedule, which is the toll.
the protest
Maximum legibility from across the street. The official paper of the firefly census.
the experiment
Tone-on-tone pink. Not a mistake, a trick. Marisol remains unconvinced and prints it beautifully.
Or bring the design and we will spend ten honest minutes at the shelf with you. Samples of everything are in the paper drawer by the door.
Measured, not marketed
Fed, printed, and judged on our own machine in October 2026. This is the table we consult before we quote you anything.
| Stock | Weight | Feed | Ink hold | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bond white | 80 gsm | flawless at speed | crisp, small gain | text zines, forms |
| Bond cream | 80 gsm | flawless at speed | crisp, warm cast | poetry, correspondence |
| Bond gray | 90 gsm | steady | soft contrast | photocopy nostalgia |
| Fiber white | 120 gsm | good, watch humidity | rich, slight feather | posters, covers |
| Fiber cream | 120 gsm | good | rich, warm | art prints, storybooks |
| Fiber gray | 120 gsm | good | moody, muted | nocturnal subjects |
| Munken kraft | 120 gsm | steady | deep, earthy | fall editions, food zines |
| Munken cream | 120 gsm | steady | deep, gentle | portfolios, invitations |
| Munken gray | 120 gsm | steady | deep, cool | architecture, night scenes |
| Munken brown | 120 gsm | steady | deep, chocolate | coffee zines |
| Kraft brown | 100 gsm | good, thin edges | rustic, fast dry | bags, wraps, tickets |
| Kraft white | 100 gsm | good | clean on tone | modern branding |
| Chip white | 170 gsm | slow, single feed | bold, toothy | cards, hang tags |
| Chip cream | 170 gsm | slow, single feed | bold, warm | limited covers |
| Chip brown | 170 gsm | slow, single feed | bold, rustic | coasters and kin |
| Vellum blue | 110 gsm | slow, curious | translucent layer | interleaves, overlays |