Hot New Specialty Inkjet Printer Papers For Crafts and Scrapbooking

Inkjet printers are becoming the most popular home computer printers. In contrast to a laser printer, which uses high heat to fuse powdered ink to a material like paper, an inkjet printer sprays a fine pattern of liquid ink. Without the need for heat, an inkjet printer can print on a far wider range of materials, from the delicate to the metallic. The primary quality of these materials must be their ability to absorb and hold an inked image without bleeding or spreading.

Inkjet paper is designed especially for inkjet printers. Like any paper, its many varieties are generally classified by weight, brightness, texture, and opacity. Basic inkjet office paper weight ranges from 21 to 27 lbs, and is most suitable for printing text. The amount of ink required to print a photo, however, can soak and buckle these lightweight papers. Photo paper is heavy and very opaque, even to the point where it can be printed on both sides without the images showing through.

That is why your home inkjet printer has settings (usually found under "properties" or "configuration" when printing) for the type of paper or material you are using. The printer will decrease the amount of ink it sprays to compensate for lighter-weight paper, and adjust the image colors to suit the opacity or transparency of your paper.

Yes, you can keep printing on your basic white office paper, but perhaps it is time to live a little! Here are just some of the new options available for your inkjet printer:

Photo Paper: Papers formulated for photo printing can be any weight or thickness, but they share a high opacity. The best quality photographic prints can generally be achieved with thicker papers, with a glossy finish that make photo colors more vivid. Photo papers are primarily distinguished by their surface coatings; glossy or matte. Gloss coatings are shiny and very light-reflective, with quick-drying properties to prevent the ink from smearing. Matte surfaces are flat and low-gloss. Bridging the gap are semi-gloss and luster papers.

Textured Paper: Many new inkjet papers have a textured finish, such as linen weave or canvas, which will give your finished prints a distinctive look.

Fabric Sheets: In the past, the only way for the home crafter to transfer an image to fabric was to print the image on a heat-transfer medium and then iron the medium onto the fabric. Today, you can print directly on fabric using paper-backed fabric sheets in your inkjet printer. After printing, the paper backing is removed. The fabric is generally lightweight cotton, linen, satin or silk - and a shade of white. The color of the fabric is important. Inkjet printers do not print white ink, so the white parts of your image will be the color of your fabric. Also, be aware that special photo inks in your printer will not produce as vivid an image on fabric as standard inks.

Fusible Fabric Sheets: A variation on fabric sheets, this fabric is backed with a heat activated adhesive. Print your image, trim, and iron it onto apparel, fabric crafts, scrapbooks or any flat surface for a custom applique effect.

Translucent Vellum: Vellum is a translucent paper that imitates the qualities of animal-skin parchment. Vellum is a crafter's secret weapon for achieving layering and light effects. When printing on vellum, consider how light or background will show through your image. If the image will be transmitting light, try configuring your printer for "transparency" paper, because that will deposit more ink and adjust the colors to be more vivid against a light source.

Metallic Papers: Special metallic paper surfaces can accept inkjet printing. Finishes are generally low-gloss and include color variations of gold, silver and copper. Some also have self-adhesive backing.

Transparency: The problem with inkjet printing on standard transparency material (overhead projector sheets) is that the ink smears on the non-absorbent surface. Now, special transparency sheets have been created with a fine texture that holds the ink, preventing smearing or smudging. Be sure to use the "transparency" setting on your printer to adjust the inking and color.

Magnetic Paper: Create refrigerator magnets, organizational systems, calendars, and magnetic advertising cards by printing directly on this lightweight (11 mils) magnetic material.

Specialty Sizes: We think the world is created in 8 1/2" X 11" or A4 rectangles, but there are many other sizes of inkjet paper. You can print directly on greeting cards or envelopes of all sizes. Sheets of pre-scored or perforated business cards, name stickers, tags and other shapes are available.

Waterproof Outdoor Paper: For outdoor use, consider vinyl-coated inkjet sheets that are water-resistant.

Transferring Images to Other Surfaces

Heat Transfer Paper: Images printed on transfer paper can be transferred to a surface like fabric by applying heat and pressure, usually with an iron (hence the common name of Iron-On Transfer). The image must be printed in reverse (mirror image) so it is transferred correctly. The end result is a rubbery or stiff film on the surface of the fabric, with generally sharp and vivid colors.

Peel-and-Stick Adhesive Paper: Here is a nifty shortcut for crafters and scrapbookers. Print directly on a peel-and-stick sheet, trim your images, peel off the backing and apply your images directly. There are even self-adhesive fabric sheets for making fabric stickers.

Decal Papers: Also known as "water slide decals," an image is printed on a transparent film that is then removed from the paper and adhered to a surface with water. This is especially good for uneven or natural surfaces, pottery, ceramics and glass.

Rub-On Transfers: Similar to decals, this paper produces an image on a transparent film that can be transferred to a surface with pressure.

Temporary Tattoos: Yes, you can actually buy water slide decal "tattoo paper" for your inkjet printer, to personalize your body for every occasion.

These are some of the hottest new printables to be developed for your inkjet printer. Most of them can be found at your local stationer, craft or quilting store, or online from craft suppliers or manufacturers. Experiment on your next craft or scrapbook project. You may discover that your inkjet printer and your imagination can be best friends.

Scott Henderson founded Vintage Image Craft (http://www.vintageimagecraft.com) for crafters and scrapbookers who love creating with vintage images. Visit for free ideas, techniques, instructions and vintage image downloads.

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Getting Technical With Inkjet Photo Papers

There has always been some confusion as what can be called inkjet photo papers. At times we hear that from our customers and we often read it online. Some papers are described as photo quality papers others as photo papers and some as premium photo paper etc. In this article we intend to get technical and highlight the different qualities of the papers with the distinguishing characteristics. Once you have this information at hand, the choice of which paper to buy should be easier.

There are 4 main types of papers: 

The Very Basic Bond Papers: This paper is normally packed in reams of 500 sheets in a paper wrapping. The paper is normally between 80-100 gsm (grams per square metre). This type of paper is universal for both laser and inkjet printing and not suitable for inkjet quality image printing, however for letters and other office document printing it makes a wise economical choice.

Matt Coated Paper: This paper is a bond paper with a top matt coating (normally on one side only) to accommodate the ink droplet and to enhance the colour of the image.  Inkjet Matt Coated papers are between 90-200gsm and in some cases even more which may cause some problems in feeding with some desktop inkjet printers. The matt coated papers will result in a nice matt image, however still not up to standard when a photographic image is required. Coated papers are mainly used for low cost printing of images, graphics, charts and are ideal for economical professional presentations.

Photo Gloss Instant Dry (Cast Coated): The most common photo paper in the market and being sold in all  the major high street chains and websites. The instant dry (or some will skip the word; instant) is a paper with a gloss coating which is normally coated with a technology called; Cast Coating. This technology which initially started in Japan spread quickly to Europe, China, Korea and Taiwan. There are different qualities of cast coated papers and it is due to the based paper, however more due to the coating. This can be measured by vibrancy of colours, colour gamut (the ability to have all tones and sub tones of colour shown clearly on the paper) and bleeding (amount of ink the paper can handle with out colours bleeding one into the other). Because of the paper properties, Instant Dry with its low glare is ideal for outstanding photo prints and high quality presentations

Photo Microporous Premium Paper: This paper can produced in gloss or satin (semi-gloss) finish.  Normally, produced in high grad based paper of around 250gsm and more. The Microporous coating known to be the highest quality coating and use a base paper which is coated with a polypropylene resin on both sides to create stability and act as a barrier for the ink not to be absorbed into the paper. By that, preventing cockling (waves) and increase the longevity of the image. This paper, as well as, having a better image and colour definition is ideal for high quality professional photo prints. It is important to mention that there are many different types of Microporous photo papers in the market and they vary qualities.                     

Joseph is the founder of Photo Paper Direct, an inkjet consumables store selling photo paper and Inkjet Ink Cartridges.

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How To Choose The Best Inkjet Paper For Your Printer

The problem with inkjet paper is not a lack of choice. Not at all. Where most people feel utterly confused is with the huge variety of inkjet papers on the market today. Which paper is which?

The choices are mind boggling. Plain paper, heavy plain paper, glossy, matte, super glossy, t-shirt transfer, bright white, business card paper, recycled.... well the list just goes on and on.

Which inkjet paper is right for you? Ask a salesman that question and he'll pick up the fanciest, most expensive paper he can find and hand it to you. A far more important question to ask yourself is "What do I want to achieve with my inkjet paper?" Your wants and needs are very different things. We always tend to want the more expensive item when in reality we only need the plain jane model.

Your first consideration is paper weight. All printer paper, inkjet included, is measured in gsm or grammes per square meter. A very lightweight paper for your inkjet printer would be 60gsm. When you walk into any store and buy a ream (500 sheets) of inkjet paper you'll find that the stock on display is 80gsm. This is a general purpose weight paper suitable for photocopiers, inkjet and laser printers.

What if you need a heavier weight paper? This shoulnd't pose a problem in any well stocked office supply or computer store. Inkjet paper also comes in 90gsm, 100gsm and higher grades. You'll find that heavier papers give you crisper text and less ink bleed also. Do bear in mind that every inkjet printer has a maximum paper thickness it can handle. If you're buying paper in weights of 110gsm - 125gsm consult your printer documentation before you feed very heavy paper through it - otherwise you risk seriously damaging your printer.

Apart from the weights you also have a wide variety of styles. Paper for your inkjet printer can also be purchased in bright white variants. These are designed for single sided printing of important documents or presentation pages. This type of paper is more expensive but if your goal is to impress then it's money well spent as ther results are truly impressive.

Last but not least we have the photographic and high resolution inkjet papers. When you want to print a photograph, digital or scanned, then photo paper is your best choice.

Matte photo paper has a smooth, almost velvety, finish to it. Any image printed to a matte paper will have a richness of color and overall softness to it but won't resemble a lab processed photograph. An image printed on matte photo paper will dry pretty quickly.

Glossy photo paper is next up. If you want the best possible results in terms of color richness, clarity and sheen then glossy inkjet paper is the way to go. This type of paper has several layers within each sheet. There are top layers to help with ink absorption and then intermediate layers to store the inkjet and prevent bleeding. This complexity leads to a higher price and some name brand glossy photo papers can be quite expensive. If you want high quality results be prepared to part with a bit more cash.

Before you shop analyze your wants versus your needs - it'll save you a lot of cash.

Confused by all the different types of inkjet paper? Let us help you find the perfect photo paper for inkjet printers or just the best paper for your inkjet printer. Click on over to Inkjetables.com for more information.

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