When designing, one of the first things you need to consider is the stock you are going to be printing onto. Stock can be matte, shiny, glossy, textured, corrugated, the list can go on. Printing onto specific stock gives you different results, and you can come across a lot of different problems. Stock can make something look cheap or professional depending on what you are designing. Some stocks are more durable than others. Depending on what material your stock is can depend on the printing method used to print on this specific material. So glass bottles for instance can't be screen printed. Below is a quick mind map I drew up categorising different stocks and its uses.
Purpose, Practicality & Suitability
Definitions:
Suitability; Appropriate to a purpose or an occasion.
Practicality; The quality or state of being practical.
When thinking of stock you need to consider the purpose of your design. What are you designing for? Where will it be/ go? How will it be handled?
For example, let's look at a hardback book. Designed to be handled and read by a lot of people, either by use from a library, or passed around personally to friends. Hardback books are made from strong card, covered with a durable material for extra protection. The inner pages usually printed on good quality cartridge paper. The stock used is practical for storing and reading and is very suitable for the constant handling of the book.
Magazines are a good example of stock choice. Designed to be constantly picked up and read, maybe rolled up and placed in a bag. The cover of a magazine would usually glossy paper, with the inside being a textured matte. The practicality of the stock is perfect for how the magazine would be handled, it's suitable for what it is, cheap and mass produced.
Choosing the right stock is important for what you are designing for.
Sizes
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper_size
http://www.papersizes.org
Many paper size standards conventions have existed at different times and in different countries. Today there is one widespread international ISO standard (including A4, B3, C4, etc.) and a local standard used in North America (including letter, legal, ledger, etc.). The paper sizes affect writing paper, stationery, cards, and some printed documents. The standards also have related sizes for envelopes.
A series:
The dimensions of the A series paper sizes, as defined by ISO 216, are given in the table below in both millimetres and inches (cm measurements can be obtained by dividing mm value by 10).
The paper sizes bigger than A0, 4A0 & 2A0, aren't formerly defined by ISO 216 but are commonly used for oversized paper. The origin of these formats is in the German DIN 476 standard, that was the original base document from which ISO 216 was derived.
The A series paper sizes are defined in ISO 216 by the following requirements:
- The length divided by the width is 1.4142
- The A0 size has an area of 1 square metre.
- Each subsequent size A(n) is defined as A(n-1) cut in half parallel to its shorter sides.
- The standard length and width of each size is rounded to the nearest millimetre.
Note: For reference the last item is there because the root 2 aspect ratio doesn't always give a whole number.
The A series paper sizes are now in common use throughout the world apart from in the US, Canada and parts of Mexico. The A4 size has become the standard business letter size in English speaking countries such as Australia, New Zealand and the UK, that formerly used British Imperial sizes. In Europe the A paper sizes were adopted as the formal standard in the mid 20th century and from there they spread across the globe.
B series:
The dimensions of the B series paper sizes, as defined by ISO 216, are given in the table below in both millimetres and inches (cm measurements can be obtained by dividing the mm value by 10).
The B series paper sizes are defined in ISO 216 in the following way.
The B series paper sizes were created in order to provide paper sizes that weren't covered by the A series, but also use an aspect ratio of 1:root2. B sizes are defined as size B(n) being the geometric mean of size A(n) and size A(n-1). The Geometric Means of 2 numbers being the square root of the product of the two numbers.
This system gives a useful property for enlarging and reducing documents in that the enlargement from A(n) to B(n) is the same as that from B(n) to A(n-1).
As with the A series paper sizes, the standard lengths and widths are rounded to the nearest millimetre.
C series:
The dimensions of the C series envelope sizes, as defined by ISO 216, are given in the table below right in both millimetres and inches (cm measurements can be obtained by dividing the mm value by 10).
C envelopes sizes are defined as the geometric mean of the A and B sizes with the same number i.e. C4 dimensions are the geometric mean of A4 and B4. This produces a size between the two that makes an envelope that will neatly hold the A series paper of the same size, thus a C4 envelope is perfect for an A4 sheet of paper unfolded.
It should be noted that C format envelopes also have an aspect ratio of 1:root2 and because of this an A4 sheet folded parallel to its shortest sides will fit in a C5 envelope and folded twice will fit a C6 envelope.
he following diagrams show C4, C5 and C6 envelopes compared to A4 paper size (the envelope being shown in brown with the paper shown as grey) as can be seen in the first diagram the C4 envelope can contain an A4 sheet, the C5 envelope can contain an A4 sheet folded in half (an A5 sheet) and the C6 envelope can contain an A4 sheet folded in half twice (an A6 sheet). This is the reason that you will sometimes see these envelope sizes being referred to as A4 envelope size, A5 envelope size and A6 envelope size.
C4:
C5:
C6:
One of the most widely used business envelopes, the DL format does not fall under the C series sizes as it has a different aspect ratio. This envelope originated in Germany in the 1920's and was known as DIN Lang, but DL is now more commonly expanded to 'Dimension Lengthwise'. This size is defined in the ISO standards for envelope sizes, as the standard would have been remiss in omitting the most commonly used business envelope size.
The dimensions of DL are 110 x 220 mm (4⅓" x 8⅔") and as such the DL envelope will hold an A4 sheet of paper folded into 3 equal sections parallel to its shortest sides.
Despite complaints from manufacturers of automatic enveloping machines that it is slightly too small for reliable enveloping and the introduction of a C6/5 envelope at 114 x 229 mm, the original DL size continues to be most commonly used.
Thickness and weight
Source:
http://www.pulseprint.co.uk/article/one_minute_wonders_gsm/
http://www.thepapermillstore.com/media/shop-by/paperweightsdemystified_11.pdf
GSM stands for ‘Grams per Square Metre’, It’s a measurement of paper quality which allows for printers to be far more precise than they could be with wooly terms like ‘thick’, ‘thin’ and ‘kinda in the middle’. As the name suggests, it tells you how much a square metre of the paper or card you’re using would weigh (in grams, believe it or not). Although everyone tends to think in terms of thickness, with premium print being on thicker paper, it’s a good means of standardising the business and making sure that customers know what they’re getting.
We know that it’s not easy to visualise a square metre of paper. So here’s a basic layman’s translation of some of the most common paperweights.
- 350GSM – This is what you might expect a reasonable quality business card to be printed on.
- 180 to 250 GSM – Like a mid-market magazine cover.
- 130 to 170 GSM – A good quality promotional poster. Something that you’d expect to last a couple of months in most conditions.
- 90GSM – Mid-Market magazine inner pages
- 35 to 55 GSM – Most newspapers
Types, Colour and Cost
Depending on the supplier depends on the cost of your stock, the range of colours you can choose from, and the types of stock available to you. Paper stock comes in a huge range, and depending on what stock you choose can really impact the design. Stocks are usually either uncoated or coated, glossy or matte, smooth or textured. Again, depending on the supplier, you can get such a range of different materials and textures, of different qualities thicknesses etc. Picking the right type can make your design look, solid, cheap, traditional, expensive.
As GS Smith came into to talk to us I will use them as the basis of types of stock and cost and colour etc. (obviously this can vary)
GS Smith are a British based company who sell paper internationally. I've used them as an example, one because they came in and gave us a talk, and two because there range is so broad they are are perfect example.
They supply 50 different coloured stocks, 25 embossing textures and 8 different weights. They supply smooth papers, textured papers and a selection of special papers.
"Our exclusive ranges of coloured and textured papers are widely regarded as the definitive collection of premium materials for design and print. We believe this distinction has come from our innovation in sources, materials and techniques, and an ingrained sense of pride in our products."
It's hard to give an estimate of how much paper costs. Stock can get quite expensive, and usually stock has to be bought in bulk. Depending on the quality and the weight of the paper depends on how much you will be paying for the stock you use. The better quality, the more expensive.
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