Picked handmade paper over store bought for my latest rebind

I was rebinding a beat up copy of The Old Man and the Sea and had to choose between a nice kozo sheet I made last month or some commercial lokta from a shop. I went with the handmade stuff even though it had a few rough edges. The deckle edge actually matched the book's worn feel pretty well after I trimmed it. Anyone here use their own paper for projects much, or do you mostly buy it?

2 comments

2 Comments

emmafisher27d ago

Huh, I used to be all about buying paper because I figured handmade stuff was too inconsistent. But then I had a project where the store bought paper just felt too slick and clean for a grim little story I was binding. The rough spots on the handmade paper actually gave it some character, made the whole thing feel more grounded. I'm starting to get why people fuss over their own paper now.

matthewp5227d ago

Read somewhere that some old school printers actually preferred rougher paper for certain projects because the ink settled better in the fibers. Makes you wonder if the slick stuff is just a shortcut for consistency's sake.