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PEARSON'S FINE PAPERS |
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Handmade papermaking |
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Throughout the past 200 years, scientists and engineers have worked to re-invent papermaking, turning it from an art into a science. At Pearson’s Fine Papers our aim is to use the science to revive the art. Why Handmade? In our modern world paper has become a commodity. Huge machines turn out tonne upon tonne of every kind of paper grade, from copier paper to newsprint to brown wrapping paper. You can go to the supermarket and buy a ream of the cheapest copier paper with the knowledge that it will be unblemished, white and print perfectly. In this world where mechanised papermaking has been around for over 200 years, what possible place is there for handmade paper? The answer is that while the economies of scale brought great savings to the giants of the papermaking industry, they were closing themselves off to the art of papermaking. They were losing sight of the fact that the paper itself could be beautiful rather than simply a medium for conveying information or for wrapping goods. At Pearson’s Fine Papers our aim is to capitalise on the benefits that only handmade can offer, to produce sheets of paper that are, themselves, things of beauty. The main benefits that set hand made paper apart form the norm are;- · Watermarks;- the watermarks in handmade paper can be made to be stronger, deeper and crisper than any machine made paper. We try to bring our own art and design to the watermarks we produce · Personalisation;- Pearson’s Fine Papers can make paper with watermarks designed specifically for each customer. · Size of order;- We are not restricted by the overheads incurred by modern mechanised paper mills. This means that we are able to consider production runs of 500 sheets right down to one individual page · Inclusions;- Unlike machine made paper, the hand papermaker can put inclusions into the sheet such as herbs, leaves and petals · Directionality and formation;- The handmade papermaker uses his skill to shake the sheet as it drains producing a ‘look through’ and ‘squareness’ that is perfect and impossible to achieve on a papermachine How we make paper All of the paper that Pearson’s Fine Paper makes is made from cotton linters, this is the purest natural cellulose fibre and is recognised by papermakers as the finest papermaking fibre. Our paper contains no mineral fillers, no chemical wet strength agents and is internally sized at neutral pH. On request we can apply a surface size such as gelatin, starch or polyvinyl alcohol. This gives the paper surface strength and can improve printability. |
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To contact us;- |
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We use a small batch beater to prepare the papermaking fibres. This allows us to tailor the fibre to produce the optimum properties for clear watermarks and a strong sheet. Beating is an important stage in papermaking. Unbeaten pulp will produce blotting paper while the same pulp heavily beaten will make tracing paper. |
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We use traditional moulds for forming the paper. Most of our moulds date from the 1950s or earlier although we do have a couple of more modern examples. The moulds are all made by the English mould manufacturers of ‘Marshall & Co’, ‘Edwin Amies & Son’ and ‘Green, Son & Waite’. After forming a ’post’ of sheets, the wet paper is pressed in a screw press and then restraint dried. In this stage we are able to tailor the finish of the paper, from a super smooth, glassy finish to a ‘Not’ style surface. |