Andy Pastuszak
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Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 5, 2022 21:36:10 GMT
I'm getting ready to reprint some Ukraine pages, and now I am debating whether I should go with white or cream colored pages. I feel like colored paper is not a good idea when you have color images on the page. But when I printed this out, it looked better than I thought. I know ultimately it's my decision, but I am curious what people think looks better:  |
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khj
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Post by khj on Apr 5, 2022 21:43:47 GMT
For albums pages, I dislike white paper for one simple reason -- the smallest stain/blemish/smear sticks out like a sore thumb. While white pages might let the stamp/printing color stand out prettier, it makes everything stand out. Even pencil marks can be difficult to completely erase. There's a reason why most album manufacturers use tinted/cream/buff colored paper. Although there are a handful that don't, such as Davo. And I can tell you that my Davo album pages look, uh, a little dirty here and there. When I print out Steiner pages, I actually use light gray paper, but the actual tint is obviously a matter of taste.
Simply put, I don't use white because of long-term use/storage appearance issues. I see this also in on-page collections/accumulations that I purchase. Unless they are in page protectors, the white pages just don't keep the "clean" appearance
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eggdog
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What I collect: It's complicated....
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Post by eggdog on Apr 6, 2022 1:31:03 GMT
I've found that about 95% of my stamps go fine with cream (or ivory) paper. There are a couple of shades of green that don't, but there are shades of green that don't go with anything, including every other stamp on the page and every other shade of green that was ever invented. We did one of our rooms in green, and we've been trying to find fabric to match what's in there for the last two decades. Gray goes well with everything because...well, it's gray and it's supposed to go with everything. And it does mitigate some of the oversensitivity to dirt that khj was talking about. It can also be uninviting; but since many Ukrainian stamps have intricate coloring, its introverted mood might actually work well. Worth a try if you have some gray paper around. Cream/ivory comes in several shades, from slightly cold (like a very pale sepia) to slightly warm (tending toward yellow; this is often what "cream" paper means). I find the colder forms a bit more versatile. |
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khj
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Post by khj on Apr 6, 2022 5:30:24 GMT
Just to clarify, I'm pretty sure I'm the oddball when it comes to using light gray. I don't know of anybody else who uses light gray except me. Others I know who use tinted paper overwhelmingly use cream/ivory/buff or something similar. On the other hand, I also know many collectors who do prefer white -- I'm just not one of them.
To each, his/her own. It's your collection and you'll be the one spends the most time looking at it. So I say, go for whatever improves your enjoyment, and you can't go wrong!
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Beryllium Guy
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What I collect: Worldwide Stamps 1840-1930
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Post by Beryllium Guy on Apr 6, 2022 7:11:28 GMT
Well, Andy ( Andy Pastuszak), since you asked for opinions on your example pages, I will offer one. I appreciate that traditional albums mainly use the cream or buff paper, but I would point out that those are typically just black printing on those pages. I like the look of those traditional-style pages, black on cream paper. But your example incorporates color in the header, and to my eye, that makes a difference. I think that the cream paper mutes the colors a bit, especially the blue for the country silhouette and the top of the flag. Looking at those colors, I think that the header looks much better on the white paper. I acknowledge Kim's ( khj) comment about the downside of white paper, but I think if you are going with the colors in the header, the white looks better. That's just my two cents on the subject. Best of luck with whatever you decide. The page looks quite good overall, so either way, you will have something nice.  |
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Post by albertabob on Apr 6, 2022 10:33:24 GMT
Just to clarify, I'm pretty sure I'm the oddball when it comes to using light gray. I don't know of anybody else who uses light gray except me. Others I know who use tinted paper overwhelmingly use cream/ivory/buff or something similar. On the other hand, I also know many collectors who do prefer white -- I'm just not one of them. To each, his/her own. It's your collection and you'll be the one spends the most time looking at it. So I say, go for whatever improves your enjoyment, and you can't go wrong! I think light gray is a good choice. I find the color really helpful when taking photos of mounted butterflies. |
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angore
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What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
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Post by angore on Apr 6, 2022 10:46:15 GMT
I started with white for Steiner album pages but then started making custom pages for my Mystic album so I needed cream as well..
After working with cream, I started to dislike the brightness of white so switched to cream for my Steiner pages too. Ivory is too much.
If I was doing more color, I would probably lean toward white.
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Andy Pastuszak
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Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 6, 2022 13:58:14 GMT
I need to get my hands on some light grey paper and see what it looks like. I'd really like to get a very light tint, like 5% or at the most 10%.
It might be worth checking out a lower brightness white, if they make such a thing.
I really liked the color of the White Ace album pages. They're white, but they're not bright.
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angore
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What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
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Post by angore on Apr 6, 2022 19:44:33 GMT
Most white paper package I see tout high brightness as a good characteristic if intended for copy/inkjet/laser. Once you get away from that class prices go up.
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jpotx113
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What I collect: USA, Germany, Croatia, Slovenia, Machins, misc. WW
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Post by jpotx113 on Apr 6, 2022 20:09:02 GMT
About an hour ago I purchased the Steiner CD and have been debating what color to use for my pages. For the past 15+ years I have been printing my own pages on white paper. I plan on buying some cream colored paper soon; since I don't have any yet, I used what I had lying around (ivory colored resume paper) and the results looked great.
By the way, I'm about to order a ream of Accent Opaque 28lb off of Amazon for $13.28. I like to buy locally so I went to the local office supply store. They do not carry any but can order a ream and sell it to me for $19.29. I'm sorry, but the $6 difference is the cost of a binder (with the addition of 78 cents).
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jdtrue66
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What I collect: US&US FDC, Keys & Locks, NUDES, Rubber Ducks, USS NJ covers
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Post by jdtrue66 on Apr 6, 2022 21:04:09 GMT
I like pure white I think it makes the stamp and any lettering pop.
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Andy Pastuszak
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Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 6, 2022 22:49:32 GMT
I've bee doing some research into paper brightness. And it looks like brightness is inversely proportional to document length. When doing a one page document, 100 brightness paper is better. As document length increases, the recommended brightness level goes down. 92 seems to be the balancing point for large documents, where the paper still looks white, but isn't so bright that reading 20-30 pages causes eye strain.
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angore
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What I collect: WW, focus on British Empire
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Post by angore on Apr 7, 2022 10:18:06 GMT
I believe age can be a factor. As I have gotten older, I do not like bright white due to glare. Glare is always an issue/ For example, I use a dark theme on computer setup whenever the application permits.
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Andy Pastuszak
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 7, 2022 17:33:58 GMT
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Andy Pastuszak
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Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 7, 2022 17:40:18 GMT
I believe age can be a factor. As I have gotten older, I do not like bright white due to glare. Glare is always an issue/ For example, I use a dark theme on computer setup whenever the application permits. I try so hard to use dark themes on my computer and I really don't like it. |
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brightonpete
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Post by brightonpete on Apr 8, 2022 0:45:33 GMT
I don't like the dark themes either - iMac, iPhone or iPad. It is the "day" theme 24/7 for me!
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Andy Pastuszak
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Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 8, 2022 3:43:29 GMT
I don't like the dark themes either - iMac, iPhone or iPad. It is the "day" theme 24/7 for me! Dark themes makes it really hard to read things for me. I went "all dark" trying to see if that would be easier on my eyes. I stuck with for about 3 days and then had to give up. |
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angore
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Post by angore on Apr 8, 2022 9:40:42 GMT
My setup is dark background and white text so good contrast.
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Andy Pastuszak
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Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 8, 2022 19:12:16 GMT
The Print Works paper came in from Amazon. The paper is very inkjet friendly, but there are some caveats. It is 67 lb coverstock. The package says its brightness level is 92. And I think that's wrong. I am comparing to a sheet of Neenah 65 lb cover stock that has a brightness rating of 96, and this stuff is much brighter than the Neenah. The surface of this paper is also a little rough. The Neenah is very smooth. Here is a picture of 3 sheets. The bottom two are the Print Works paper at 92 brightness and the top is the Neenah at 96 brightness.  |
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angore
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Post by angore on Apr 9, 2022 9:47:27 GMT
I wonder if the brightness varies by light temperature. Brightness can boosted using optical brighteners (just like stamps) so in certain light they appear brighter. Assuming there is an industry standard, it would specific light temperature.
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Andy Pastuszak
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Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
Posts: 1,591
What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 9, 2022 14:17:38 GMT
According to the Internet, paper is measured in Brightness and Whiteness. But despite me playing with this all week and some of last week, I can't find any website or paper packaging that lists paper whiteness.
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Post by PostmasterGS on Apr 9, 2022 14:35:58 GMT
According to the Internet, paper is measured in Brightness and Whiteness. But despite me playing with this all week and some of last week, I can't find any website or paper packaging that lists paper whiteness. If you can find the paper at thepapermillstore.com, you can see a color profile. For example: | Paperator™ Color Value: | CMYK C = 10, M = 3, Y = 2, K = 2
RGB R = 232, G = 232, B = 231 |
Looking across the white cardstocks they sell, there's a decent amount of variation in what constitutes "white". |
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Andy Pastuszak
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Praying for my family and everyone in Ukraine.
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 9, 2022 15:41:59 GMT
According to the Internet, paper is measured in Brightness and Whiteness. But despite me playing with this all week and some of last week, I can't find any website or paper packaging that lists paper whiteness. If you can find the paper at thepapermillstore.com, you can see a color profile. For example: | Paperator™ Color Value: | CMYK C = 10, M = 3, Y = 2, K = 2
RGB R = 232, G = 232, B = 231 |
Looking across the white cardstocks they sell, there's a decent amount of variation in what constitutes "white". Well, that website is quite the rabbit hole for me. Found some really nice papers I would love to use, but they're cost prohibitive. Seems there is a paper color called "natural" that somewhere between white and cream that I really like. And it cost almost $40.00 for a pack of 100 sheets for a lot of the stuff that's "natural." They do let you buy samples, but it's $3.00 per sheet. This Neenah Natural looks nice: www.thepapermillstore.com/classic-crest-classic-natural-white-card-stock-8-1-2-x-11-in-65-lb-cover-smooth-250-per-package.html But $34.95 for 250 sheets seems a bit pricey. |
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Andy Pastuszak
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What I collect: United States, Ukraine, Ireland
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Post by Andy Pastuszak on Apr 10, 2022 1:10:56 GMT
Ok, I think this journey as come to an end for me. For my US pages, I am going to use the cream colored cardstock I bought from Amazon. For my Ukrainian stamp album, I am going to use the paper that I started to use last year, the Neenah 65 lb, 96 brightness cover stock. I bought a 250 pack from Office Depot for $20 last year. The paper has a slight yellow tint, To me, it looks like the same color paper that's used in hardback/paperback books. Doesn't cause eye strain. And looks white, so you color images look normal. I was going to drive to Office Depot and gran another ream, but both card were out and about. So, for yucks I checked Amazon. The same paper on Amazon was only $12.99 and I could get it overnight: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00006IDRW I'll print some pages for comparison. |
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