newsprint

removed account4 · Mar 10, 2016

im trying to find a source for paper to use for a variety of
coating activities. as i was putting our recyclables out in their bins
a stack of to be recycled newsprint sheets fell into my hands.
its greyish, and those large sheets that are sometimes used to wrap things in stores
and it goe me thinking, it might be unsized, cheap and available in large quantities.
i typically use cold pressed paper that my local art supply store suggested was "butcher paper"
i'm not sure what it is, it was given to me 20+ years ago, and i took it and never looked back.
my 4" thick pile is getting lower and rather than go to a restaurant supply store and buy a large roll of
butcher paper ( which didn't seem even close to what i have ! ) i and trying to find alternatives.
cheap is good, and cold pressed is good. watercolor papers not so good for my uses.

any suggestions if this newsprint sort of stuff doesn't cut the musterd ?

thanks in advance!
john

AgX · Mar 10, 2016

You mean you got a stack of newspaper rawstock?

Rick A · Mar 10, 2016

http://www.officedepot.com/a/produc...5-1t2-VQ16-c&gclid=CIu2m5GEt8sCFYSDaQodDx0CAQ

bergytone · Mar 10, 2016

Not sure how big you are looking for, but Hobby lobby sells a pad of Strathmore Newsprint at 12" x 18" for $4 on sale. They've got Canson 18" x 24" too. Is this the watercolor paper you were saying wouldn't work?

removed account4 · Mar 10, 2016

when i say it is a stack, its a handful of sheets ..
it was probably used to wrap glasses or plates or something
and i took the flat greyish sheets, and i put them on a shelf.
i don't have raw stock of newsprint. i have a pad of newsprint, but i am guessing that is a bit different...
i found after i started this thread, but i wonder if it can be used for coating, or if it is too "porous"
or would look not-good because it isn't "white". i will have to do a few tests ...
thanks for the link rick, all the office depots near me went out of business, but we have staples...
bergytone: the watercolor paper i have is fabriano i don't use it right now, it's "buffered" and a pain to "de-buffer"
... so for the time being i am looking into other things.

thanks for your helps.

Luckless · Mar 10, 2016

Maybe look up local printers in your area, and drop in for a chat about suppliers. Bring a sheet of what you have, and they might be able to give you local contacts for suppliers in your area that could help you out, or even tack on an extra roll on their normal order for you. (Fliers and such are sometimes printed on smaller rolls of newsprint that one person could lift themselves, if with more than a bit of grunting, but I had a roll of midweight newsprint that my uncle gave my father when I was a kid. Last I remember of it we gave what was left to one of my cousins when we moved. Thing lasted over a decade of random drawings and paintings.)

DWThomas · Mar 10, 2016

At the risk of being a wet blanket, I think it should be mentioned that newsprint is acidic and far, far from archival. So if you're just experimenting, hey, whatever. But out in the air and light it tends to be yellow in a year or two, and maybe disintegrating in five or ten. YMMV

dpurdy · Mar 10, 2016

You could check with the printer companies for ends of rolls of papers. Not for photography but I have gotten quite a bit of paper even found it sitting by a dumpster on a printing company loading dock. That was back in the day when printing was done on presses but they must still be using paper on rolls. When first starting platinum printing back in the 80s I went several times to stationary printing stores and they would give me lots of full sheets as samples. Before I knew I was supposed to print on expensive rag paper.

bdial · Mar 10, 2016

Along the lines of what's been mentioned, the newspaper in Brattleboro sells their roll ends for cheap, and free for non-profits. I imagine that other newspapers do similar.

removed account4 · Mar 10, 2016

thanks for all your suggestions, and for telling me how acidic newsprint is !
i'm getting some sheets of "butcher paper" ( sample ph neutral white ) sent to me
from uline to see if it is what i have ... and then i will go to print shops to see
what they might be able to help me. its eye opening / amazing how expensive paper is ...
even stuff that isn't " nice-nice " is "$-$"

Bill Burk · Mar 10, 2016

You know, I once read that to preserve newspaper clippings you should immerse the newsprint in a bath of hydrogen peroxide and milk of magnesia.

So, if advice to preserve newspaper clippings is sound... and reduces the acid... there you go. A viable art medium.

NedL · Mar 10, 2016

You could always make your own...

( I keep thinking I might try it someday )

eddie · Mar 10, 2016

jnanian said:
when i say it is a stack, its a handful of sheets ..
it was probably used to wrap glasses or plates or something

Like this? http://www.uline.com/BL_1953/Newsprint-Sheets?keywords=Packing Paper Sheets

removed account4 · Mar 11, 2016

bill, i had never heard of that before ..
if i go this route i will keep that in mind
and i guess the paper will be " M-OK "
its strange that it is such an ephemeral paper
when it is sold at every art supply store in a huge pad.
that's it eddie !
and it is about the same price as the rolls of butcher paper
the same place sells. shipping is something like 40$ ... its kind of insane
... the butcher paper is here: http://www.uline.com/BL_1956/Butcher-Paper
i wish the stuff my local restaurant provisioner ( paper provisions warehouse ) sold, but it was completely different when i sampled theirs.
i have one other supply place i can go to, but i was putting it off ..
ned, i've tried making my own paper it wasn't tight+smooth enough though, i didnt' have a heavy enough press
it was a lot of fun though, and not very hard at all.
if you watch the pbs show "between the folds " ( on netflix and probably "you bloo" ) there is a guy
in that film who makes his own origami paper and sends it to others, all over the world. i can get origami paper but it is kind of expensive ..

Bill Burk · Mar 11, 2016

NedL said:
You could always make your own...

( I keep thinking I might try it someday )

My mom went through a lot of blenders that way, when she was teaching papermaking.

She kept pulp in glass jars in the refrigerator.

NedL · Mar 12, 2016

John's post made me go look at papermaking sites again... the first one I came to suggested buying a blender at a garage sale or thrift shop instead of using your normal kitchen blender. Hmm.. I just had a pretty wild idea about a press for paper or for printmaking.... but I won't derail the thread...

removed account4 · Mar 12, 2016

feel free to derail the thread !
i got a sample from uline, and it is not what i have
and i left a sample at a print shop, will hear on monday what the guy things it is
AND i i have a call into "ALEXTOYS" or something like that, who is getting back to me about
rolls of their craft paper, which is dirt cheap ..

so feel free to take this thread for a walk down the path !

DennyS · Mar 12, 2016

I might be misunderstanding your goal, but if you're trying to do alt process printing on butcher paper or newsprint, it might only last for a few years (or maybe not even). If you're spending money on coating chemistry (platinum? palladium? silver?), then the cost of quality paper is relatively insignificant. I guess I must not understand what you're trying to achieve. (my first thought was that you wanted some paper to put on your table to absorb spills.)

removed account4 · Mar 12, 2016

hi dennys:
i appreciate your concern!
from what i am being told of the paper that i have been using
( some of it is this 18x24 virgin ph neutral, low sulfur butcher paper )
is it paper .. i've been using the same stuff for probably 20 years,
coating it with a variety of stuff, and never had a problem.
the greyish newsprint, i admit was kind of a shot in the dark, thinking
plentiful, and cheap, but it is no cheaper than the butcher paper i found at uline
( i received a sample and it is similar to what i have ) and if the alextoys stuff is the same stuff
i really don't see much the point in coating expensive paper when i can get something similar for less $$
kind of like drinking a 3 buck chuck, vs a 30$ bottle of wine ... the chuck might taste just as good,
and the 30$ one might have an expensive lable and be only worth $3 ...

YMMV

Brickbird · Mar 14, 2016

I buy this stuff for my business. It's blank newsprint and cheap. Here's the link............

https://www.boxes4u.com/product-detail/0210

removed account4 · Mar 14, 2016

thanks brickbird !
i'll check it out -

john

Bob Carnie · Mar 14, 2016

Printing directly on kraft paper works really well in inkjet. fyi

Brickbird · Mar 14, 2016

John....

I would think that any larger box company like the link I posted would have blank newsprint as it is used especially for wrapping items for moving. One of my customers buys so much of the product listed that she pays $23 for 1000 sheets of the stuff of the size shown. That much should make you quite a few prints.

removed account4 · Mar 14, 2016

thanks brickbird !
i know what you mean
i have a small stack currently and it will probably
last a few years, but i am just getting my ducks in a row as they say ..

bob, i have brown kraft paper, but i am not a fan of cyanotypes on it, i'm planning on trying it with SGE
when i get a chance i think the brown will be a nice warm tone to print on, besides
i have about 4 miles worth on a roll i have to use up !

newsprint

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