There is just something special about translucent papers.
The way they allow you to see through them, but diffuse the view just enough to cause images to be obscure.
If they appear as a flysheet in a brochure or are used as a wraparound cover for a booklet, you immediately feel you have come across something special and that someone has made a particular effort to create this unique effect.
What are translucent sheets?
Always on the curious side of life, I was wondering how translucent sheets are actually made. My first port of call, as is for many of us these days, was to Google “translucent paper.” Hmm. Not much explanation there.
As a matter of fact, only one Web site referred to the term. That was probably the least successful search I have done in a long time.
So, I spoke to Phil Schumacher, R&D manager at CTI Paper Group to get the details.
As it turns out, translucent sheets are made from the same wood pulp as regular opaque sheets. Well, nearly. In the case of translucents, the pulp is specially fibrillated, which creates fine hairs on each fiber and allows them to create a tightly interwoven mass of pulp.
Where the pulp recipe for opaque sheets asks for fillers and more before they undergo the actual papermaking process, naturally translucent sheets forgo this option. They are simply heated up and pressed several times to get rid of any extra air pockets, which makes them very compact.
An easy way to tell the difference is by looking at a translucent and an opaque sheet of the same weight. The opaque sheet is noticeably thicker than the translucent one.
Naturally and chemically translucent
Where there’s a natural way, there has to be a “chemical” one, as well. These sheets are usually referred to as “chemically” or “off-machine transparentized.”
In this case, the sheets are first manufactured as opaque papers and then treated with petro-chemically-based resins to make the paper translucent (almost like the effect of spilling cooking oil on a white shirt).
This process tends to make the fibers more brittle and, due to the added resins, the paper is not recyclable.
How will you know which is which?
Most mills call out if their paper is naturally transparent and recyclable. Another easy way to tell one from the other is by looking at the product items being offered. Chemically transparentized sheets are more brittle and do not fold without cracking. So, they are not recommended for folding (and saddle stitching) and you won’t find readily made envelopes.
On the green side of things
Speaking of recycling, any naturally translucent sheet is recyclable; and if your heart beats for FSC papers, Reich Paper and its CT line or CTI Paper’s Glama Natural line will fill the bill.
With Glama Natural Recycled, there is even a recycled option with 30 percent postconsumer waste available.
From Neenah Paper to Curious Collection, Gmund to Yupo, you have ample opportunity to feed your creativity, and PaperSpecs makes it fast and easy by listing more than 115 translucent sheets in our paper database.
Not all of the transparent papers available in the North American market are naturally transparent. If in doubt, ask your mill or merchant representative.
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