MARBLING PAPER
Crafting beauty
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WHAT IS MARBLING?
Paper marbling is an ancient craft which consists in the production of coloured designs and effects, obtained by combing and manipulating physically and chemically paints that are floating onto a mucilaginous liquid. Once the desired effect is achieved, a sheet of paper is laid down onto the liquid to transfer the pattern onto its surface.
Over the centuries and in various parts of the world, marbling has been operated using different types of paints and materials, thus leading to a vast quantification of style, textures and patterns. From the 17th century up until now, marbling was mostly used in bookbinding to decorate the insides and edges of books but the craft also developed in many other fields such as furniture decorating, antique restoring, wallpapers, box making, homeware and fabrics and of course stationary.
This once almost forgotten craft is perpetrated and renewed today thanks to dedicated, passionate craftsmen and artists from all over the world.
I marble my papers in my home studio in South East London. Each sheet is handmade using high quality materials and is carefully thought after to obtain vibrant & contemporary marbled designs.
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Once dried, the papers are pressed down to flatten out. No further treatment is performed.
Each marbled paper is made individually and is therefore unique!
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All my papers are produced using first grade carrageenan, highly pigmented and lightfast (sunlight resistant) acrylic paints and acid free coloured paper. A sheet is typically 120 gsm long grain and measures 50 x 70 cm. Depending on stock availability, I may marble on other papers which may vary in weight and size, such as Hahnemuhle Bugra-Butten or Colorplan. Owing the nature of marbling, some paint marks will show on the back of the sheet. This is natural, it proves the process authenticity and does not affect the marbled side in any way.
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Each marbled paper listing contains pictures, a brief description mentioning the name of the pattern, the name of the dominant colours as well as the paper specifications you ought to know before ordering.
MARBLING SPECIFICATION
REPEAT PAPERS
I may occasionally marble again a paper that was once available on the website. This won’t be a replica of the original paper since each sheet is a one-of-a-kind. If you are looking at purchasing this again to match some work previously done, please bear in mind colours / pattern dynamic may vary from the original.
PAPER QUALITY
There are two types of paper quality, either first quality sheets or second quality sheets.
Typically, a first quality sheet shows great execution of its design with a consistent, unified pattern.
A second quality sheet is a paper that contains minor flaws that have occurred in the process (i.e. air bubbles, hesitation lines and dark lines, smudged paints, unmarbled streaks, small voids, mushy and ill-defined image). However, my second quality papers are good enough to use almost in their entirety after the defected part has been cut off.
I do not list papers containing large flaws making it not worthwhile to work with for the buyer.
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COMISSIONS, BESPOKE WORK, MATCHING SERVICE
If you would like some bespoke work done, please get in touch with your requirements to discuss. At the moment, I am only able to accept small commissioned orders.
Lead-time will be discussed by emails prior to ordering.
Goods must be paid for before shipping.
Unfortunately as of now, I do not offer a matching service.
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PAPER MARBLING APPLICATION
Thanks to its versatile and durable qualities, you can use my marbled papers in a vast range of applications to add a splash of style and colours to your items. The nature of acrylic paint means the colours won’t wash off if the paper gets wet and the weight of the paper will provide you with enough flexibility and strength whilst handling. From book-making to restoration work, box-making, object-decorating, card-making, furniture-covering, lampshade-making, origami, scrapbooking, you can pretty much use marbled papers in accordance with most paper crafting. As with any practise, I recommend you conduct some small tests before starting out your project.
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