Stock is the base material on which you print type or image. It can range from a standard sheet of paper to more elaborate mediums such as wood, metal, vinyl, fabric, boards, mugs and even the human body!
Stock is also sometimes referred to as the substrate which is basically the same thing. The choice of stock is absolutely vital to the overall success and effectiveness of a print job. Careful consideration has to be taken into the stock's ability to take the printed design, the stocks ability to communicate image and colour to the vibrancy you need, the stocks ability to be manipulated and folded and a variety of other things. Along with that the intention of the product has to be taken into account along with simply how it feels and the texture of the stock. For example a daily newspaper has a very limited lifespan, it's useful for only a day so low cost and low quality stock is chosen - newsprint. On the other hand a monthly magazine requires bold and sharp graphics and will most likely be kept as a collection, so this requires high quality and durable stock - gloss.
Design for print is hugely about how something looks and feels as it's a physical form of design, so stock naturally is very important.
Throughout this book we will look at a variety of issues and interesting points to consider regarding stock. We will look through weights, paper types & finishes, unusual forms of stock, showthrough and imposition.
Weights
The weight of stock, in most cases paper, is measured in 'gsm' - which stands for grams per square metre. The higher the gsm, the thicker the stock. Office paper which is commonplace pretty much everywhere and in most stationery shops is 80gsm and weighs about 5 grams. This is actually called grammage in English and French (ISO 536) but printers still mainly call this the "weight" of the paper, it's pretty much the universal term.
The stock within this book varies greatly just to give you a feel of different weights out there, they range from 100gsm to 150gsm
Another way of measuring thickness of paper is the caliper. The calipier is measured in micrometres (1/1000 of a mm)
The weight (grammage) and thickness of paper is measured in a paper-mill by the Quality Control System in a pretty complicated and technical way which we don't need to worry about right now. It takes account of basis weight, moisture, ash content, colour, brightness, coat weight and so on.
(pics and diagrams of different weights)
Paper Types & Finishing
Paper types refers to the kinds of stock which is available and the different classicifications and uses of said stock. A basic way of categorising stock is coated and uncoated. Each categorisation of stock has a different feel and finish, for example a coated stock has an extra layer and finish to it. For example gloss is a typically coated stock. Uncoated paper is typically used for letterheads, copy paper, or printing paper. Coated paper can be categorised in level of coating, light coat, medium coat, high coat and art paper.
Diagram >
Newsprint - Newsprint is paper made primarily of mechanically ground wood pulp and is a shorter lifespan than other papers. It's cheaper to produce, very inexpensive and it can withstand most normal printing processes. Although you have to take into account the amount of ink put onto the stock due to the the the thin and easy to rip nature of the stock. Primary uses for newsprint stock is for printing newspapers and comics.
Uncoated woodfree - Largest printing and writing paper category in terms of capacity. This type of paper also included almost all office paper and offset grades used for commercial printing. Primary uses for uncoated woodfree are office paper, photocopy paper etc
Mechanical - Produced using wood pulp. Mechanical paper is useful for short-term uses as it will yellow and the colours will fade over time. Sunlight and temperature can also have an effect on mechanical paper and erode the print and colour. Uses for mechanical are newspapers and directories.
Art board - Art board is an uncoated board, it's primary uses are for canvases, covers and for mounting work.
Art paper - This is a high quality stock with some clay filler to give a good and consistent printing surface. It works especially well for halftones where definition and detail are important. Colours come out vibrant and bright and is often glossy. Primary uses are for high quality printing and perfect for magazines.
Cast coated - Coated paper with a high-gloss finish which is achieved by pressing the wet voated paper against a polished, hot, metal drum creating an almost mirror-like finish. Basically coating the stock. Cast coated stock is very common and reliable and diverse. From traditional print to shopping bags. Cast coated paper often is supplied in rolls. Often used for labels, covers, books, cartons and cards.
Chromo - A waterproof coating on a single side of stock. This is great for crisp embossing and varnishing quality. Primary uses for chromo are labels, wrappings, covers and also packaging too
Greyboard - Lined or unlined paper commonly made from waste paper. Greyboard usually has a texture to it and is often very effectively used for packaging material.
Matt paper - The roughness of the paper surface restricts light from reflecting off the surface creating a subtle finish to the print. Matt paper can be coated or uncoated, adding a coat often adds to the vibrancy of print. Often used for a variety of high quality printing.
Machine coated - Paper which has a coating applied while still on the paper machine. Variety of coloured print.
Silk - Similar to matt finished paper in that it's perfect for printing but doesn't fully reflect light off the surface, it is a kind of balance between matt and gloss. Supports high readability and high image quality. Primary uses are product booklets, and brochures.
Astrolux - A highly reflective mirror board. It's a high gloss card that is usually available in a variety of colours. Astrolux can be used for covers, invitations and a variety of creative possibilities.
Flock - A speciality cover stock that is produced by applying a dyed flock powder, which is made from fine woolen refuse or vegetable fibre dust. It emulates tapestry and Italian velvet. It is used nowadays to give a decorative and luxurious feel to a product. Flock is absorbent and therefore unpredictable for printing traditional with offset litho, but more viscous inks can be used just fine. Tends to be used for book covers, sleeves and more.
Unusual forms of stock
Pretty much any material can be used as a surface to apply a design onto. Each substrate presents its own challenges but sometimes the actual stock itself can add to a piece greatly and some designers out there have been wildly creative and successful with their unusual uses of stock.
Metal - Metal is a common substrate for print, often used for signage, objects, report covers, lighters and much more. The application process is usually screen print, hand-painted, die cut, foil block.
Ceramic - Vase, sculpture cutlery and a variety of objects. The application process is usually hand-painted or transfer.
PVC - PVC can be used as a substrate for signage, report covers, canvasses, umbrellas and much more. The application process for PVC is usually screen print, die cut or transfer.
Fabric - Fabric is a huge part of print and a huge business too. Fabric printing can be clothing, banners, covers, surface pattern, scrolls, curtains even. The application process is usually screen-print and sometimes hand-drawn.
Wood - Wood is often used in signage, book making, block printing, a lot of old Japanese art was woodblock printing, wood can be anything, any object pretty much. The application process can be laser etching, burning, screen-print and hand painting.
Human Body
This poster was created by NY Design Studio Sagmeister Inc. starring big Saggy himself who asked an intern to cut the design into his skin to convey the pain that accompanies his design projects apparently. Shocking and powerful result.
Wood
Liam Bonar, a graphic designer and photographer laser cut and etched this wooden case for a book called The Whisky Trail, a photographic documentary about...whisky. Made from the same wood for the casks whisky ages in.
Metal
Steel die cut business cards by Pinkograf, an Italian print specialist with focus on business cards.
Perspex
One colour print, possibly etched wedding invite on red perspex stock.
Show-through
Show-through is no more complicated than its name really. Show-through occurs when ink printed on one side of a page shows through on the other non-printed side, this is usually down to the ink coverage and also the type of substrate used.
Thin and absorbent stocks with little filler or coating material such as tracing paper are most susceptible to show-through Some stocks have such a degree of transparency that subsequent pages in the publication show through. Although you might think this is a defect and maybe you should use a different substrate, this show-through effect can and has been used creatively and effectively in some cases around the world to great effect.
Sagmeister: Made You Look
Sagmeister Inc. here use showthrough very creatively. The red see-through outer sleeve uses red and green separations in order to create a completely different front cover depending on if the sleeve is on or off and adds interactivity and shock to the publication.
Tipping-in and tipping-on
A tip-in is basically a single page binded to the inside or outside of the book to act as a sort of separate material to the book. It's wrapped around the central fold of a section and glued in along the binding edge.
Often tipped-in pages are shorter than the publications pages for a variety of functional and visual reasons, so they are often aligned to either the top or bottom edge. Tipping in centrally can often be problematic as there is no page edge to align with and be perfectly parallel too. Tipping-in is different to tipping-on which involves placing a smaller element such as a reply slip or illustration onto a publication
Tipping-in and on should not be confused with inserts. Inserts are loose unattached items placed in an item designed to be taken out and read, or kept.
<illustrations/line drawings of tipping in and tipping on examples>
Tipped-in pages are often a different stock to the main internals of a publication to add an extra tactile and shock quality to the pages. Often contrasting a matt uncoated publication with a high glossy tipped-in section.
Effect of stock on colour.
A huge consideration when choosing stock, especially in the design industry is the effect of stock on colour. The texture of the stock, the colour of the stock, the finish of the stock, if it's coated or uncoated, the weight of the stock, can all have notable influence on the way ink interacts with the substrate and also how colours show through.
On every page of this book, in the same corner is a little CMYK swatch. On each page the process colours are exactly the same ink colour on each page, with exactly the same CMYK levels but study the difference in the way the colour comes through. The stocks in this book vary, flick through and compare how stocks can have a huge influence on the same colour. Most inks are transparent remember, especially in most industrial print processes.
Sometimes the actual stock itself is used creatively and efficiently and almost acts as an extra colour in the design for print. Check out some of these examples of using stock effectively.
Looking at this, you'd think it was an infinite amount of colours but really it can very easily be a one colour red print on white stock, or white spot colour along with tints on red stock. Tints are basically a more transparent 'lighter' version of a certain colour, it uses one plate. Just applying less of it. More of this in the Production book!
This poster by Paris design studio Akatre coud very easily be a black greyscale print on red stock. The stock itself gives the whole poster a red hue.
This poster is a from a series of minimalist poster by Capetown based Monotono called "I dreams the impossible, then I drew it" These prints could very easily be a single one-colour black print on some coloured stock. Again, the colour of the stock really shines through and becomes a part of the appeal.
Glossary / Key-Terms
Stock - The surface on which a design or print will be applied. Usually refers to the paper used in traditional print.
Weight - The thickness of the stock, usually measured in GSM around the world.
gsm - The unit of measurement for weight of stock. gsm is used for paper and stands for grams per square metre (g/m2).
Grammage - An old English and French way of referring to the gsm of paper. Gsm is more often used.
Caliper - Card is often measured in caliper. Caliper is measured in micrometres (1/1000 of a mm). Or in the US as mils (1 mil = 0.001 inch = 25.4 um)
Show-through - The name given to when a printed side of paper shows through on the other unprinted side of the paper, or the subsequent pages actually show through.
Substrate - Any stock or mateial which receives a printed image, ranging from tactile papers to mugs to the human body.
Tipping-in - The attachment of a single page or small booklet within a publication, often smaller than the publication and aligned to the top or bottom edge.
Tipping-on - A small element such as an illustration or reply slip attached to a publication
Imposition - The arrangement plan of a printed publication's pages. Extremely useful for visually seeing what stock will be on which page and what pages will have which ink applied to them before being cut, folded, trimmed and binded.
Flock - Special stock produced by coating a sheet with size and sprinkling with dyed flock powder to create a raised velvety texture.
Coated - stock which has been coated with an extra layer and finish, such as gloss.
Uncoated - Stock without a layer, ink therefore is absorbed more and the stock often has a texture.
Process colour - The application of mixtures of cyan, magenta, yellow and black to produce nearly any colour you can think of and for image reproduction by printing in layers.
Spot colours - Special ready made inks which are not a mix of cyan, magenta, yellow or black. Require a seperate plate and layer of print to CMYK, can be used to apply fluorescent and metallic inks to a surface.
One-colour - A one colour print, can be simply one colour on stock, or a variation of a one colour print such as a montone image which is black, along with varying opacities of black.
Duplexing - The bonding of two substrates to form a single one. Allows a product to have different colours, textures and finishes on each side. Can also be referred to the as the process of printing on both sides of a stock
Astrolux - Highly reflective mirror stock. Expensive and luxurious feel, used for products which require a metallic quality.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substrate_(printing)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper_density
http://calculatas.com/
http://www.paperonline.org/paper-making/paper-production/paper-finishing/types-of-finish
http://www.antalis-mcnaughton.co.uk/content/Coated_Paper.aspx?style=green
http://weandthecolor.com/monotono-graphic-poster-series/13275
http://www.akatre.com/profil-profile/
http://creativefan.com/the-top-100-best-business-cards-from-2010/
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