Well, ordering in high quality art prints has so far been hit or miss. I have developed some layouts for printing, but I am waiting until my test orders are completely resolved before doling out too much. At least one of the papers is way too much texture compared to the originals… but that is sort of expected.

While that resolves I have been playing around with printing from home. Since archival inks are easy to get now, it is just the paper which requires some finesse in locating. Certainly putting uncoated paper into the inkjet did not yield results worth sales.

I did happen upon Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper while I was browsing for suggestions online.

While not the highest quality (they make a museum line) it has about a 60 year lifespan (compared to 150) with the usual caveats about not placing it in direct sun unprotected. The inks supposedly are good for the same amount of time, so it should work out fine.

The good:

• There is just enough texture to keep you from feeling it is “computer paper”
• The paper is a nice bright white
• It is heavy enough to keep from flopping around
• It is reasonably priced.

The Bad:

It is nearly impossible to tell what side to print. It says to print on the whiter side, but they are so close that it is impossible to tell them apart. You honestly have to get close enough to see the texture and go for the smoother side. Apparently they used to have their logo on the back, but people objected… well, I hope they enjoy the wasted paper as much as I did when starting with it.

Anyway, if you have something that can print on this rather heavy paper. I can highly recommend it. Hopefully future customers will agree.

-Bill