Sugarcane Paper at Staples

[Djehuty]

It sounds like a joke, but it isn't.

 

Staples has a new line of "Eco-Easy" products, including sugarcane-based paper. It's supposed to be environmentally friendly. Depending on how much pollution is released during sugarcane processing, and how much rain forest is slashed-and-burned for its cultivation, this may or may not be absolutely true; but it's not creating any new mess, so at the least it's relatively true.

 

The paper is surprisingly nice, though the presentation is rather cheap (which isn't a bad thing, because the price is cheap, too). I bought a little 100-sheet, 7.5" x 9.75" composition notebook for 99¢. It has a plain brown cardboard covers, stitched together cahier-style. There was a seemingly identical composition notebook next to it, with "Compositions" stamped on the front and space for a name and date, which sold for $2.49. I could see no other difference, so I bought the cheaper one. Made in Egypt.

 

The paper is very smooth and quite thin, rather like a thinner version of Apica paper. I wrote a bit on one page using my Pelikan M805 with F nib, using Visconti Blue ink. There was no feathering, but the line seemed a tad wider than usual. There was no bleed-through, though as one would expect with paper this thin there was some show-through. Fortunately, the notebooks are cheap enough that there's no great loss if you only use one side of the page. The binding isn't of the right sort for the pages to lie flat when open, but the bump in the middle isn't too bad, and there's a generous inner margin. The paper is lined with narrow, pale brown lines. I didn't see any unlined versions.

 

Here are scans of a writing sample on this paper, and the front of the notebook:

 

http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/6198/sugarcanepaperfu6.png http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/3702/sugarcanenotebookam9.jpg

 

I'm impressed -- smooth paper and a pleasant writing experience for a very low price, with the added bonus of reduced ecological guilt. I may pick up a few of these to use as journals, as they're cheap enough that I won't particularly care if I write a load of bunk that makes me want to spill ink all over the page, and unlike Apica notebooks they're not so pretty that I'd feel bad about doing so.

 

[tfwall]

If you like this sort of thing, take a look at: http://www.ecopaper.com/

 

The cigar and coffee paper is kind of dark for writing, but the banana paper works great.

[Blade Runner]

Crane's stationery is also eco friendly, because it's made from recycled cotton - old towels, sheets, underwear, etc.

No trees grown for Crane's.

[jmkeuning]

We just got our first Staples in the area, if they are open yet I will go tomorrow and get some of these.

[MS3607]

I put these notebooks up about a month ago with the same praise as you. I have now filled one up and am pleased to say that other than not being able to write on the backsides the notebook held up very well.

[Djehuty]

Chemyst -- thanks for the link!

 

Jeen -- thanks, that's good to know about Crane's. I've been using Rhodia/Clairefontaine products, because they claim to be about as green as possible, given that they do use wood pulp. I really like the G. Lalo stationery, but Crane's might be an even better choice.

 

[Possum Hill]

If you like this sort of thing, take a look at: http://www.ecopaper.com/

 

The cigar and coffee paper is kind of dark for writing, but the banana paper works great.

Those papers look interesting and attractive, but seem pretty pricey for 90% post-consumer recycled content.

[Possum Hill]

Bagasse, what's left of the sugarcane stalks after the juice was extracted, used to be just waste. Now sugar mills burn it for more than enough energy to process the sugar. Where sugarcane is processed into ethanol it may eventually be used as cellulosic feed stock for ethanol.

[lefty928]

Thanks. Over the summer I was tempted to try these notebooks, but was worried about showthrough. Now my question is answered!

[Possum Hill]

The penny just dropped; Brazil exports paper. Maybe there's someone on FPN who's familiar with the Brazilian paper industry, who would know if much paper is made from sugarcane.

[JohnS-MI]

Bagasse, what's left of the sugarcane stalks after the juice was extracted, used to be just waste. Now sugar mills burn it for more than enough energy to process the sugar. Where sugarcane is processed into ethanol it may eventually be used as cellulosic feed stock for ethanol.

 

Actually, where they process cane to ethanol, the bagasse is used to provide the distillation heat required to distill ethanol. To my knowkledge, it is all burned and any excess heat is sold as process steam to orange juice concentrate plants, or they generate electricity and sell it to the grid. The ethanol process is much more energy intensive than making sugar, so they don't have a lot to sell, but some. This makes the Brazilian ethanol process MUCH more viable than the US corn process in terms of costs and net renewable energy.

[Heirphoto]

These look pretty nice. My closest Staples only had the spiral bound versions left along with notebook filler paper but I may try another one tomorrow. Normal price is $2.49 and they have been on sale for $0.99 hence the empty shelves.

 

Tony

[nickyd]

Does anyone know if this is available in the UK?

[Inka]

After seeing this 80% sugarcane waste paper mentioned on the forum last night, I ran out to my local Staples and bought some just minutes before they closed.

They had a small journal, a composition book with sewn-in pages and some college ruled loose leaf 3-ring binder paper.

I bought two packs of the binder paper for now, just to try it out before spending more on the sugarcane journals or composition books.

 

This morning I dug out my old olive-green zippered canvas binder/organizer, one that I'd bought back in 1999 when in IT college while taking Web-Design classes.

Pulling out all of the old college ruled, blue lined binder paper that was in it, I replaced it all with the new light-brown ruled sugarcane.

Then I took a sheet of each type of paper, sat down and made myself comfortable on the couch, pulled out my solid laminated bamboo lap desk and went to work with my FPs.

On the old standard college ruled paper, only my XXF nib FP wrote without noticeable bleeding despite the inks used, while any larger nibs soaked in and many bled through to the backside.

On the new Staples sugarcane college ruled paper, not one FP bled through it at all, not even medium and broad nibs, using nibs & inks that would normally bleed through almost anything.

This sugarcane paper is ultra-thin too, much thinner and more translucent than my already thin college ruled binder paper, so thin I can actually read a book with the paper laid on printed pages.

 

At first I didn't think I was going to like the thin sugarcane stock, once I'd pulled out a sheet and saw how incredibly thin the paper is.

I've been writing on that single sheet all day today, front and back, flourishing all over it and not once did even a heavy line of ink penetrate through to the backside.

I rarely give high praise to any things, unless I am very impressed with first-hand use and even then it takes me a lot to finally decide that something is worthy of praise.

Now that I've had a chance to use it, if only one sheet and for just one day so far, I really like this paper over any other 3-ring binder paper I've ever used in my lifetime.

Leave it to the Egyptians to come up with something that's so ultra thin & see-through, yet so exceptionally fountain pen friendly.

I think it was the Ancient Egyptians that were the original makers of those ultra-thin papyrus papers, used with quills and reeds and ancient ink formulas, that have withstood the tests of time.

 

This is good stuff, IMHO, I really like it for use with FPs and in my binder.

I really appreciate those here at the FPN that brought it to my attention.

[Ghost Plane]

Thanks, Inka! Now that I've seen a fellow B nib user give it a vote of approval, I'll make the trek to Staples today.

[gadgetjunky]

Thanks for all the info! I almost bought some of these pads when I was in Dallas last week (meant to go back by Staples before I headed out of town but ended up leaving early). I will have to grab some next time that I am back over that way.

 

 

[Inka]

This is my first-ever scan for the FPN.

Just for a better reference, visually that is, I've placed the Staples sugarcane bagasse paper on my old scanner for all to see.

Keep in mind this is a very old Canon scanner, easily capable of copying the watermarks in U.S. paper currency and high-end cotton paper.

Newer scanners I've used seem to be deliberately designed not to do this, so watermarks cannot be duplicated, at least that's been my experience.

That said my scanner "burns" through even the thickest papers and actually copies anything on the backside [even fingerprints on occasion].

So what you see in the "backside" scan isn't nearly as bright as what I see with the naked eye.

What you see isn't bleed-through, just scanner "burn-through", as you'll see there are no spots on the back and no ink actually bled through the page.

 

Front or "top" of page, 3 different pens & inks [blends]...

 

http://i633.photobucket.com/albums/uu56/InkaFX/Bagassepapertestfront.jpg

 

Backside of same sheet of paper, no signs of bleed-through anywhere, even though it is very easy to see the writing...

 

http://i633.photobucket.com/albums/uu56/InkaFX/Bagassepapertestback.jpg

 

I hope this helps show just how thin yet "fountain pen friendly" this paper really is.

I'm not even seeing the feathering I typically see on other types of paper, especially on cotton stock, using the same 3 pens & inks.

On another note; I wrote this in my every-day cursive hand, same handwriting used since learning it in the second grade.

Today is not a good day for me to write; my writing not as crisp as on most days, probably due to not feeling so hot atm.

I'd also slowed down significantly/deliberately while writing, to allow time for ink to soak in/or through, yet still no bleeding.

I'm really enjoying writing on this paper, as even my broadest and wettest nibs, saturated inks too, write smoothly on it without bleeding through.

[Ghost Plane]

Nice!

[ralphawilson]

Nice scan. I wonder if the difference between your old Canon and other scanners is in the scanner software. Maybe other scanner software attempts to keep the shine through to a minimum--just wild speculation.

 

I have been unable to find this paper in tablets or other non-notebook formats at Staples. I'd like to be able to use it for informal correspondence (at least to my eco-phile friends). But it does come in a spiral-bound notebook (6" x 9.5") with perforations along the edge. That works.

[dannyboy]

Nice scan. I wonder if the difference between your old Canon and other scanners is in the scanner software. Maybe other scanner software attempts to keep the shine through to a minimum--just wild speculation.

 

I have been unable to find this paper in tablets or other non-notebook formats at Staples. I'd like to be able to use it for informal correspondence (at least to my eco-phile friends). But it does come in a spiral-bound notebook (6" x 9.5") with perforations along the edge. That works.

 

Thanks for making me aware of what looks like a good paper for eco-friendly fountain pen users! Great review!