The Swatchbox Archives - Parse & Parcel - Delivering Paper Inspiration

Neenah Launches The Naturals Swatch Book: Environment & Royal Sundance

April 16, 2019 by Jill DiNicolantonio

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Most creatives we talk to love working on print projects. It affords them the opportunity to use color and texture in a way they don’t get to explore when designing for digital. Most have a very clear idea of how they want the finished piece to look and feel – and the papers specified are a big part of the overall design. The frustrating part for some creatives is in navigating industry resources. It can feel a bit like reading a foreign language. I often hear creatives comment, “I know what type of paper I want to use, I just can’t find it.” The good news is that the paper makers are listening and creating better resources with the creative community in mind. Based on market feedback, Neenah recently launched The Naturals swatch book. The Naturals combines two of their most popular grades – Environment and Royal Sundance.

Touché Papers Relaunch – Neenah Introduces New Colors in the Soft-Touch Grade

September 29, 2018October 24, 2017 by Jill DiNicolantonio

So apparently shrieking in the middle of a sales office is a no-no. Sometimes I forget people are actually behind the cubes working as I am walking through to the sample studio. But I couldn’t help it. I just opened up the box Neenah sent and inside were the brand new Touché Papers swatch books. It’s not that I’m unfamiliar with the grade – but this is the first swatch book since Neenah acquired the grade. And I have to say, they’ve made some stunning additions to the offering. While the colors are gorgeous, wait until you experience the soft-touch finish of TouchéPapers.

15 Ways to Find the Perfect Kraft Paper

September 29, 2018October 12, 2016 by Jill DiNicolantonio

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Trying to find the perfect kraft paper can make any graphic designer feel a bit like Goldilocks. This one’s too light, this one’s too dark – you get the picture. Before you know it, you’ve spent hours looking at paper samples and you’re still haven’t found the perfect one. Sound familiar? At Parse & Parcel, we get more questions about kraft paper than other type of paper out there. So we dove dive deep into The Swatchbox and put together this guide to help designers find the perfect kraft paper.

The Design Collection – Color & Texture That Wows

May 18, 2016 by Jill DiNicolantonio

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I’m tired of the little black dress. Yes, I’m guilty of having one in my closet that I rely on way too much. On paper it checks all the boxes: it’s black, it fits and I can wear it to a number of events. So yeah, technically it works. But does it WOW? No way. And I have to admit, sometimes I want a little wow factor. Well the same can be said about the paper specified for print. Basic white papers are fine for everyday projects. But if you’re looking to create a project that wows – the package that’s too irresistible to touch or the catalog to beautiful not to take – then color and texture are where it’s at. Lucky for us we don’t have to look too far, because Neenah Paper gives us the best of both worlds with their comprehensive new swatchbook, The Design Collection.

New – Mohawk Superfine Swatch Book

September 29, 2018October 3, 2015 by Jill DiNicolantonio

Mohawk-Superfine-Swatch-Book-parse-parcel There’s something about a bright, new paper swatch book that makes me giddy. To me, it’s the same feeling I had as a kid when I got new school supplies – I’m all excited about the possibilities it holds for future projects. So when the new Mohawk Superfine swatch book arrived in The Sample Studio this week, my wheels started turning. Aside from the fact that I am a huge fan of Superfine (our P&P letterhead and envelopes are printed on the eggshell finish), it also happens to be one of the most versatile sheets out there.

Paper Resource: Kraft-Tone by French Paper

September 29, 2018June 8, 2015 by Jill DiNicolantonio

I had been warned. Get to the exhibit hall early on opening night, it’s crazy. So last month at HOW, I left Simon Sinek’s keynote speech a little early so I could be among the first to see all the paper samples from the mills. It worked – but only for one booth. By the time I looked up it was a frenzy of people clamoring to get at all the swag. It was like Black Friday for designers. There was a line that wound its way around the perimeter and through the center of the exhibit hall. After being knocked around several times by these enormous yellow/orange CSA designed packages, I knew where all the fuss was coming. Not one to miss out on a good thing, I hopped in line. It was definitely worth the wait, not only did I get some awesome print samples, I was among the first to catch a peek at Kraft-Tone, the new grade from French Paper.

Paper Samples: New Astrobrights Swatch Book

September 29, 2018March 7, 2015 by Jill DiNicolantonio

What’s your favorite color? Most people know instantly what their color of choice is, for me this is a tough one. I find it’s a lot like choosing your favorite ice cream flavor, it kind of depends on my mood. Lucky for me I’m in The Sample Studio all day and can easily find a hue to suit my needs, from white to black and every shade in between. While some may think being surrounded by all this color can make one jaded to it, I am gitty when a mill revamps a grade and colors are re-imagined. Just last week I attended a meeting with some industry paper peeps where we were shown the recent grade refresh of Neenah’s Astrobrights offering. While the rep from Neenah spoke about the big changes to the grade (major additions of basis weights), I could focus on nothing else but the new lemon-lime duplex colors in the new Astrobrights swatch book.

Paper Resource: New Mohawk Carnival + Via Swatchbook

September 29, 2018November 7, 2014 by Jill DiNicolantonio

Some might say when it comes to organization I’m a bit obsessed. But when you’re dealing with hundreds of paper samples every day, organization is the key to overcoming overwhelm. The paper mills understand this, so they try to make the process of showcasing their products easier via swatchbooks. Over the years the mills have tried to get inventive with their design, the most recent to deviate from the standard format was Mohawk. I give them props for trying something different but honestly the format was not user friendly. So you can imagine my excitement when I learned they were redoing their swatchbooks. The first shipment arrived in The Sample Studio this week and let me just say the new Mohawk Carnival + Via Swatchbook is so worth the wait.

Paper Resource: Neenah Cabinet Update

June 24, 2014June 24, 2014 by Jill DiNicolantonio

You know we love anything that makes accessing paper, and paper info easy. So we were thrilled to see our friends at Neenah just released a new version of their online paper resource tool – Cabinet^TM. Now you can gain access to all of Neenah’s swatchbooks online, so when you need to reference a sheets size, basis weight or color availability you’re not SOL if you don’t have the swatchbook handy.

Paper Inspiration: Strathmore Pure Cotton Letterpress Papers

June 24, 2014May 27, 2014 by Jill DiNicolantonio

I’m not not sure exactly when it happened but at some point during my career I fell head over heels for letterpress. Really, what’s not to love? From a light-weight kiss (slight impression) to an impressive bite (heavy indentation), letterpress imparts a tactile, hand-crafted feel that’s second to none. Which is probably why everyone from … Read more