Hi everyone, it’s Miriam from JetPens, here to talk more about Japan’s paper culture.
If you haven’t seen our first video on this topic, click the card above.
In this video, we’ll shine a spotlight on washi—a historically and culturally significant paper in Japan.
Plus, we’ll talk about Tomoe River paper, which took the fountain pen community by storm,
and discuss its future (don’t worry: it’s good news!).
What is Washi?
Washi literally translates to “Japanese paper.”
It’s paper that’s made with natural fibers, most commonly sourced from the paper mulberry bush.
Just like any paper, washi has tons of different uses.
If you’re a stationery fan, you’re probably most familiar with washi in the form of washi tape.
This paper tape is repositionable, semitransparent, and easy to tear by hand.
Washi tape was originally created by mt, and it’s still the most famous washi tape brand today.
mt is known for their eye-catching tapes in a variety of different colors and patterns.
Washi is also used for letter writing and calligraphy.
Midori Volume Washi Letter Pads have paper that are delicately printed in four different colors.
The lightly textured sheets are delightfully tactile.
They’re a pleasure to write on with pencils, but other writing instruments like gel pens and ballpoint pens work well too.
A History of Washi
Washi’s existence dates back to the 7th century, when mulberry branches were incorporated into paper production.
Mulberry branches were already used in textiles to make them stronger,
and the inclusion of mulberry fibers in paper made them more durable too.
Washi was used for calligraphy, important documents, and much more.
Today, washi continues to be a historically significant part of Japanese culture.
Some washi makers still create washi by hand,
using traditional techniques that have been developed through centuries of experience.
The city of Mino is renowned for its honminoshi, a high quality paper made exclusively by skilled artisans.
JetPens carries Furukawashiko— a stationery company based in Mino.
While they don’t use actual honminoshi in their letter sets, they are proud to source their washi from local manufacturers.
Japanese Paper Characteristics
With such a long history in paper production, Japanese paper manufacturers really know their stuff.
In part one of this series, we already talked about how manufacturers focus on the smallest details in order to meet their customers’ high expectations for quality.
Many companies have adjusted their paper formulations to make sure that they’re perfect.
The stationery company Kobeha tested dozens of iterations of their Graphilo paper to make sure that it had all the characteristics they were searching for.
You might think that Graphilo paper is a heavy paper due to its resistance to ink,
but it’s only about 5 gsm heavier than standard printer paper.
A common misconception we’ve seen is that thicker paper is automatically better paper,
but that doesn’t have to be the case: a 120 gsm paper doesn’t have to be better than 90 gsm paper.
And there’s no place where that’s more true than in the one paper that shatters all paper weight expectations:
Tomoe River Paper.
Fountain pen enthusiasts are sure to be familiar with Tomoe River paper, a lightweight paper that is just 52 gsm.
In comparison, standard printer paper is usually at least 75 gsm—
and other fountain pen friendly paper like Rhodia Premium “R” comes in at a whopping 90 gsm!
If you’re used to heavier paper, Tomoe River paper might feel a little insubstantial or even fragile.
But don’t be fooled: this paper is one of the best papers for fountain pens.
Just look at how it performs compared to printer paper and Rhodia Premium “R” paper.
Tomoe River paper has excellent ink resistance.
Inks take longer to dry and there’s more showthrough,
but the tradeoff for such excellent color payoff is worth it.
Tomoe River paper might be pretty awesome, but its light weight might not be for everyone.
Some other fountain pen friendly papers like Kobeha Graphilo and Cosmo Air paper
both show off shading and sheen well.
A History of Tomoe River Paper and What’s Next?
Tomoe River paper wasn’t originally made as a fountain pen friendly paper.
In fact, it was a complete coincidence!
Tomoe River paper was created as a specialty paper for mailable flyers and magazines.
The paper needed to be lightweight and have excellent color reproduction,
and these characteristics just so happened to make the fountain pen community fall in love.
However, if your notebooks that use Tomoe River paper,
you probably know that the paper has had a rough time lately.
A few years ago, the manufacturers switched paper production to new machines.
It definitely didn’t help that rumors started,
which said that Tomoegawa was considering discontinuing Tomoe River paper entirely!
We have great news though!
A company called Sanzen purchased the rights to manufacture Tomoe River paper.
We’ve tested this new paper—which is tentatively called Successor—and we’re really impressed with it.
It performs very similarly to original Tomoe River paper, and feels similar as well!
Companies that use Tomoe River paper will slowly cycle through remaining stock before swapping to Successor paper.
Is there a Japanese paper that you love? Let us know in the comments below.
You can shop all the items mentioned in this video at JetPens.com, the place for stationery lovers.
Thanks for watching!