On a totally non-holiday note, I found out about the The Paper Place’s huge Chiyogami giveaway by way of a couple of blogs I read on a regular basis and figured it would only be right to share!

Black and white album, blue burst on chocolate journal, green and yellow striped journal

Chiyogami papers are Japanese silkscreened decorative papers with intricate, rich patterns, and I use a lot of these papers for the covers of my books. The papers have a wonderful, subtle texture to them and if you have a chance to see some of them in person, you’ll know exactly why I love them.

Though I use a lot of Japanese materials, I still have a lot to learn about the specific processes and history (isn’t there always more to know?!?), and these sorts of papers are new territory for a lot of people, so here’s a little more background on what exactly Chiyogami paper is. Besides having an incredible assortment of intricate and beautiful patterns, the paper itself is very forgiving, and a joy to work with for bookbinding purposes, and I also use it a lot for decorative additions to letterpress projects.

Enjoy taking a peek!