 Alex Carruthers
working on 18x24" watercolor paper  The 100-ton Press  Dryer section
of the paper machine running a light yellow drawing paper |
One of our favorite papermills is La Papeterie Saint-Armand,
founded by David Carruthers and located in
Montreal. One of the few rag mills left in North America, the
Saint Armand Paper Mill was founded in 1979 to produce handmade
papers in the traditional style, but with “a dash of modern
technology.”
David felt there was room in the paper market for handmade
watercolor and art-printing papers, if the price could
be competitive with good quality machine-made sheets. Today
the Saint Armand staff produce up to 400 sheets per
day of watercolor and etching papers, together with
colored drawing papers, bindery papers and stationery.
Skilled papermakers use handmoulds to form
the sheets one at a time, transferring each sheet, as it is
made to a felt. Since each sheet is made individually on handmolds,
there is no “machine direction” to the paper and
the strength is the same in every direction. Seventy-five sheets
at a time are slid into a 100-ton press and
squeezed to remove the water. After hanging to dry in a cool
room, they are harvested, then weighted to
allow them to mature. Finally the paper is calendered,
or passed through steel rollers to give it the finish required
by the user. Both sides of the sheet are identical, and every
sheet has four genuine deckle edges.
Along with cotton, flax, hemp, jute and linen rag are among the materials selected, the proportion or use
varying by paper.
These are extraordinary pH-balanced sheets,
made with care and a love of fine papermaking. They possess
a quality exemplified by the fact that Saint Armand made custom
calligraphy papers for the Proclamation of the Canadian
Constitution. They are confident the sheets will be
white and strong in 200 years as they are today.
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Saint-Armand Dominion watercolour
In addition to the internal sizing, Dominion Watercolour papers are treated with a surface sizing of gelatin to make them harder.
This paper is good for watercolour, acrylic, ink and embossing. The thick 300lb is recommended for encaustic.
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Handmade white
St. Armand 100% rag paper
A white paper, made of 100% cotton rag in 150lb (320 g/cm²) and rough finish. Good for printmaking, ink, acrylic (sturdy enough, you do not need to use gesso) and embossing.
This sheet resists soaking in water. Water-based colours or inks will not bleed on it. A wide range of formats from 4” x 5” to 6 feet x 10 feet (10.5 cm x 13 cm to 183 cm x 300 cm).
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Old Master drawing & calligraphy paper
Papers made from linen and cotton rags, like paper used in the 17th century. Excellent for calligraphy, and drawing with chalk & sanguine.
They print well in lithography, letterpress, etching and even ink-jet. It has been used for restauration of wallpaper and books. |
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Saint-Armand Colours
Paper made of 100% cotton rags, available in 32 colours. In 150 lb (320g/m²). It is used for printmaking, book making, pastel, drawing and painting, including watercolour. It can be embossed and scored without cracking.
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Sabretooth® sanded pastel paper
Saint-Armand's archival sanded pastel paper comes in nine colours. It is ideal for pastel, but can be used for charcoal and oil pastel. It grabs paint stick pigments and avoids the waxy effect. It has enough resistance to be sanded down to remove some texture on the whole sheet or in sections. It can be scratched with a knife for graffiti effects. It resists vigorous water or turpentine washes. |
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Canal Paper machine-made
Paper made at the mill on Saint-Armand's Fourdrinier machine, using the rag from the offcuts of white tee-shirts & blue denim and flax straw from farmers.
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and more! |
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· Established 1976 · Creative Supplies for Creative People 
