Today is Earth Day

 Earth Day is an annual event first held on April 22, 1970. It now includes a wide range of events coordinated globally by EARTHDAY.ORG including 1 billion people in more than 193 countries.

What better day to tell you about our new range from FAVINI called Sparto made using Esparto grass, post-consumer waste and bagasse, the by-product of sugar cane processing.

Sparto is Favini’s new eco-friendly paper, made with alternative fibers and without tree cellulose. It takes its name from esparto, a perennial grass that thrives in hot, arid climates and acts as a natural barrier against desertification.

Sparto sustainable paper is perfect for creating luxury packaging, high-quality printing and sustainable design projects. Sparto’s eight colours are inspired by the natural environment that we help to protect with this truly special paper.

Detail images showing the inclusions in the paper:

Sparto is FSC™ certified and made with 100% self-produced hydroelectric energy. It contains esparto fibre, post-consumer recycled material and bagasse, the by-product of sugar cane processing.

Design and art direction of the swatches is by Silk Pearce. If you would like a copy of the Sparto swatch, just ask me for one! Email justin@fennerpaper.co.uk

https://www.earthday.org/

https://www.favini.com/gs/en/ 

https://www.silkpearce.com/ 

Posted by Justin Hobson 22.04.2026

London Packaging Week 2026 - don't miss us!

Over ten years ago, Easyfairs launched Packaging Innovations London and Luxury Packaging London, creating a meeting place for packaging designers, technologists and suppliers in the capital. Changed in 2022 to London Packaging Week – This year it is being held at Excel in London and is in a couple of weeks time on 15th and 16th October. It's a great show which brings a sharp focus on packaging development for the capital’s key luxury and FMCG markets.

Although we don't have a stand this year, we will be there together with our suppliers including FAVINI and also Kapag & Oppboga who make the amazing FibreForm® paperboard which we launched in the UK last year:

...as you can see, it can be embossed or debossed to three times it's own thickness without breaking!

Please visit the Favini stand and also the Kapag|Oppboga stand, we hope to see you there! 

https://www.londonpackagingweek.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 07.10.2025

Crush - a truly sustainable paper

Many of you will know about our lovely range called CRUSH made by Favini in Italy. The paper is made partly using the residue from the industrial processing of crushed citrus fruit, coffee, nuts, olives, kiwi, corn, lavender cherries and grapes, these agro-industrial "end of life" products replacing up to 15% of conventional tree pulp. The range is available in 100, 120, 200, 250 and 350gsm and the shades are natural, earthy tones and the feel of the paper is natural and tactile.

The 15% process residues are combined with 40% recycled fibres (post consumer waste) and the remainder is FSC virgin pulp and the product is FSC certified. The range is produced using green energy and is carbon balanced at the mill gate (we can also supply the paper in the UK, certified as carbon balanced)

This is the current swatch which shows the colours and range of weights...

Below are more detailed images and hopefully you can see the small specs and inclusions in the paper. Corn, Citrus, Cocoa and Grape, pictured below, are totally natural shades produced without the use of any dies, which can result in an amount of shade variation from batch to batch.

Click on images to enlarge

The deeper shades are produced with the addition of environmentally friendly vegetable dies which ensure greater colour consistency...

...and the latest addition to the range is Crush Coconut, which is a lovely shade of black

Design and art direction is by Silk Pearce.

If you would like a copy of the current swatch, just ask me for one! Email justin@fennerpaper.co.uk

https://www.favini.com/gs/en/products/crush/

Posted by Justin Hobson 10.10.2024

Print by Veronica Ditting in Japan

The work of creative director and designer Veronica Ditting is being shown at a new exhibition in Kyoto, Japan. The show is titled ‘Folio Folio Folio: Print by Veronica Ditting’ and it celebrates her influential career so far by bringing together a variety of her print work from the last 20 years. The content includes a variety of printed materials, including books, magazines, other publications, and exhibition designs. The custom made exhibition stands designed for this exhibition are set up at different heights and orientations, allowing the works to be viewed from various perspectives, thereby highlighting the materiality and three-dimensionality of the works. The printed materials collected in the gallery create a landscape, highlighting the essential characteristics of Veronica's work as a collective.

Image courtesy of Veronica Ditting

The exhibition – curated by London-based design historian Emily King – spans two decades of print projects including her time at The Gentlewoman where she worked for 12 years together with other influential printed matter for the world’s biggest brands.

The custom made exhibition stands have all been made by hand at Studio Veronica Ditting in London using SUMO White 1.5mm which is made by Favini and supplied by Fenner Paper!

Image courtesy of Veronica Ditting

Kyoto ddd gallery was formerly DNP Duo Dojima (ddd), a gallery specializing in graphic design and graphic art, established in 1991 in Dojima, Osaka, for the cultural activities of Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. The name was changed to the current name when it moved to Kyoto in 2014. ddd Gallery seeks to expand the boundaries between graphic design and art by reading the new era trends and discovering new forms of creativity through exchange and dialogue.

‘Folio Folio Folio: Print by Veronica Ditting’ runs until 28 July 2024. 

https://www.dnpfcp.jp/gallery/ddd/

https://www.dnpfcp.jp/gallery/ddd_e/aboutus/

https://studioveronicaditting.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 21.06.2024

Bamboo Paper

Our friends at the Favini paper mill in Italy pioneered the use of alternative fibres. In the 1990's Maggie Philbin on BBC Tomorrow's World (...do you remember that?) introduced the original Favini ecological paper Alga Carta and the mill has continued development of other eco-products over the last thirty years.

Tree Free has been setting the standards for papermaking with zero impact on forestry for more than twenty years. Now with an improved recipe and a refreshed range that includes a new 380 gsm weight ideal for tags, cards and packaging, Tree Free uses 75% Bamboo Fibres with 25% cotton linters. Both are renewable annual crops which yield high quality fibres giving a natural tactile finish to the paper and excellent printability. 

To complete the story of sustainability, Tree Free is recyclable, biodegradable and made using EKOenergy from a hydro electric power station. Tree Free carries the FSC™ certification, even though like the name implies it has no impact on forests.

It is available in two shades, Bamboo Natural and Bamboo Cream. If you would like one of these lovely swatches, please email me: justin@fennerpaper.co.uk

https://www.favini.com/gs/en/

Posted by Justin Hobson 25.03.2024

Made by Shannon

Here is a lovely selection of cards from Made by Shannon...

This greeting card publishers is run by a lovely lady called Shannon and they are based in Surrey. The below card is printed on our CRUSH Grape 250gsm

Click on images to enlarge

Above is a more detailed image and hopefully you can see the small specs and inclusions in the paper. Crush is made partly using the residue from the industrial processing of agro-industrial "end of life" products replacing up to 15% of conventional tree pulp. The 15% process residues are combined with 40% recycled fibres (post consumer waste) and the remainder is FSC virgin pulp and the product is FSC certified. The range is produced using green energy and is carbon balanced at the mill gate (we can also supply the paper in the UK, certified as carbon balanced)

The A6 cards are printed and hot foil blocked in-house, where they have letterpress and a 1980's hot foil blocker which is used on cards and envelopes. However, they also sometimes just hand apply gold leaf as you can in the small embellishment below.

The above SIXTEEN TODAY card is printed on our Colorset Storm 270gsm. The beautifully hot foiled envelopes are made using Colorset Storm 120gsm.

...which also have a superb embossing on the flap:

At this time of year, personalised Christmas cards are in great demand and below is an example printed on our CRUSH Kiwi 250gsm.

Click on images to enlarge

Thank you to Shannon for sending me this selection and if you would like to see her range of cards and gifts, you can see them HERE.

https://www.madebyshannon.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 13.12.2023

SUMO - up to 3mm thick!

SUMO is our a heavyweight, thick board manufactured by FAVINI in Italy. It is available in black and white and the consists of 1mm, 1.5mm, 2mm up to a whopping 3mm thick  ...seriously chunky! Originally just in Black and White, the range has now been extended to include a small range of colours - five shades all available in 1mm thick and below is the new lighter weight swatch...

 Size of the swatch is 240x152mm with 10mm spine

Thanks to the dyeing process, the colour distribution is consistent throughout to give excellent results especially when the edge is visible. The finest quality makes Sumo perform excellently for invitations, tags, covers, business cards, luxury POS material and high-end packaging.

The SUMO range is FSC certified. Below shows the five new shades, all available in 1mm thick.

If you would like samples, please drop me an email: justin@fennerpaper.co.uk

https://www.favini.com/gs/en/products/sumo/

Posted by Justin Hobson 13.09.2023

Crush for Christmas Crackers!

Luisa Vicinanza-Bedi only started learning how to make bean to bar chocolate in 2017. Since then she has established her own shop Luisa's Vegan Chocolates based in Sneinton Market, Nottingham and has a strong online presence. Luisa has also picked up a handful of awards at the Academy of Chocolate including  ‘UK Rising Star’ in 2019.

Photographs courtesy of Luisa's Vegan Chocolates

As part of Luisa's special Christmas offerings, she has produced Christmas Crackers - packed full of goodies and all products happen to be vegan too!

Photographs courtesy of Luisa's Vegan Chocolates

These beautiful crackers are printed on our CRUSH range of papers, made using 15% agro-industrial residues combined with post consumer waste and virgin fibre (all FSC accredited). The cracker body is using Crush Corn 200gsm and the chocolate box wraps are 120gsm. They are superbly digitally printed and foiled by Rose Press in Nottingham, who also specialise in Wedding stationery.

Photographs courtesy of Luisa's Vegan Chocolates

Luisa's Vegan Chocolates is the first and only Bean-To-Bar chocolate maker in Nottingham, taking her chocolate through the delicate artisan process by hand. Luisa directly sources her beans to pay her farmers a better than FairTrade price for their crop, at least double the standard market rate which is wonderful.

It's not Christmas yet but you can always buy some chocolate now and support an ethical small enterprise!... You can buy online HERE.

https://luisasveganchocolates.co.uk/

https://www.rosepress.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 18.08.2023

Orange Peel

Orange Peel is a publication with one goal... to put a smile on the readers face. It is designed to provide a sense of joy through positive content. Issue No.1 is an accumulation of artistic forms, including photography, illustration, painting, screen prints, poems and interviews. These transform the publication into a collectable work of art that provides the reader with an experience.

“Orange Peel” is the final major project by Alice Emery, a graduating student from the Arts University Bournemouth on the BA (Hons) Fashion Branding and Communications course.

Orange Peel features our Crush Citrus 120gsm, which is paper made using residues (15%) from the processing of citrus fruit and juicing process in Italy. This is sustainably sourced paper from Favini that uses waste and recycled fibres reduces the number of trees required to make the paper.

Crush Citrus 120gsm forms most of the text pages and is combined with other papers from that other well known "Hull based" paper merchant! (GF Smith)

Alice says..."These colourful pages of artwork make the publication feel more vibrant with a happy tone with the textures providing a tactile experience to ground the reader. The publication is size 270x360mm. This large format compliments the artwork in the publication making it feel important. The publication is bound with two short wire bindings allowing the pages to lay flat to fully appreciate the artwork on each page for an easy reading experience. To open the publication there is a wrap around using orange ric rac trim that the reader needs to unpeel to get to the content inside. This changes the way the reader interacts with the publication providing a tactile experience they can get their hands on and enjoy!"

Alice Emery is from Portsmouth and has always loved being creative, enjoying painting and drawing in her spare time. She has just graduated with first class degree BA (Hons) Fashion Branding & Communications. 

“Orange Peel” was a real passion project for me bringing together my love of art and fashion into creating a carefully crafted publication including content creation, branding and marketing. I am hoping to launch my career in fashion marketing using these skills and developing my practice.

The publication was digitally printed by Dayfold in Dorset with silkscreened additions.

Congratulations to Alice on a very accomplished piece of work and our best wishes for a successful career ahead.

https://www.graduatefashionweek.com/search-portfolios/alice-emery

Posted by Justin Hobson 14.07.2023

Remake

If you aren't familiar with our REMAKE range from Favini, read on...

This paper really is unique as it is made partly using the discarded residue of the leather manufacturing process and is a revolutionary example of ‘upcycling’.

The dictionary definition of ‘upcycling’ is to reuse discarded objects or materials in such a way as to create a product of higher quality or value than the origin. Remake is leather ‘upcycling’ on an industrial scale and represents the latest frontier in upcycling in the paper sector. This unique and innovative paper replaces 25% of wood tree pulp with leather residues.

Click on images to enlarge

The range comes in six natural shades and in weights from 120gsm and with three shades available in 520gsm! Remake is not only a unique paper made of leather: it’s also 100% recyclable and compostable, and perfectly suited to luxury printing and packaging.

Click on images to enlarge

The residues, which are visible on the surface (as you can see in the above image) give the paper its distinctive look and its amazing soft and velvety feel. Remake contains 40% of post-consumer waste, is also FSC accredited and the leather by-products are sourced from traceable Italian origin.

Favini have also produced an "inspiration booklet" titled Up-Cycling. The book shows different print examples, including foiling, silkscreen, offset printing etc...

Favini won the top award at the European Recycling Awards in 2017. The awards are organised by the European Paper Recycling Council (EPRC) and the ceremony was held at the European Parliament in Brussels!

If you would like a swatch or print booklet, email me: Justin@fennerpaper.co.uk

Posted by Justin Hobson 30.03.2023