- Wild Cotton (300gsm or 600gsm) is the letterpress stock – thick, textured, with a handmade quality that photographs and feels unmistakably luxurious.
- Matte and Linen (both 300gsm) are the everyday workhorses for digital and metallic print – clean, reliable, and suited to almost any design.
- Kraft (290gsm) is the go-to for rustic and bohemian aesthetics; white ink and digital print both work on it.
- Colour stock (270-300gsm) in navy, black, forest green, burgundy, and more enables dark-romance and moody palettes with white ink or real foil.
- Vellum (180gsm) is translucent – used for white ink printing and as overlay accents; not a standalone invitation weight.
- The $5 sample pack and $20 full swatch kit let you hold papers in person before committing to an order.
Paper is not a background decision. It is the first thing your guests touch when they open the envelope, and it communicates a great deal before they read a single word. A 600gsm Wild Cotton invitation pressed with letterpress says something fundamentally different from a 300gsm matte digital card – and both are correct choices for different weddings. This guide covers every paper type available for wedding invitations, what each one feels and looks like, which print methods work with each, and how to choose the right one for your style and budget.
Why Paper Choice Matters More Than Most Couples Expect
When couples preview invitation designs on screen, they’re seeing color and layout. What they can’t see is weight, texture, or how the paper responds to print. A watercolor design can look similar on Matte 300gsm and Wild Cotton 300gsm on screen – but in hand, they read completely differently. Matte stock has a flat, consistent surface; Wild Cotton has a fibrous, slightly irregular texture with visible cotton content that feels artisanal and handmade.
Three things that paper choice directly affects:
- Print method compatibility – certain print methods only work on specific papers (letterpress requires Wild Cotton; white ink doesn’t work on Blush).
- Visual aesthetic – paper color, texture, and weight all contribute to the overall design even before ink is applied.
- Guest impression – weight and feel communicate quality instantly; a thicker, textured card reads as more considered than a lightweight flat card.
Order the $5 sample pack (seven designs across print methods) or the $20 full swatch kit (all paper stocks including letterpress options) before finalizing your choice. Holding the paper tells you more than any screen can.
Quick Reference: All Paper Types at a Glance
| Paper Stock | Weight | Compatible Print Methods | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wild Cotton | 300gsm / 600gsm | Letterpress, Foil Stamp | Classic, heritage, luxury |
| Premium | 380gsm | Flat Foil, Metallic | Contemporary elegance, formal |
| Matte | 300gsm | Digital, Metallic | Most styles; versatile workhorse |
| Linen | 300gsm | Digital, Metallic | Soft texture; romantic and rustic |
| Metallic stock | Varies | Digital | Bold, contemporary, maximalist |
| Kraft | 290gsm | White Ink, Digital | Rustic, bohemian, earthy |
| Blush | Varies | Digital ONLY | Soft romantic; pink-toned base |
| Vellum | 180gsm | White Ink, Colour Stock + Foil | Translucent overlays, layered effects |
| Colour stock | 270-300gsm | White Ink | Dark romance; moody palettes |
| Colour Stock + Foil | 270gsm / 500gsm | Real foil on coloured card | Luxury dark romance; editorial |
Wild Cotton: The Letterpress Standard
Wild Cotton is Paperlust’s signature stock for letterpress and foil stamp. It’s made with real cotton fiber content, which gives it a subtly irregular surface texture – not rough, but unmistakably different from a coated commercial card. Hold it and you feel the weight and slight give that come from the cotton content.
Wild Cotton 300gsm
The standard letterpress weight. 300gsm is substantially heavier than most commercial paper (printer paper is typically 75-90gsm; standard magazine covers are 100-170gsm), which means it feels premium in hand without being inflexible. It accepts the letterpress impression beautifully, with the pressed type creating clean, defined edges against the fibrous surface.
Wild Cotton 600gsm (Double Thick)
Paperlust’s thickest available stock. 600gsm is genuinely exceptional – it doesn’t bend easily, has real rigidity, and the letterpress impression reads even more dramatically against the extra depth of the stock. When guests hold a 600gsm Wild Cotton invitation, the weight alone communicates that this is a significant occasion. It is the letterpress premium stock.
What you can print on Wild Cotton: Letterpress (single or multiple color) and Foil Stamp. Wild Cotton cannot be used for digital, flat foil, or metallic print – the surface texture is not suited to these print methods.
Aesthetic: Natural, artisanal, heritage, handcrafted. Works best with clean serif type and restrained designs that let the paper and the impressed type do the work.
Premium Stock (380gsm): Flat Foil and Metallic
Premium 380gsm is a smooth, heavy card stock that sits between the relative lightness of Matte (300gsm) and the luxury of Wild Cotton. It’s the right choice for flat foil and metallic print methods when you want substantial weight without the texture of cotton stock.
What it feels like: Smooth, stiff, clean. No visible texture – the surface is even and bright. This consistency is what makes it suitable for foil application: foil bonds best to smooth, consistent surfaces.
What you can print on Premium: Flat Foil and Metallic. The smooth surface allows the metallic foil to apply evenly and the metallic dry toner to sit cleanly.
Aesthetic: Modern elegance, formal luxury, contemporary. The smooth surface with foil or metallic accents reads as sophisticated and current rather than heritage or handcrafted.
Matte Stock (300gsm): The Versatile Standard
Matte 300gsm is the most widely used wedding invitation paper and with good reason. It’s a neutral, consistent surface that works with almost every design style and reproduces color accurately. It’s not exciting on its own – but it gets out of the way of the design, which is often exactly what you want.
What it feels like: Flat, slightly soft surface. No sheen. Fingertips don’t slide on it the way they do on glossy stock. It has a quality mat board quality that photographs cleanly.
What you can print on Matte: Digital print and Metallic print. Full-color designs, photographs, watercolor illustrations – all reproduce faithfully on the flat matte surface.
Aesthetic: Versatile across styles – romantic floral, modern minimalist, bohemian, and destination all work on matte. If you’re choosing based on design first and paper second, Matte 300gsm will almost certainly serve your design well.
Linen Stock (300gsm): Textured for Soft Styles
Linen is the same weight as Matte (300gsm) but with a subtle woven texture embossed into the surface. It reads as more handcrafted than Matte, softer and slightly warmer. The texture is consistent and fine – similar to a natural linen fabric, though smoother.
What it feels like: A slight ribbed texture across the surface. Not rough, but perceptibly different from Matte under fingertips. The texture gives designs printed on it a tactile dimension that flat stocks don’t have.
What you can print on Linen: Digital print and Metallic print. The same methods as Matte, but the linen texture adds a visual and tactile layer that makes simple designs feel richer.
Aesthetic: Romantic, bohemian, soft-classic. Linen works particularly well for floral designs, script-heavy layouts, and anything that benefits from a warm, slightly artisanal quality.
Kraft Stock (290gsm): The Bohemian and Rustic Choice
Kraft is uncoated brown card stock with a warm, earthy tone. It’s the natural-materials choice – think brown paper bags elevated to a fine card weight. Its warm brown base means all printed colors pick up a warm cast, which suits earthy and natural aesthetics and produces a specific quality that cannot be replicated on other stocks.
What it feels like: Slightly rougher than Matte. The uncoated surface has a natural, dry texture. It’s 290gsm – slightly lighter than Matte and Linen, but the density of the stock keeps it from feeling flimsy.
What you can print on Kraft: White Ink and Digital. White ink on the kraft brown surface is a particularly striking combination – the white reads cleanly against the warm brown without any bleaching or correction needed. Digital print on kraft produces colors with a warmer cast due to the brown substrate.
Aesthetic: Rustic, bohemian, earthy, natural, artisanal. If your wedding has a barn, garden, vineyard, outdoor, or wilderness setting, Kraft almost certainly belongs in your shortlist.
Blush Stock: Soft Pink Base for Romantic Styles
Blush is a light pink-toned card stock where the color itself is part of the design. Rather than printing pink onto white card, you start with a pink base and print over it. This means the paper tone integrates into the design at a fundamental level.
Important compatibility note: Blush is available for Digital print only. White ink does not work on Blush stock – the ink does not achieve sufficient contrast against the pink tone. Do not plan a white ink design for Blush paper.
What it feels like: Similar to Matte stock in surface quality, but in a dusty rose/blush pink tone. The color is subtle – a soft, warm pink rather than a saturated rose.
Aesthetic: Romantic, feminine, soft. Works particularly well for designs with floral motifs, watercolor elements, and palettes built around dusty rose, champagne, and soft sage.
Vellum (180gsm): Translucent Overlay
Vellum is a translucent, lightweight stock (180gsm) that allows whatever is behind it to show through partially. This translucency is what makes it useful: as an overlay on a printed invitation, the text on the vellum layer is visible against both the vellum and the card below, creating a layered, ethereal effect. As a standalone invitation stock, vellum is too lightweight to read as a quality piece.
What it feels like: Smooth, slightly stiff despite its lightness. The translucency is immediately apparent when held to light. It has a cool, slightly crisp quality that contrasts with the warmth of cotton or kraft stocks.
What you can print on Vellum: White Ink and Colour Stock + Foil (as a vellum option). Digital printing on vellum is not standard at Paperlust – the translucency creates complexity in how colors read.
Aesthetic: Ethereal, romantic, layered. Vellum overlays have become one of the stronger trends in wedding stationery in 2025-2026, particularly paired with wildflower or pressed-botanical designs where the transparency creates a sense of depth.
Colour Stocks: Dark Romance and Moody Palettes
Paperlust’s colour stock collection provides deep, saturated background colors that are impossible to replicate by printing color onto white card. These are the foundation of the dark romance aesthetic.
Colour stock (270-300gsm) for White Ink
Available in: cobalt, aqua, black, navy, forest green, violet, burgundy, and grey. White ink is printed onto these dark stocks, producing a clean, bright white against the saturated background. The effect reads as bold, luxurious, and visually arresting.
Colour Stock + Foil (270gsm and 500gsm)
European coloured card with real metallic foil applied. Available colors include red, black, navy, and vellum. The 500gsm weight is among the most substantial options in the entire stationery category – it has the same physical presence as a premium business card, but as a full invitation. Gold foil on black 500gsm stock is one of the most dramatic and impactful invitation formats available.
Note: Colour Stock + Foil is ECF/FSC certified. This matters for couples with sustainability considerations.
Paper Weight: What GSM Numbers Mean in Practice
GSM stands for grams per square meter – a standardized measure of paper weight and, roughly, thickness. Here’s a practical reference:
| GSM Range | Common Reference | Paperlust Paper at This Weight |
|---|---|---|
| 75-90gsm | Standard office printer paper | – |
| 100-170gsm | Magazine covers, standard flyers | – |
| 180gsm | Lightweight premium card | Vellum |
| 270-300gsm | Substantial card; most wedding invitations | Matte, Linen, Kraft, Wild Cotton (300), Colour Stock |
| 380gsm | Heavy card; premium business cards | Premium |
| 500gsm | Very heavy card; specialty formats | Colour Stock + Foil (500gsm) |
| 600gsm | Extremely heavy; double-thick card | Wild Cotton Double Thick (letterpress) |
Choosing Your Paper: A Decision Framework
- What print method are you using? Letterpress = Wild Cotton only. Foil stamp = Wild Cotton or specialty textured. Flat foil = Premium 380gsm. Metallic = Matte or Premium. Digital = Matte, Linen, Kraft, Blush, Metallic stock. White ink = Kraft, Vellum, Colour stock (not Blush).
- What is your aesthetic? Classic/heritage = Wild Cotton. Romantic/soft = Matte or Linen or Blush. Rustic/bohemian = Kraft. Dark romance/moody = Colour stock or Colour Stock + Foil. Contemporary/editorial = Premium or Metallic stock.
- Do you want to feel the paper before ordering? Yes: order the $5 sample pack (seven design samples) or $20 full swatch kit (all paper stocks). No other decision aids compare to holding the actual paper.
Sustainability and Paper Sourcing
Paperlust plants a tree with every order, offsetting each order’s environmental footprint. The Colour Stock + Foil papers are ECF (Elemental Chlorine Free) and FSC-certified, meeting forest management and sourcing standards. For couples with specific sustainability requirements, contact Paperlust’s customer service team to discuss which stocks best meet your criteria.
Wild Cotton’s cotton fiber content means it’s made from a natural, renewable material rather than wood pulp exclusively – a meaningful distinction for environmentally-conscious couples who also want the letterpress experience.
Browse by Print Method
Ready to find your design? Browse the full wedding invitations collection or filter directly by print method to see designs already matched to the papers they work best on:
- Letterpress on Wild Cotton
- Foil stamp
- Flat foil on Premium
- Digital print (Matte, Linen, Kraft, Blush)
- White ink on dark stocks
- Metallic print
About This Guide
Paper specifications in this guide are sourced directly from Paperlust’s verified paper catalog, cross-checked against the live website (May 2026). GSM weights, print method compatibility, and color availability are confirmed by the Paperlust production team. The practical descriptions of how each stock feels and performs under different print methods are based on physical product samples from Paperlust’s Melbourne studio, where all printing is produced.
Sources: Paperlust paper catalog (verified May 2026); Paperlust production team consultation; paperlust.co/paper-types/ (verified March 2026).
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best paper for letterpress wedding invitations?
Wild Cotton is the only paper available for letterpress at Paperlust, and it’s the correct choice. The cotton fiber content creates the slightly irregular surface that accepts the letterpress impression beautifully. Choose 300gsm for a premium result; choose 600gsm (Double Thick) for the most luxurious feel.
Can I use white ink on blush paper?
No. White ink is not compatible with Blush stock at Paperlust. If you want white ink, choose Kraft, Vellum, or one of the dark Colour stocks (navy, black, forest green, burgundy, etc.). If you want a blush-toned invitation, choose Digital print on Blush stock with any color ink including light and white-adjacent tones in the design.
What does 600gsm feel like?
It’s thick – noticeably so. 600gsm Wild Cotton Double Thick has real rigidity and weight. It doesn’t curl or flex the way lighter cards do. Holding it communicates quality before the guest reads a word. If you want the most substantial physical impression, 600gsm is the choice.
Is vellum strong enough for a wedding invitation on its own?
At 180gsm, vellum is too lightweight to stand alone as a primary invitation card for most formal weddings. It’s best used as an overlay on a heavier base card, or as a secondary enclosure element. The translucency that makes it attractive is also the reason it needs to be layered with a heavier piece.
What paper should I choose if I want a dark background?
Colour stock in your preferred dark tone (navy, black, forest green, burgundy). Do not try to print a dark background color onto white card stock – the result never achieves the depth and saturation of a paper that is that color throughout. Colour Stock + Foil in the 500gsm weight gives the most luxurious result for dark-background invitations.
Which paper is most eco-friendly?
Wild Cotton’s cotton fiber content makes it a renewable-material choice. Colour Stock + Foil papers carry ECF and FSC certification. Paperlust also plants a tree with every order. For the most comprehensive sustainability information, contact Paperlust’s customer service team directly.
How do I decide between Matte and Linen?
If your design is clean and modern, Matte. If your design is soft, romantic, or floral, Linen – the subtle texture adds warmth and depth to those aesthetics. Both are 300gsm and support the same print methods (Digital and Metallic). The difference is tactile and visual, not structural. Order the sample pack to compare them in person.