So all the crafty video people (the ones I YouTube stalk - um pursue - stalking is a crime) are always touting the virtues of Neenah Solar White 110lb card stock. How copic friendly it is and wonderful it is to color on, etc.... Well I couldn't find it at Michaels, and I couldn't find it at Joann's, so I thought I would try Office Max....And while I didn't see "Neenah Solar White", I did find this "Neenah Exact Index".
A ream of the Neenah Exact Index, 110 lb. cost $17.43. I did wince a little at the price because THAT is a lot for a ream of 250sheets. But I figured I would be using them in Quarter sheets, and I really thought this was the paper everyone was raving about.
It turns out I was wrong! The paper everyone was really talking about was the Neenah Solar White, 110 lb (not the same as Neenah Exact Index!). A ream of 250 sheets cost $57.10. *jaw on the floor* I know, right?! That shopping trip was expensive! had to hunt down this ream of Neenah Solar White from The Kelly Paper Store. (FYI- after I made my purchase I found it cheaper on the SimonSaysStamp website!)
You're probably saying "Silly Amanda - both are white, both are 110lb, both have 250 sheets/ream, BOTH are Neenah brand! How different could they be?!*
My answer is "Not that different at all...." Smh...
Yes, the Solar White is nearly 3 times the cost, and while the paper is the same weight, the solar white is actually thicker. I'm not sure how paper thickness and weight correspond....
ANYWAY - after a copic coloring test using some fantastic Lawn Fawn stamps and My Favorite Things Black Licorice Hybrid ink - the difference was so minimal - I don't think it would matter to me if I used the Exact Index as my primary coloring paper forever and always going forward...
I do feel like the markers blended better on the Solar White, but again...it was minimally better than the Exact Index. I think I will save $39.67 and use the Exact index.
Because most of my coloring adventures wind up on A2 size cards, I usually cut down my 8.5x11 cardstock into Quarter Sheets measuring 4.25x5.5. So naturally I had to breakout the cost my quarter sheet too...
Cost per Quarter sheet:
250 full sheets x 4 = 1,000 quarter sheets.
Neenah Exact Index: $17.43/1,000 = $0.017 per quarter sheet
Neenah Solar White : $57.10/1,000 = $0.057 per quarter sheet
Cost per A2 size card base:
250 full sheets x 2 card bases/full sized sheets = 500 A2 size card bases
Neenah Exact Index: $17.43/500= $0.035 per A2 size card base
Neenah Solar White : $57.10/500 = $0.114 per A2 size card base.
So if you like math - the numbers might sway you one way or the other.
