Home  The Library Product Reviews Park Lane Papers |
 Scrapbooking papers are still mostly designed by Americans. This week I'd like to take a look at one of the British paper design lines, Park Lane Paper. Their new range, called London Honeymoon, is unique in that it is designed and made in England. Acid/Lignin free, softly coloured, and suitable for printing on, chalking, tearing -- everything you would expect from a quality scrapbook paper range.
The paper are designed by Shan Lawrence who owns and operates Park Lane Paper. There are 5 designs in the range -- Westminster (in daylight and at dusk), Trafalger Square, Tower Bridge, and The Tower. Each paper features a full page photographic-style image inspired by tinted postcards of the 1920/30's which has a misty, almost watercolor feel to it. The paper is a good weight (not cardstock weight, however, so you may want a backing piece of card if you plan to use it as the base of a layout) and the photos are lovely.
The paper is very understated, and shouldn't overwhelm your photos in the least! Shan says: "I've had some feedback that people don't want to cover the image with photos, so they have trouble getting started" but I think that her tips for working with this unique line are good and worth mentioning here:
- Use chalks to change the color of the sky to match your photos
- Age the paper with chalks, inks or sandpaper for an even more muted feel
- Use the paper for wartime or heritage layouts (I think sepia toned prints would be wonderful on any one of these papers!)
- Cut elements out of the paper (like cutting out Big Ben to use on a "passage of time" layout, leaving the bridge for use on another layout!
 There is a small gallery of ideas on the site, as well as a list of stockists. I hope this is a trend -- that we will soon be seeing more and more UK designers creating papers with a distinctly British feel.
Here's one of my layouts using the paper. I keep getting asked who the kid is -- it's actually Jack, at a vintage photo shoot a friend of mine arranged when Jack was 3. The photographer brought old fashioned clothes and hats and the kids played dress up. Great fun, and perfect for the papers!
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