St Cuthberts Mill, the new Somerset and Bockingford additions to DPSB

St Cuthberts Mill began in 1736 in the ancient Cathedral City of Wells in Somerset, England, St Cuthbert’s specialises in the highest quality artist papers and has maintained these standards in every aspect. The mill is long-established with experienced papermakers using a traditional cylinder mould machine originally built in 1907, it is one of only a handful of mills across Europe that use such machines in papermaking to this day. This process involves a highly diluted mixture of pulp and water being fed into the vat, which is then combined through uniflow and contraflow to form a fibrous web on the cylinder mould. The sheet is transferred to the wet end of the machine with a suction roll located at the highest point of the cylinder mould.

The mill itself lies on the River Axe, the water flows down through the Mendip Hills and is naturally filtered. It then comes out at the mouth of the caves at Wookey Hole, so when the water arrives here it is naturally very clean. Because of the mill’s proximity to the water source, it means the properties of the water are very consistent. Furthermore, the water is even filtered in the sand, for all the silt to be removed which could ruin the colour and quality of the paper produced. After using the water in production, St Cuthberts Mill returns clean water to the river having removed all solids and papermaking by-products.

The River Axe is home to Trout beside the mill as the water carries the highest level of classification for cleanliness and biodiversity. They also ensure the material going into the paper is the very best. The wood is only used from sustainable sources: no rainforests are harmed in the making of the paper, the pulp is oxygen bleached and elemental chlorine free, the cotton linters come from the by-product of the textile industry, and all materials are screened in the mill to ensure the minimal environmental effect.

St Cuthberts produced some of the best quality inkjet papers on the market, and they are available with DPSB

Somerset Enhanced Paper

This paper is a traditional mould, made from 100% cotton to high archival standards, providing a paper with a genuine heritage. It is also acid-free and has a low amount of optical brightening agents. Created to give artists and photographers an authentic fine art inkjet paper, it is capable of producing impressive images. This is a stunning matte paper, with an invisible inkjet coating, whose textured surface will lift images and also give them a beautifully elegant fine art feel. Furthermore, it is available at 225gsm, 255gsm, or 330gsm; in Satin, Velvet, Radiant White Velvet, Radiant White Textured or Radiant White Satin.

Somerset Photo Paper

This paper is a traditional mould. Made from 100% cotton to high archival standards, providing a paper with a genuine heritage. It also has a high D-Max and a low amount of optical brightening agents.
Developed to give professional photographers a fine art inkjet paper with excellent colour rendition and exceptional dark and grey tones. Therefore, the superior inkjet coating gives amazing detail on an exquisite smooth matte surface, with subtle hints of surface texture. It is available at 300gsm.

Bockingford Inkjet Fine Art Paper

This paper is a traditional mould. Made from 100% wood-free bleached chemical pulp to high archival standards, providing a paper with a genuine heritage. It is acid-free and has no optical brightening agents. The paper has the same beautiful surface as the original Bockingford watercolour paper. The Bockingford inkjet has an ink receptive coating on both sides making it very durable and resistant to scuffs and scratches. Therefore ideal for books and portfolios. It is available at 190gsm.

We do have some samples available for many of these products, so if you are interested, would like some further information or guidance feel free to email: henry@dpsb.co.uk, call: 02030060300, or continue to browse our website: www.dpsb.co.uk, we are always happy to help out.