The Paper choice step picks one paper that's used for every print in the drop. The AI curator picks the paper it thinks suits each artwork and flags it as Recommended, but you can override and pick any paper in the catalogue.
Where to find it
- During wizard setup — after Framing Options. Paper selection runs once the AI has analysed your artwork during framing, so its recommendations can be surfaced on the paper card.
- After publishing — Drop List (sidebar) → your drop's card → Edit → the Paper choice tile on the Edit Options hub.
The 9 papers offered
Giclée — Art Paper (7)
- Hahnemühle Photo Rag — super-matte cotton-based paper, chalky smooth texture, muted blacks, excellent detail. Suits graphic illustration, digital and pop art.
- Hahnemühle German Etching — heavyweight, slightly warm base, strong mottled texture. Suits watercolours, charcoal and pencil.
- Ilford Cotton Textured — highly textured, white uncoated base, strong blacks, distinct fine-art feel. A softer alternative to German Etching.
- Hahnemühle Bamboo — eco-friendly, warm-toned, smooth surface, high colour density and a wide gamut. Suits nature and warm-toned work.
- Canson Baryta — pure white, silky smooth, reflective coating. Excellent for high-contrast images and dramatic colour with deep blacks.
- Hahnemühle Pearl — smooth orange-peel texture, satin finish, vibrant colour reproduction. Suits vibrant colour photography.
- Epson Semi Gloss — resin-coated, robust semi-gloss flat surface, vibrant colours. A budget photographic + fine-art crossover.
C-Type — Photographic Paper (2)
- Fuji Matt — semi-matte finish, slight stipple. Natural colours, three-dimensional feel.
- Fuji Gloss — punchy, rich, high-contrast, sharp definition.
C-Type papers are never AI-recommended — the curator only picks from the Giclée range. Choose a C-Type yourself if you want a true photographic finish.
How to pick
- Open the Paper choice card.
- The card lists papers ranked best-first. Any paper the AI picked carries a Recommended pill (Sparkles icon).
- The top 3 are shown by default; click See other papers (N) to expand the rest.
- Click a paper card to select it.
- Click Continue to confirm.
How the recommendation works
The curator analyses each artwork and picks exactly one Giclée paper for it. So:
- A single-artwork drop has one paper flagged Recommended.
- A multi-artwork drop ranks every distinct paper the curator picked across its artworks; each of those is flagged Recommended, top-ranked first.
Whatever it picks, you still choose one paper for the whole drop.
A note on choosing
- Graphic illustration / digital / pop art → Hahnemühle Photo Rag.
- Watercolours / charcoal / pencil → German Etching or Ilford Cotton Textured.
- High-contrast or dramatic colour → Canson Baryta.
- Vibrant colour photography → Hahnemühle Pearl, or C-Type Fuji Gloss for a photographic finish.
- Eco-conscious / warm-toned work → Hahnemühle Bamboo.
If you're unsure, order a sample pack from theprintspace before launching — see How to order paper samples.
One paper per drop
You can't mix papers within a drop. If you want to offer customers a paper choice, run separate drops for each paper, or offer it via your underlying Shopify store with separate product variants — see How to let customers choose the paper for their print.