Types of crepe paper

There are many different types of crepe paper. Here I have tried to give you a short overview of the most important ones and what to use them for. 

About Italian crepe paper

The Italian crepe paper is the most common crepe paper. It is - as the name suggests - produced in Italy. The largest manufacturer is Cartotecnica Rossi. I usually buy my Italian crepe paper directly from the Cartotecnica Rossi website (not sponsored!) where you can choose from all their colours. However, they only send their crepe paper in large cardboard boxes - so if you only want to buy only a few rolls, it's better to buy through various local websites - try seaching on amazon or etsy.

Italian 180 gram crepe paper

This is the most common crepe paper to use for paper flowers. It is thick, strong paper, with a lot of stretch, and it comes in many different colours. "180 grams" means that the paper weighs 180 grams per square meter.

I often use this paper for the centers and stamens of the flowers.

Italian 90 gram crepe paper

This paper is thinner (it weighs only 90 grams per square meter), but it has just as much stretch as the 180g paper. It is available in many beautiful colors and is well suited to flowers that have thin, light leaves.

I use it e.g. for poppies and for buttercups.

Italian 60 gram crepe paper

This paper is the thinnest of the Italian papers. I don't really use 60g paper as I think it's a bit too thin and fragile. One way to use the 60g paper, however, is to tacky glue it onto some thicker paper, so that it gives a thin layer of a different color.

German doublette crepe paper

This paper is flatter/less fluted than the Italian paper. It doesn't have as much stretch. The paper is glued together from two layers of paper. It is thick, and often has a different color on the front and back. It is produced in Germany by Werola and is called "Gloria" doublette crepe paper.

When you buy doublette paper, it comes in "folds", i.e. a folded piece measuring 25cm x 125cm - whereas the Italian paper comes in larger rolls. 

The doublette paper is well suited for flowers with thick petals, e.g. hellebore and magnolia. It is also easier to paint or draw on doublet because it is flatter in structure.

German 140 gram crepe paper

This paper is very similar to the Italian 180g crepe paper in structure. It is - perhaps - a little more resistant to fading. I haven't used this paper much, but please write in the comments if you have experience with it :)

So what should you buy??

If you only want to buy one type of crepe paper for a start, then I would recommend buying Italian 180 gram crepe paper (e.g. white, yellow and green for the center and stem of the flower - as well as the colors you would like to use for the petals e.g. light pink, red etc.). 

If you want "invest" in some more crepe paper, I would also recommend buying 90 grams of Italian crepe paper (for thin, fine petals) and German doublette crepe paper (for thicker petals). When I make flowers I most often use doublette in olive green/moss green and in white/white and 90 gram in red, salmon, white, orange and yellow.