Custom Letterpress Cotton Paper Coasters

A paper coaster is the one piece of printed material every guest actually picks up, and a letterpress coaster on cotton board is the one they keep. These are die-cut from 600-1200 gsm cotton (rag) board – a soft, dense, uncoated stock with visible fibre and a warm natural white tone – then printed on a platen letterpress, so the logo is pressed into a shallow pocket of paper instead of sitting on top of a film. Because there is no lamination the surface stays absorbent: condensation wicks into the sheet instead of pooling on a plastic barrier, and the coaster dries out without leaving a ring on the table. Ink is usually one or two spot colours, which is all a single-colour brand mark needs. The square 90 x 90 mm card shown here is our standard size, and the same artwork can be run as a thick square brand card, a menu insert or a packaging card when you need it in a second format.

✅ Deep Letterpress Impression

Every piece is struck on a platen press with a photopolymer or magnesium plate. The plate bites 0.2-0.4 mm into the cotton board, so each letter, rule and monogram carries a bevelled edge you can feel with a fingernail and see when light rakes across the surface. This tactile depth is the difference between a letterpress coaster and a flat printed one, and it stays visible after years of handling.

✅ Cotton (Rag) Paper Board, 600-1200 gsm

Cotton board is made from cotton linters rather than wood pulp: long fibres, no coating, a soft handle and a fibrous surface under a loupe. It takes a deep impression without cracking, which wood-pulp board of the same thickness cannot do. We stock several weights, from a 600 gsm single ply up to 1200 gsm, plus duplexed 2 mm board when you want a heavier, more substantial feel in the hand.

✅ Absorbent, Uncoated Surface

No lamination and no varnish, so the sheet drinks condensation. That is why cotton coasters do not leave a puddle under a cold glass the way coated or plastic coasters do – moisture moves into the paper and evaporates. The uncoated surface also means the ink sits matte and slightly into the sheet, which is what gives letterpress its characteristic quiet look.

✅ One or Two Spot Colours

Letterpress is a spot-colour process, and on cotton board that is a feature rather than a limit: one ink on natural white reads as confident and restrained. We mix to Pantone references, and a blind impression with no ink at all is also possible, letting the paper and the deboss do the whole job for a logo-only design.

✅ Square, Round or Die-Cut to Shape

Standard is 90 x 90 mm square or 90-100 mm round. Rounded corners, custom outlines, logo-shaped die cuts and scalloped edges are cut on the same die as the outline, so there is no separate tooling step. Other sizes are no problem – tell us the diameter of the glass or the space available on the table.

✅ Second Side and Finishing Options

Brand mark on the front, and on the back a tagline, QR code, cocktail recipe or a short menu, printed in the same ink. Edge painting, a foil accent, duplexing to double thickness and a bevelled edge can all be added to the same order.

✅ Fully Customizable

Size, shape, board weight, paper tone (natural white, warm white or a dyed cotton stock), ink colour, impression depth and packaging are all made to order. Send artwork, a sketch or a reference coaster and we will advise the most cost-effective combination for your quantity.

Factory-direct production with low minimum order quantities supported, so a single cafe or a small label can order letterpress cotton coasters without paying for an industrial-sized run. Quotes come back within 24 hours with the board, the letterpress plate and the die priced separately, and a pre-production sample is confirmed with you before mass production starts – the impression depth is set on that sample, because it is the one thing you cannot judge from a PDF. Artwork is checked by our team before the plate is made, so the detail you approve is the detail we print. Lead times stay stable for repeat orders, and fast delivery is available for seasonal menus and fixed event dates. If you are weighing cotton board against absorbent wood-pulp board, we can quote both on the same artwork so the comparison is like for like.

Please supply vector files (AI / EPS / PDF) with all fonts converted to outlines, and put each ink colour on its own layer so a separate plate can be made for each. Letterpress is a relief process: keep the minimum stroke weight around 0.3 mm at final size and avoid type smaller than about 6 pt, because thin lines and small reversed-out text fill in under impression pressure. Large solid areas are possible, but they show the texture of the cotton sheet and use more ink, so line work and fine detail are where letterpress looks best. Keep all live elements at least 3 mm inside the die-cut edge and 5 mm clear of a rounded corner. Cotton board is uncoated and slightly warm, so a Pantone ink reads a touch softer than it does on coated stock – we can send a sample of the exact board and ink combination before you commit. If you only have a JPG or PNG, our team will review it and tell you what needs to be redrawn.