Tracing & Plotter Paper

Tracing & Plotter Paper

Tracing paper, also known as vellum, is a thin, opaque paper with a smooth surface that can be placed on top of a printed or drawn page, picture, plan or document to copy the underlying image or add new details as an overlay. A useful tool for artists of all ages and abilities, there are many applications for tracing paper within businesses too.

Suitable for printing, it’s an economical variety of paper made using wood pulp or a wood pulp-synthetic fibre blend. It can be worked on with pencils, pens, permanent markers and ink.

Elevating your Art

A3 and A4 tracing paper is a useful tool for artistic endeavours because it allows you to make a copy of any image or graphic you'd like to recreate. Best used by first placing the image you want to copy onto a light board, paper is laid, smooth side up on the original, and the lines that show through can be traced over (usually in pencil). Once you've completed a tracing, you can either cut out the image for use as a template or you can transfer the image, if you used pencil, by placing the tracing smooth side down onto a sheet of paper or a canvas and rubbing over the lines with a pencil or the end of a pen. This transfers the lines you drew onto the new medium.

Tracing paper is, therefore, fantastic for those who love to paint but could be better at freehand drawing as it allows them to create a high-quality outline for their painting.

Professional artists often trace from photographs or previous sketches drawn on location. Our Alex Schoeller 20m rolls allow you to cut A3 tracing paper sheets, or even larger if you're working on a large canvas. 

Technical Drawing and Design Aid

Companies that require technical drawings, such as architectural, design and construction firms, can use tracing paper to create blueprint drafts. They use this type of paper to amend existing plans and drawings in client meetings and colleague collaborations.

Designers who still prefer to put pen to paper can use tracing paper to sketch out products or silhouettes. It allows you to try ideas without impacting the original design and can be a handy tool when giving clients different options in the brainstorming phase. 

A Valuable Learning Tool

Tracing paper can be an essential stationery item in the classroom or learning setting. Children can be given this type of paper to help them progress their mark-making to letter and number formation. Tracing helps to build a child's confidence as they improve their fine motor skills, as following the lines directly produces better results than copying by sight, giving the child a sense of achievement.

For adults learning calligraphy, a new written language or a new drawing style, tracing can have the same effect – boosting confidence until you're ready to attempt freehand.

Our President A4 tracing paper is just what you need when learning new skills such as these, and this A4 tracing paper size can also be used to protect drawings, documents and presentations – ideal for those who need to transport or mail their work.