About — Papertile

OUR PAPER STORY

Papertile was created after witnessing the amount of paper waste from local industries, much of which went straight into the landfill. After many experiments, tiles emerged as an innovative solution for beautiful and sustainable interiors. Entirely made from post consumer recycled paper, Papertile is perfect for custom art walls that function as sound absorbing panels.

Papertile was created by Jasna Sokolovic and Noel O’Connell, founding partners of Dear Human. The duo takes pride in offering truly unique and ecological designs!

NEW MATERIAL

Since it’s beginning, Papertiles have received a lot of attention from architects, interior designers and those interested in the future of making. Papertiles are included in numerous material libraries all over the world as a new eco material.

The tiles are manufactured in Montreal using exclusively post consumer paper collected from local businesses. The manufacturing of tiles is a hands-on process using a combination of self-designed equipment and new technologies. The production of tiles requires minimal environmental impact and a maximum devotion from our team.

Once dried, the tiles are as hard as board, light as cork, and can be printed or painted like normal paper.

Papertiles are available in a gradation from natural to bleached paper as well as tiles dyed in a range of colours using natural dies and pigments.

Their paper properties allow for endless printing options using images and patterns. We love to work with custom imagery and colours if that is required for your project!

The Papertiles change as you add onto them— they can be an effective wall accent with just a few tiles or an impacting sound-absorbent treatment across an entire wall.

FROM WASTE TO WALL

Did you know nearly all kinds of papers are recyclable, again, and again, and again?

Here at Papertile, we take some of the most commonly recycled paper items including assorted office papers, architectural drawings, manuals and loose-leaf pamphlets to create an variety of Papertile shapes and colours.

The Super Basic Papertile Recycling Process:
Collect.
Sort.
Shred.
Pulp.
Form.
and Repeat.

The production of Papertiles begins with finding the right sort of paper. We source from local Montreal businesses including architecture and legal offices who use a lot paper in their production.

The paper is then shredded and pulped. Colourants are weighed and added into the pulp bath for through-colour tiles if needed. The pulp is then pressed into large panels then slowly dried to board-like hardness. Once the panels are dry, they are cut into designated shapes and hand-printed, coated, and fire-proofed where necessary.

All of our Papertiles are handmade by the team in our Montreal studio, alongside all other paper products.

Collecting

All of the paper used to make Papertiles is collected from local businesses

Shredding

Paper is divided in different colour batches and shredded in preparation for pulping

Pulping

The paper is reduced to a curated slurry with natural pigments and special paper types

Pressing

Pulp is then pressed in dies on a specially designed hydraulic press

Drying

Tiles are carefully dried in an environment-controlled chamber

Printing

Once dry, the tiles can be hand-printed from our library of designs

NOT JUST ANOTHER BUILDING MATERIAL

Papertiles are not a mass-manufactured product. Coming from a fine-arts background with an attention on craft, we believe in the beauty of handmade products, a quality easily lost in high-production environments.

Our tiles are made and printed by hand, which can be seen on close inspection of the details of each piece—a colour fragment here or a word there. No one tile is the same!

Are you in MONTRÉAL and have an abundance of recycled paper?
Let’s be sustainable together!

Reach out to us for options on discounts applicable to any tile collection you like.

ADDITIONAL FAQS

How are Papertiles installed?
Papertiles are easy to install! Being made from lightweight paper, most adhesives will work with the tiles, from double-sided tape to construction grade products. They can also be installed quickly with a nail gun and a level.

Are your tiles fire-rated?
We offer class 1/A low VOC non-toxic fire coating upon request for wall coverings that are larger than the max allowable area without fire-spread protection. Get in touch for more details.

What is the lead time for a custom order?
Standard lead times are between 4-6 weeks, but are dependant on the studio’s project load and the scale of the project. The more advanced notice, the better for our scheduling purposes.

How are the tiles shipped?
Papertiles are light and durable, so require little to no packing material. We ship our smaller orders through Canada Post and USPS and larger orders through our professional shipping agents. We will always look for the best quotes for you and ship surface when time lines permit.

Where do you ship to?
Everywhere in the world!

Can the tiles be used in the bathroom?
They should not be considered for showers or backsplashes–for that, check out our ceramic tiles that we also make ourselves! That said, they can be mounted in humid environments, but we recommend sealing the tiles against moisture absorption. We offer this service upon request.

Are Papertiles environmentally friendly?
Papertiles are made from 100% Recycled paper, collected locally from businesses and made by hand at our studio. Yup, can’t get much friendlier than that!

Can the tiles be recycled again?
Definitely!

Do you have distribution in my country? Can I be a distributor?
Get in touch to find out. We are open to collaborative arrangements.

Can I order SAMPLES and can I specify what type?
Yes, you can order samples via our shop on the website: Click here to buy one!

Do you work with TRADE?
Definitely! Let us know more about your project and we will give you a special quote.

Do you offer different pricing on larger scale projects?
Yes. Get in touch and tell is about your project. We take quantity into consideration.