Shredded Tissue Paper - A Comprehensive Product Guide

Our comprehensive product guide on shredded tissue paper. Below we look into the different types of shredded tissue paper and what they are used for, as well as discussing the eco friendliness of shredded paper and even how to make your own shredded paper.

What is shredded tissue paper?

Shredded tissue paper is paper that has been shredded into long thin strands. It is made by shredding waste paper or paper production offcuts in a shredding machine so is a very economic and eco friendly packaging material. Shredded tissue paper can be used for many packing applications such as packing gifts, hampers, and wine packs. Shredded tissue paper is also becoming very popular with online stores as an eye catching packing material. Coloured shredded tissue paper can be used by online stores to give their customers a more memorable unboxing experience. Shredded paper usually comes in a bale that has been compressed for easy storage and shipping. When you get your shredded paper bale you can pull out a handful and plump it up to make it soft and springy. By doing this you can make a little go a long way. Our 10kg bales will pack many hampers and parcels.

What is Shredded Tissue Paper used for?

Shredded tissue paper is used for packing and void filling boxes, hampers, and parcels. It is very attractive looking so makes a memorable unboxing experience for online orders and products needing good presentation such as gift packing and filling hampers. Shredded tissue paper is also becoming very popular with online stores for packing online orders. Shredded tissue paper is a soft springy void filling product that cushions products well. It is softer and less dusty than wood wool so there is no risk of scratching or contaminating of products.

Shredded Tissue Paper for Hampers

Shredded tissue paper for hampers is usually a 2mm strip cut shredded paper that is similar in looks to wood wool. The long strands intertwine making it soft and springy, ideal for packing glass jars and wine bottles that are often sent in hampers. Choosing a shredded tissue paper for hampers is a little tricky as you need to look for a shredded paper that uses paper around 80gsm thick. This particular shredded tissue paper is ideal for hampers as it gives the right balance between softness and appeal, but is strong enough to support heavier food items.

Shredded Paper for Gift Boxes

Shredded paper for gift boxes is a zigzag shredded paper often called sizzlepak®. It is best for packing gifts in boxes because it is a lot stronger and more void filling than other shredded paper. Because it is stronger and doesn't crush as much under heavier items you can use it to pack and protect many different types of gifts. Zigzag crinkle cut shredded paper is great as a void filler for ecommerce orders as well as packing gifts.

Types of Shredded Paper - Crinkle Paper, Straight Cut, etc

There are a few different types of shredded tissue paper and they are each good for different applications. Below is a quick guide to the different types of shredded paper and what they are best for.

Crinkle Paper

Crinkle paper shred is a crinkle cut shredded paper folded and shredded in a zigzag pattern. This type of shredded paper is folded before it is shredded and the result is a zigzag shredded paper that looks very attractive and is great as a void fill material for online stores. Crinkle paper is often called crinkle cut shredded paper, or zigzag shredded paper and is well known as Sizzlepak® shredded paper. Crinkle paper is good for its void filling properties and higher load bearing. This means you can use crinkle paper for packing heavier items.

Straight Cut Shredded Paper

Straight cut shredded paper is shredded paper that is cut into long straight strips of paper shred. Straight cut shredded paper is usually cut to 2mm wide and the long thin shreds intertwine to make straight cut shredded paper a soft springy packing material. Straight cut shredded paper is often used for packing hampers and as an alternative to wood wool. Because the long thin strands are soft and springy it looks very attractive and is great for packing light food items in hampers.

Coarse Cut Shredded Paper

Coarse cut shredded paper is a heavy duty bulk packing shredded paper for heavier items. It is cut to a 12mm wide shred and the shorter thicker strands of paper are stronger than other types of shredded paper. This means that you can use course cut shredded paper for packing heavy items like industrial products. Coarse cut shredded paper is often a recycled office paper so although is mainly white in colour, it has visible print on it.

Shredded Kraft Paper

Shredded kraft paper is a brown kraft paper that is shredded in either a crinkle paper cut or a straight cut shred. Brown shredded kraft paper is a very eco friendly packing material. The brown kraft paper it is made from is 100% recycled and controlled wood certified to make it one of the most eco friendly packing materials available.

Coloured Shredded Tissue Paper

Shredded tissue paper comes in many different colours. We've covered some of the most popular colours below such as red shredded tissue paper and white shredded tissue paper, but we also offer other colours as well. Coloured shredded paper is often made from new paper so is not quite so eco friendly as some shredded paper types but it is still biodegradable and recyclable. Coloured shredded paper is made by shredding coloured paper sheets in a shredding machine, then compressing it into a bale for easy storage.

Red Shredded Tissue Paper

Red shredded tissue paper is made from shredding red 80gsm paper in a shredding machine that cuts it into long strips of paper 2mm wide. This red shredded paper then is compressed into bales for easy storage and transport. Red shredded tissue paper is available in a bright red shredded paper, a burgundy red shredded paper and a pale rose coloured shredded tissue paper.

White Shredded Tissue Paper

White shredded tissue paper is made from shredding white 80gsm paper. A shredding machine cuts the paper into strips of paper 2mm wide and then compresses it into bales so it is easier to store and transport. White shredded paper is used by many different online stores for packing online orders. It looks clean and professional looking and matches the popular white and black branding scheme. White shredded paper makes an excellent low cost packing material that looks great and cushions products as well as filling voids in boxes.

What Colours Does Shredded Tissue Paper Come In?

Coloured shredded tissue paper comes in many different colours, here are the most popular colours:

• Lemon Yellow Shredded Tissue Paper

• Apple Green Shredded Tissue Paper

• Orange Shredded Tissue Paper

• Burgundy Shredded Tissue Paper

• Spruce Green Shredded Tissue Paper

• Turquoise Shredded Tissue Paper

• Caramel Shredded Tissue Paper

• Clover Shredded Tissue Paper

• Navy Blue Shredded Tissue Paper

• Pale Blue Shredded Tissue Paper

• Red Shredded Tissue Paper

• Aubergine Shredded Tissue Paper

• Pale Rose Shredded Tissue Paper

• Gold Shredded Tissue Paper

• Daffodil Yellow Shredded Tissue Paper

• Cerise Shredded Tissue Paper

• Silver Shredded Tissue Paper

• White Shredded Tissue Paper

• Black Shredded Tissue Paper

• Grey Shredded Tissue Paper

• Coffee Brown Shredded Tissue Paper

• Natural Kraft Shredded Tissue Paper

• Cream Shredded Tissue Paper

• Pale Cream Shredded Tissue Paper

• Pink Shredded Tissue Paper

• Ochre Shredded Tissue Paper

Shredded Tissue Paper in Bulk

When buying shredded tissue paper in bulk you need to look for compressed bales of shredded tissue paper that are 15kg or heavier. The heavier the bale of shredded tissue paper usually the more cost effective it is. This is because more shredded paper has been compressed into the bale and so you are getting more volume in each bale. Our economy bulk shredded paper bale is a whopping 30kg giving you a massive amount of bulk filler for a great price. Bulk shredded tissue paper is great for packing large volumes of parcels. It is a recycled office paper cut into strips about 12mm wide and is mostly white in colour but does have print visible on it.

How much shredded tissue paper do I need?

It's a question we get asked many times and is dependent on how tightly you pack the shredded tissue paper into your box but as a rule of thumb the following is a guide. There is about 17kg to a cubit meter of shredded paper, that means 1kg of shredded tissue paper will fill a box that is about 500 x 400 x 300mm. Or taking it smaller again, 50grams of tissue paper will fill a box 300 x 200 x 50mm.

The formula and steps for working out how much shredded tissue paper you need is:

1. Find the Box Volume: Multiply the length, width and depth of your box in meters. This gives you the volume of the box. For example: a 500 x 400 x 300mm box would be 0.5 x 0.4 x 0.3 = 0.06 m3

2. Multiply by the Weight of Shredded Paper: Multiply the number from step 1 by 17. This will give you the weight of shredded paper you need to fill the box in kilograms. For example 0.06 x 17 = 1.02kg

3. Adjust for Void Volume: You then need to adjust this weight for the amount of space that your items you are packing take up. So if the items in the box fill about half of the box you need to multiply. For example 1.02 x 50% = 0.51kg.

Is shredded tissue paper eco friendly?

Shredded tissue paper is very eco friendly. It is usually made from scrap paper and paper production offcuts so is a low energy method of recycling paper. Shredded tissue paper is also paper based so is biodegradable, often breaking down into soil in a matter of weeks. As well as being recycled and biodegradable it is also recyclable.

How to Shred Tissue Paper

You can make shredded tissue paper easily at home by using a standard shredding machine. Use the steps below to successfully make your own shredded tissue paper.

1. Check your shredder: To get the best type of shredded tissue paper you need a shredding machine that cuts paper into long strips about 2mm wide. These shredders are usually called Din-P3 shredders. Any household shredder that cuts to 2mm will work fine.

2. Decide what colour you need: Next choose your colour, you can use any colour you like as long as you can buy the paper in that colour. Check out our range of coloured papers for shredding.

3. Consider mixing different colours: Mixing different paper colours looks really great, consider mixing different colours in your shredded paper. To do this you need to feed the different colours into the shredder in series so you get them mixing together evenly in the shredded paper. You can't mix the colours afterwards so you need to do it while you are shredding.

4. Check you have the correct type of paper: You need to check what paper you are using to make your shredded tissue paper. It can't be too thin like white wrapping tissue paper as this type of paper gets jammed in the shredding rollers. A standard printer paper that is about 80gsm works best.

5. Feed the paper sheets into the shredder: Once you've done all the checking, all you need to do is get shredding! Feed the sheets of paper into the shredding machine taking care not to overload the shredder. Don't be tempted to rush this part as many office shredders are not designed to run constantly so you may need to break up the shredding into 5min on/5min off periods to allow the shredder to cool.