Rugs | Sithara | Cotton

In 1998, Paperhigh founders Mark and Claire set off on a year-long round-the-world trip ‐ three years later, they were still having an incredible time and heading for a life-changing experience. An unexpected change in destination, an extended stay in Kathmandu and a chance meeting with a papermaker making beautiful products sowed the seed of an exciting business idea.

They returned from their trip with two boxes of handmade journals and photo albums ‐ the start of the Paper High empire. They set up a stall at Camden Market and tried and tested products, gaining a valuable understanding of their customers along the way. They found that people loved the unique quality of their handmade books so much, and the business has grown from there.

Further travels have led to them finding more great Fair Trade suppliers in India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, including their elephant dung paper producer.

All Paper High products are made using natural, sustainable resources. These can be the waste products of a larger industry; for example, the Khadda paper is made from the cotton leftover from the massive garment industry in India. Or it can be a more extreme sort of recycling like our elephant dung paper – no, it doesn’t smell, but it does produce a wonderful natural paper.