Protect Fragile Products Without Plastic Packaging

If you're shipping ceramics, homewares or other fragile products, you've probably used bubble wrap. It works — but it's plastic, it's bulky, and your customers have to deal with it at the other end. Recycled tissue paper is a practical, plastic-free alternative that wraps snugly around fragile items, absorbs minor impact, and ships flat in a ream of 1,000 sheets.

Made from 100% post-consumer recycled pulp, it's one of the most sustainable protective packaging materials available — and at less than 2 cents a sheet in bulk, it's also one of the cheapest. Here's where businesses are putting it to work.

1. Wrapping Ceramics, Plates and Bowls

Ceramics are vulnerable in two ways — surface scratching from contact with other pieces, and breakage from impact. Tissue paper addresses both. A single sheet between stacked plates prevents glaze-to-glaze scratching, while two or three sheets wrapped around a bowl or mug provides a cushioning layer that absorbs light to moderate impact during transit.

For ecommerce pottery and ceramics sellers, tissue paper is typically the first layer — wrapped directly against the piece — with scrunched paper or kraft padding added around the outside in the box. The 400mm x 500mm sheet size suits most mugs, bowls and side plates without needing to double sheets together. View our recycled tissue paper ream →

2. Protective Wrapping for Homewares Dispatch

Online homewares retailers wrapping mugs, vases, candles and decorative pieces before boxing them up need a material that's soft, conforms to irregular shapes, and doesn't add unnecessary weight or cost to the package. Recycled tissue paper ticks all three.

It's also recyclable at the customer's end — unlike bubble wrap, which most kerbside recycling programs won't accept. For brands that talk about sustainability in their packaging, switching from plastic void fill to recycled tissue is an easy, credible step.

3. Shipping Handmade Pottery

Potters selling online face a consistent challenge — their products are irregular in shape, vary in size, and often have unglazed bases or raw edges that can scratch finished surfaces if pieces touch during transit.

Tissue paper is flexible enough to wrap into and around curves that rigid materials can't reach. Many small-batch pottery businesses use two to three sheets per piece, tucking the tissue inside handles and recesses before adding kraft paper padding on the outside. The mottled grey tone of our recycled tissue also suits the earthy, natural aesthetic many pottery brands prefer over bright white tissue.

4. Void Fill and Cushioning in Mailing Boxes

Scrunched loosely into a mailing box, recycled tissue paper keeps items from shifting during transit without adding meaningful weight to the package. It's lighter than bubble wrap, cheaper than air pillows, and far easier to store — a 1,000-sheet ream stacks flat and takes up minimal warehouse space. For businesses dispatching smaller fragile items like candles, soaps, jars or giftware, a few scrunched sheets around each item adds solid protection at minimal cost. Order in bulk from $17.50 per ream →

5. Shoe Stuffing for Footwear Retailers

Tissue paper has been the standard shoe stuffing material in the footwear industry for decades. Folded or crumpled sheets packed inside shoes during storage and shipping hold the toe box shape and prevent creasing in the upper. The recycled grey colour is a non-issue since it's tucked inside the shoe — and at this price point, it's far more economical than purpose-made shoe shapers for high-volume retail and wholesale operations.

6. Moving House and Storage

Removalist companies and self-storage operators use tissue paper for wrapping small fragile items — figurines, picture frames, ornaments — where newspaper would leave ink transfers and bubble wrap adds excessive bulk. A single ream goes a long way in a domestic removal context, and the post-consumer recycled content is a natural fit for businesses that promote eco-friendly moving services.

7. Art, Craft and Education

Schools, childcare centres and craft suppliers use recycled tissue paper for papier-mâché, collage and mixed-media art projects. At 1,000 sheets per ream, it's excellent value for high-volume classroom use. The natural grey tone also gives art projects a raw, textured look that white tissue doesn't provide — and the recycled content aligns with sustainability programs many schools now run.

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