From our humble beginnings in
1982, when owner Nancy Jacobi started
showing artists and bookbinders these
gorgeous papers from the trunk of
her car, The Japanese Paper Place
staff remain committed to the company's
ideal of encouraging and promoting
creativity with quality Japanese
papers.
Though we have a warehouse full
of machine made and decorative Japanese
papers which we ship around the world,
our particular passion is for sharing
traditional Japanese handmade papers
with the world while they are still
being made. |

Nancy Jacobi |
Meet the staff
Nancy Jacobi
Decades after founding The Japanese Paper Place, Nancy Jacobi continues
to find new outlets to express her life’s passion for one of
the world’s most precious artistic resources: washi. Her
2008 endeavour, "The
World Washi Summit", brought together Japanese papermakers,
artists, gallery owners and distributors of our paper from around
the world for a life-altering week of creative discovery. This
event was the perfect expression of Nancy’s essence: the ability
to mix art with business, tradition with innovation, and passion
with purpose. Each subsequent year in June she has organized a smaller
event along similar themes; you can always find the latest at www.washisummit.com.
Lest you think our "CEO of Inspiration" is all work and no play, we assure you that she makes time to enjoy baroque music, theatre, Tai Chi, swimming at her summer cottage and traveling the world with her husband, Peter Jones. (We’re just not sure when she finds time to sleep!)
A cast of creative, skillful and knowledgeable
paper-loving staff keep things humming
at the warehouse:
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Sigrid
Blohm Sigrid Blohm is a lover of things natural, including canoeing in Ontario's north country. She acts as our washi consultant and helps to organize workshops (her own "stitching washi" included) and exhibitions. When not at the warehouse giving advice on just which types of washi we have for your particular needs she can be found at home drawing on, stitching or dyeing them herself. |
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Shirley
Imaizumi If you are a Canadian wholesale customer, you know Shirley Imaizumi: her love of people, Japanese paper and almost twenty years of experience at The Japanese Paper Place combine to give you the excellent customer service you've come to expect. In addition to her longstanding passion for Ninjutsu, she loves to travel and enjoys the opportunity to meet distant customers when in the area. |
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Peter
Jones
When you ship paper to all four corners of the globe you need someone who knows how to get it there quickly, economically and in one piece… and our "go to" person is Peter Jones. A true renaissance man, Peter’s wide-ranging talents are called upon for everything from fixing leaky faucets to hanging washi sculptures. A whiz with Japanese paper and a soldering iron, he also teaches our popular "Lampshade Making" workshop. And as we all learned at a staff party, he can salsa with the best of them! |
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Vinna Ly
Vinna Ly joined us originally to help in production, where
a talented gang of women create the many packaged and pasted
items we design and sell. With the marriage and departure of
the head honcho, Vinna was ripened for the task of managing
the area. She takes over the reins with her special brand of
enthusiasm, energy and a background in retail merchandising.
A graduate in environmental design from the Ontario College
of Art and Design, Vinna is also a key contributor to her partner’s
LE Gallery, on
the forefront of Toronto’s gallery scene. Her
wry sense of humour comes as part of the package!
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Claire Maziarczyk
To cater to our American customers, we felt we needed someone
who would be understood when she said “out and about,” so
we hired Claire Maziarczyk as our US Sales Associate! After
30 years of making paste papers for a living, under her banner
Pastepaper Patterns, Claire knows quality decorative paper.
Born and bred in PA and now living in upstate New York, Claire
brings a longstanding knowledge of the paper business in
the States and a sincere desire to help businesses grow through
this medium. Her hands-on experience using and teaching various
skills with paper makes her an especially valuable resource
for building business with art supply stores.
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Andrew Ooi The same creative care that Andrew Ooi brings to the elegant folded
art he makes and sells serve him well in his position at
The JPP. A collaborator by nature, Andrew is a valued addition
to the gang. You can see more of his work on his website at www.andrewpjooi.com. |
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Julia Prime
Julia Prime performs a variety of tasks at the JPP including maintaining our library of swatch sheets and 8 1/2 x 11" samples, updating the inventory database, helping look after customers visiting our artist resource room, and supporting our sales team. Having graduated with a major in printmaking from the Ontario College of Art & Design, Julia's art practice combines various printmaking techniques with hand embroidery on washi. Her work can be seen on her website at www.juliaprime.ca. |
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Alison Reid
Alison Reid, our office manager, not only handles the details
of our busy office and designs much of our print media but
also directs phone and email inquiries with her usual blend
of courtesy and professionalism. Alison loves making lanterns and, even more, loves seeing other people make them, for parades, processions, events or just for the joy of it. Her website, www.madgleam.com, a free resource for lantern makers and fans, contains a wealth of info about making beautiful lanterns using Japanese paper and other materials. |
| Duke Tran
Duke Tran is our highly skilled packer who makes sure that even the most delicate tissues arrive in perfect condition. His willingness to assist fellow employees with a smile makes him indispensable in every department. "No" just isn’t in his vocabulary! A self-described "classic Pisces," Duke enjoys venturing off the beaten path in his travels through life and finds it difficult to resist a good pastry or a slice of cheesecake. |
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