Cigarette paper is simply rolling paper that is cut into sections that are the ideal size for assembling a cigarette. This strong tissue paper is formulated to provide enough support to contain the loose tobacco during the rolling process, but porous enough to make it possible to control the speed of burning that takes place as the cigarette is smoked.
Roll-your-own cigarettes once enjoyed a great deal of popularity. Smokers would purchase one of several high quality blends of tobacco and use it as filler for their own cigarettes. A line of tobacco was placed near one end of the smoking paper and then rolled into a cylinder. Wetting the closing end of the paper with a small amount of saliva provided a simple seal that would prevent the tobacco from falling out when the cigarette was smoked.
While mass-produced cigarettes control the majority of the tobacco market, it is still relatively easy to obtain good quality loose tobacco and cigarette paper. The paper is sometimes sold in a small box, with each individual sheet placed in a stack. It is also possible to obtain cigarette in a flip top book that is not unlike the design of a matchbook. Smoking paper in this form is usually bound in the book, making it necessary for a sheet of paper to be gently torn out for use.
Purchasing the paper is relatively easy, and many supermarkets still carry containers of loose tobacco and rolling papers in the tobacco section of the store. Over the years, a number of tobacco stores have opened in many cities and towns as well that carry a wide line of cigars and cigarettes, as well as different flavors and strengths of loose tobacco. Cigarette paper is usually available at any retail outlet that sells loose tobacco.
Unlike commercial cigarettes, a cigarette made with cigarette paper and loose tobacco does not include a filter of any kind. For people who have never smoked an unfiltered cigarette, the taste may be extremely strong, even if a mild tobacco is used. Those who enjoy unfiltered cigarettes may find that rolling their own enhances the satisfaction obtained from smoking.