[-craft, tutorial-]

Making handmade paper is an artform. In the hands of an experienced artist, the paper can be thin and smooth, molded to wonderful shapes or scenes and made into elaborate sculptures and vessels.

However, the good news is that making paper is just as rewarding for a beginner.

Last summer, I finally—after many years of saying I wanted to—made paper. My first attempts were so fun that I soon organized another day, inviting my friend, Sherry, her two kids–Mark and Emily, and neice, Meggan to come along. I’m including some of the many photographs of the two sessions here.

Papermaking is messy and time-consuming. Some internet sites tell you that it can be done in two hours. This is optimistic to say the least. My advice for your first time: set aside most of a day.

I also recommend that you do it outside or in a garage (unless you’re lucky enough to have a large waterproof studio). It can be done inside but then you have a bigger mess to clean up so add that time into your planning. Also, because your hands are in water or are wet most of the time, it needs to be hot weather.

Beginners should probably stick to making paper from paper. Below are some links for making paper out of plant materials but the process is much more elaborate.

There is also preparation to be done before the big day. Below is a list of materials to be gathered.

MATERIALS

Paper torn into small pieces
White or neutral paper -
- computer paper with no or little print
- napkins and paper towels
- cardboard boxes (must be unwaxed and pre-soaked)
- paper egg cartons
- paper rolls
- greeting cards (may also need to be pre-soaked)
- magazines, newspapers
(note: the more ink on the paper, the darker and grayer/browner your finished product will be)

Colored paper
- construction paper
- tissue paper

Mold and deckle

If you read different sets of instructions, these terms get confusing.

The mold is usually a wooden frame with screen stapled or tacked to it, though it can be anything that you can attach a screen to. If you have no wood or construction skills (though tacking four pieces of wood together really doesn’t take much skill—you can do it!) you can use a sturdy wooden picture frame. If you are doing this with others, you’ll need a mold for each person.

The screen should be rust-proof (plastic or fiberglass) and should be stretched tightly over the wood so that it won’t sag when the pulp is on it. The mold/deckle will limit the size of paper you can make, but don’t get too ambitious the first time out. I suggest no larger than 9 x 11 and 5 X 7 is large enough to try and see how you like it.

Most of the time, the deckle is referred to as a separate frame that is placed over the mold to shape the edges of the paper. It is not necessary to have a separate deckle but if you are making molds anyway, try it. Make a separate frame, slightly smaller than the mold. The deckle does not have screen on it. Molds can be built with a little more sophistication.

Dishpan or tub
this needs to be considerably larger than your mold/deckle as you will be immersing the frame into the tub. It must give you room for the mold, your hands on either side and some room to maneuver the mold back and forth.

Blender -
preferably NOT one you want to use later that day to make Margaritas. You’ll be tired. Go out and pay someone else make the Margaritas.

Absorbent materials - after putting the pulp on the mold, you will need something to absorb the excess water
- sponges
- flannel or felt
- paper towels - the raw material for more paper!

Pressing materials - to flatten, smooth and press out the excess water
- Formica
- plexiglass
- screen

Embellishments
- threads, ribbons
- decorative paper
- leaves, seeds, grasses
- glitter
- magazine words
- drawings
- food colouring

Optional
- gelatin or liquid starch
This is helpful if you will be using your paper for inks that might otherwise run.

PROCESS
This is a craft you have to get into in order to find your own way. I found it confusing to read all the different instructions, but once I began, I was able to proceed by *educated trial and error* and I got results that were satisfying.

1. Tear up paper, soak for a while depending on its thickness/sturdiness

2. Put it in a blender with three times as much water as paper bits; blend until it is mushy. Don’t worry about the amount of water to paper as this can be adjusted at any time. This base is called slurry.

3. Blend up enough to put in your dishpan or tub

4. Add coloured paper (tissue paper works great for bright colours) or food colouring for quicker bright colours.

5. Add bits of embellishments to the slurry if you like (for less randomness, these can be placed on the mold later before you press the paper)

6. Dip the mold into the slurry. If you’re using a deckle frame, simply hold it on top of the mold. It’s purpose is to give a more exact shape and finished edge to the paper. Slide the mold/deckle side-to-side to get an even covering over the screen.

7. Lift it out.
I used two pieces of wood resting on the dishpan to catch the excess water.



In the picture above, you can see the deckle frame (the one with no screen) resting on top of the mold (the one that the slurry sits on when you lift it out). Once the mold is covered with paper pulp and out of the water, you can remove and set aside the deckle.

8. Press the paper to flatten and remove the water. I found that a separate piece of screen worked best, but this does leave the paper with the criss-cross surface design which you might not like. The trick is to find something that will take out the water but not lift up the paper. Paper towels, sponges, rags, cloth diapers, flannel, and felt can be used.

9. Once the excess water is out, gently lift off the screen (if that is what you’re using), turn the mold over and flatten the paper onto a fabric, Formica or paper material. I ended up using paper towels because I needed it to dry quickly. The thinner the paper you’ve made, the more delicate the operation to get it off the mold’s screen in one piece. You’ll have to find your own way but it helps to have as much water as possible absorbed. I found flicking the back of the mold’s screen with my fingernail was a good way to loosen it without tearing it up. With the thickness of the paper illustrated here, we had no problems getting it off in one piece.

10. Wait for it to dry (can be stacked between paper towel or absorbent fabric when almost dry).

11. Use, as you like!

Here are some of the fun things we made:



Nancy’s with grass embellishment



Sherry’s with rice paper bits and mixed slurry colours



Meggan’s with rick-rack and magazine words



Emily’s with magazine cut-outs and ribbon



Mark’s with pretty much everything



a day’s work



lovely deckled edges



mark, meggan and emily at the end of a creative day

See our Paper Artists article for three paper-making artists who’ve mastered the art.

LINKS to other paper making sites:
- simple, clear instructions on a kid’s site
- fun science gallery gives history and lots of information
- I found these instructions clear and easy to follow
- a grade school project using straw to make paper
- from a commercial paper company
- a good article from exploratorium
- for the more ambitious: using plant pulp to make paper

Please leave a comment if any of you experienced paper makers out there have something to add!