Oct 20, 2006

Paper!

Today I finally got a chance to try out a project I've been wanting to do for quite a while - making paper! My ultimate goal is to make my own photo notecards, possibly even on herbal scented/aromatherapy paper. Today was my first attempt and I'm impatiently waiting for the paper to dry so I can see how it came out. I got a little overambitious and am also trying to embed a photo in the paper, so who knows. So far it looks good, it's just soggy. The real test will be keeping it from ripping to shreds when I take it off the frame!

For those of you who are interested, here's how you make paper:

1) Create a mold using an old photo frame and some screen door mesh - remove the glass and the backing from the frame and tack on the mesh with a staplegun. Try to get the mesh nice and taut.

2) Get an old blender (yardsales and thrift stores are great resources). Take some scrap paper (I pulled some out of our recycling pile), rip it into small pieces, and put it in the blender. Pour some water in and pulverize away until you have a pulpy mess in there.

3) Get a dishpan that's larger than the frame you're using and fill it about halfway with water. Add the pulp you just made. If you want to add some herbs or petals or glitter, do so now.

4) Dip your mold into the paper soup and slowly and evenly pull it out. Either side can face up - if the side with the mesh attached faces up you'll get a thinner paper that *hopefully* is pretty easy to get off using a spatula. If the mesh side is down you'll get a thicker (perhaps sturdier) paper, but you'll have to be more delicate pulling it out once it's dry, since it's in a hole. If you're not getting a thick enough layer forming on the mesh, add more pulp to the dishpan and try again.

5) Wait for the paper to dry, you can use a hairdrier to speed things up.

6) Remove the paper from the frame.

Since I don't have a hairdryer, I'm stuck here waiting! I'll let you know how it comes out.

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