‘Paper making is the process of making paper, a material which is used universally today for writing and packaging.

In paper making, a dilute suspension of fibres in water is drained through a screen, so that a mat of randomly interwoven fibres is laid down. Water is removed from this mat of fibres by pressing and drying to make paper. Since the invention of the Fourdrinier machine in the 19th century, most paper has been made from wood pulp because of cost. But other fibre sources such as cotton and textiles are used for high-quality papers. One common measure of a paper’s quality is its non-wood-pulp content, e.g., 25% cotton, 50% rag, etc. Previously, paper was made up of rags and hemp as well as other materials.’

1.  Papermaking. (2007). In: Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved April 9, 2007, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online.

Of course I wont be using the Fourdrinier machine so I will be introducing textiles and other fibres to create my paper. To make handmade the paper the process isn’t as hard as I was expecting it to be. I will explain my step by step method:

Firstly I knew i wanted to include photographic paper in my work as I am a photographer. So I found old photographs and cut them up into very very small pieces, I then found some old paper and did the same.

I then soaked the paper and soaked the photographic paper in water. I did this over night. Then next day I blended all the paper  together, creating a pulp.

I didn’t have enough money for the actual mesh frames used for paper making so with help i created my own, using a old canvas frame and some mesh that i bought online. And stapling it all together.and then using a similar technique creating a tray underneath.

I then poured the pulp on the tray and left for a while. I then used a hair dryer to dry out the paper.

What i was left with would not have been able to stick together.

 

‘Common Plants for Paper

Seasonal cycles affect some people more than others but few can ignore the coming of spring, when life bursts forth at every opportunity in every locale–from mountain meadows to sidewalk cracks. With such drama unfolding, even non-gardeners yearn to get their hands in the dirt and be a part of it all. Papermakers, like cooks, can expand their experience by growing their own raw materials, thus enjoying more control over–and connection with–the finished product.

While it is possible to make paper from the fiber of thousands of plant varieties, some are more suitable than others. Fibers can be too short to bond into a strong sheet, too difficult to extract from the plant without expensive equipment, or unattractive for a variety of other reasons. It helps to follow others’ lead at first, and grow plants known to produce interesting papers. Then begin to experiment. Branch out, so to speak.

Here are a few suggestions. These plants grow fairly fast and easily in temperate climates. Start with plants like these and you will have a plentiful supply of fiber within a year or two. They fall into three categories: grass, leaf, and bast fibers.

The so-called “grass” fiber plants are often the easiest to process. If you have room, plant some Pampas Grass (Cortaderia selloana), an exotic-looking mound of coarse-edged leaves, with white or pale pink cotton-candylike flower plumes rising up to twelve feet above. Bamboo (Phyllostachys aurea) grows and spreads so quickly that many suggest planting only in a large pot or confined area. Choose from dozens of varieties of Corn (Zea mays) to grow your food and paper fiber simultaneously. All of the above grow happily with lots of sun in just about any type of soil.

Among the leaf fibers, fast spreading Hosta (Hosta fortunei) is your best bet for ground cover in shady spots. In sunnier areas, try Yucca (Yucca filamentosa), whose four-foot high clumps of stiff, sword-shaped leaves launch dramatic spikes of gorgeous blossoms in the summer. One of the easiest perennials to grow is the Iris (Iris germanica and other species). Their delicate blooms put on a great show in early summer, and their clumps of glossy deep green leaves look good all year.

Bast, or “inner bark” fibers are the most commonly used for hand papermaking. A tasty choice is Raspberry or Blackberry (Rubus spp.) whose branches die after flowering and bearing fruit and can be easily removed, especially the thornless varieties. Milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) grows fast and easy since it is, well, a weed. And though it is harder to find and harder to grow, Paper Mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera) is worth an effort given its rich tradition as the raw material for much of the world’s best handmade paper.

Once a few of these are in the ground and taking root, sit back with a good book and watch them grow. Here are some suggestions: Plant Fibers for Papermaking by Lilian A. Bell; Papermaking with Plants by Helen Hiebert; Handcrafted Paper and Paper Products made from Indigenous Plant Fibers by Harold and Marjorie Alexander. While these offer a particular emphasis on selection and preparation of plant fibers, any beginning papermaking book will provide enough information to get you started come harvest time in the fall.’ – http://newsletter.handpapermaking.org/beginner/beg46.htm

I started to look at the way to make paper using other stuff included in the make up on the paper. I found this website

http://handpapermaking.org/ very useful for me. There were a lot of articles helping out beginners which I was able to access.

‘While some may think that the best paper comes from the vats containing only pulped fiber and water, there are many beneficial chemical additives which are used in hand paper making. These materials are added to the pulp either during the mixing stage or in the vat itself before sheet forming.

For Japanese nagashizuki papermaking, an essential additive is neri, which is used to slow drainage through the screen. It is known as a formation aid or deflocculant. The Japanese pound the roots of the tororo aoi plant (a member of the hibiscus family) to form this viscous liquid. Other natural sources of formation aid have been used in Chinese and Korean papermaking, and okra and similar substitutes are used by some Western papermakers.

Synthetic formation aids are used more frequently now, especially PNS and PMP, as tororo aoi in particular does not store well and is hard to come by. In recent years, papermakers have experimented using formation aid with Western-style sheet forming to achieve various decorative effects. The most traditional additives in Western papermaking (ignoring bleaching agents, which are used to whiten fibers but are then rinsed out before sheets are formed) are sizes. These inhibit the water-loving qualities of the fiber in paper so that writing or painting on the paper does not feather and bleed. While the oldest sizes were made of gelatin into which dried paper is dipped, sizes added to the vat, know as internal sizes, were developed in the late 18th century as time-savers and soon replaced gelatin sizing as machine papermaking took hold.

Various kinds of size have been developed for different qualities of paper. Alum rosin sizing was used extensively for both hand- and machine-made paper. Unfortunately this size, while economical and much easier to use that gelatin, creates paper which is usually acidic.

Many of the books produced since the early 19th century are now rapidly decaying because the paper has become so brittle. Most machine papermakers are now turning toward sizes which help produce paper in a more neutral pH range. The synthetic sizings most hand papermakers use today are also less acidic or can be used with other additives which neutralize the acidity.

Colored paper can be made from colored rags, but most hand papermakers use dyes or pigments to change the color of a pulp. There are many different ways to color fiber and many variables involved in selecting the best method for a particular fiber and desired effect. In general, colorants are mixed in with pulp before it is added to the vat. Most pigments require an additive called a retention aid or agent to help them adhere to the fiber.

Other additives used in hand papermaking include fillers and whiteners. Fillers occupy some of the gaps between fibers in paper and make the paper somewhat dense and more opaque. They may also serve as buffering agents to make paper less acidic. Calcium carbonate and magnesium carbonate are the most commonly used fillers. Whiteners, like titanium oxide, also end up in the spaces between fibers, but their specific purpose is to create a brighter finished sheet. Because both of these types of additives may inhibit fiber-to-fiber bonding, they may diminish the strength of paper made from pulp to which they have been added.

While most paper fibers are benign in their health effects, many chemical additives are not. Powdered pigments, in particular, can be quite toxic and, once airborne, are easily inhaled. Many additives are poisonous if ingested. Certain ones can also cause rashes and other skin reaction on hands and arms dipped into the vat. Precautions are, therefore, urged in dealing with all of these chemicals: good ventilation and masks are recommended when using powdered pigments; gloves or the use of a skin guard may be appropriate to avoid contact sensitivity.

Because of the variety of additives available, the hand papermaker is urged to research the subject carefully.’

– http://newsletter.handpapermaking.org/beginner/beg46.htm

 

After reading a few articles i decided that i needed to include a lot of fabric so that the photographic paper stood more of a chance of really getting incorporated into the foundation of the paper.

So i started the process again but this time i ripped up some old jeans cut it up and soaked, then repeated.

My paper came out so much better than time. So I have my technique perfected.