Transcripts
1. Introduction: Paper is an awesome material. It has a timeless elegance and that's been inspiring artists
and writers for centuries. It's a blank canvas for your ideas and
artistic expression. Hello, my name is Anna and I'm an illustrator
graphic designer, and art teacher from Berlin. I work digitally a lot, but I love to experiment with analog techniques
and materials. In this class, I
would like to share my experience in making
handcrafted paper from scratch. Making your own paper can be a very fulfilling and
satisfying experience. It allows you to
create something unique with very
simple materials. It's a really great
way to express your creativity and to experiment with
colors and textures. Handcrafted paper has also an organic and rustic quality that can't really be replaced
by machine-made paper. It's also adding a
very personal touch through every project. Making paper is also very eco-friendly and it's a
good way to reduce waste. If you love analog
techniques as I do, just enroll this class and let's make handcrafted
paper together.
2. Class Project: In this class, I will show you a simple and amazing way to create handcrafted
paper at home. I like this process a lot. Handcrafted paper has
a unique potential. You can make awesome
postcards, labels, invitation cards
for your birthday or wedding party and much more. It's also a beautiful way
to recycle old notes, sketches, or newspapers
and give them a new life. The main goal of this class is to learn how to make
handcrafted paper. But I also suggest to make an invitation card for a birthday party or any
other event you want. Let's begin with the
first lesson and see which materials we will
need. See you there.
3. Materials: Hey, I'm very happy
you are here. In this lesson, I'm going
to show you what you need to make your own
cool paper at home. It's really easy and fun. You don't need to buy
anything fancy or expensive. You probably already have
everything at home or can get it at your
local hardware store. Making paper with
your own hands can be a fun activity for both
grownups and kids. This way, you can make your
own handmade paper for cards, letters, invitations,
or whatever you want. To make nice new handmade paper from old and useless paper, we'll need to start with
the right type of paper. Please avoid using glossy or coated paper
like magazines or photo paper since they want to absorb water and can't
be broken down easily. Instead, look for printed
paper, old notes, notebooks, sketchbooks,
newspaper, and even tissues. Anything that feels soft and has a rough surface
should work well. Once we have our paper, we'll need a mold to
form it into sheets. You can either buy a
ready-made mold with decor that comes in two
parts or make your own. Making your own mold can
be a fun DIY project, and there are different
ways to do it. One common method involves using two photo frames with a mesh stretched across one of them. I prefer to make my
mold out of plastic and I'll show you how to do
it in a future video. For now, just know that you will need some additional
materials to make your own mold and I'll cover those in the
lesson about it. Now we're going to need a few other things
to get started. We will need a sponge that's really good at sucking up water. It can be any size. We also need some natural
fabric like cotton, something that can
absorb water well. Old cloths, towels,
or sheets can work just as long as
they can absorb water. Next up, we need a container that's big
enough to fit our mold. It can be made of glass,
ceramic, or metal. I found this cheap one at IKEA, but if you are trying to
make some larger paper, you will need a
bigger container. The mold should fit
in the container but still have some
space left over. Lastly, we need a blender. I use one like this, but an immersion
blender will work too. Some people say not to use a
blender you use for cooking, but I just give it a good rinse after
using it to make paper. It's up to you if you want to use a separate blender or not, you can find some cheap
options in second hands, and there are also ways
to make paper without a blender and I will show
you this in our class. There you have it. We've got everything we need
to get started. In the next lesson, we will build a mold. If you already have one, you can just jump to the video after the
next. See you there.
4. Building Mould: Did you know that the
frame used to make handcrafted paper is called
a paper-making mold. In this lesson, I'm
going to show you how to make your own paper
shaving mold from scratch. Now, most people use two photo frames to make
a mold and a decor, but I have found a way that's easier and more
convenient for me. I used this cool plastic
material that's darn stable, but still flexible enough
and you can cut it with an utility knife and it
doesn't soak up water. I bought it at a hardware
store near my place. You should be able to
find something similar at any craft or hardware store. Let's get started.
First things first, you will need this
plastic material. It doesn't have to
be the same as mine, anything similar will work. Next, you will
need a mesh screen to hold the paper later. I suggest using basic
insect screen mesh. The smaller the mesh, the smoother the paper, but it takes longer
for water to run off. I've already cut up my
mesh into small pieces. I have also made a mold
using silk screen mesh, which works really well, but it costs a bit more. At some point, we
will have to attach the mesh to the frame
to keep it in place. But don't worry, I will walk
you through it step-by-step. Check out these tools we might need to attach the mesh
screen to the frame. Any of this will work. You can use a staple
gun like this one, or even a regular stapler if
the plastic is thin enough. Personally, I prefer using superglue because
it works very well. Now, let's move on to
cutting the plastic frame. We will need a stable
utility knife of some sort. I'll take the more stable one. Of course, we'll
also need a ruler and a pencil to mark
the measurements. In this mold, the
edge is a bit narrow, so it's best to make it wider
to keep the mold stable. I suggest measuring
one centimeter and a half for this small frame. But if you have a bigger frame, let's say something about
20 by 30 centimeters, you should make
the border wider, maybe two or even
three centimeters. That way you can be sure
your frame won't bend or break and your paper will
hold its shape well. For cutting, I'm going to
use a more stable ruler. The one I have is quite large, but choose one that's comfortable
for you to work with. Since we've already
marked everything, it's just a matter
of using something stable and flat on one edge. Now, with smooth motions, I'll make the cut. Don't try to cut
through it all at once. Take your time and make
multiple cuts if necessary. We have one part of
the frame ready. It's quite stable, as
I mentioned earlier. Now, it's time to repeat the same steps for
the second piece. Well, here I have two pieces of the shaping frame,
mode and decor. I can put them together and they fit almost perfectly.
That's good enough. Moving on to the next step, we need to attach
our mesh to mold and we will use the
second one as a decor. Now, we're going to
attach the mesh. As I mentioned earlier, I prefer using
superglue for this. I cut the mesh a little
bit bigger than my mold and take a piece of thick
paper to spread the glue. I apply glue all the way through one side and place
the mesh on it. Of course, I don't want to
touch it with my hands, so I spread the glue all over the surface with
a piece of paper. Now, I will wait for it to dry so that I can stretch
the mesh a little bit. Once the glue has dried, I stretch the mesh
a bit and apply the glue to the opposite
side of the mold. Then I repeat the same
process on these two sides. It's similar to
using a staple gun, it was the same principle. Finally, I apply a
little more glue to the remaining space to improve
the stretch of the mesh. After the glue has
completely dried, we can remove any
unnecessary pieces of fabric by cutting them to the
shape of the frame. This leaves us with a nice
little frame like this. If you use a stapler, you also have to
start in the middle. Put a staple in
the middle first, then stretch the
mesh a little bit, put a staple on the
opposite side and do the same on the other sides. Then add a couple
more staples wherever needed to ensure that the
mesh is well stretched. There we have it, our mold is ready.
5. Making Pulp With A Blender: In this video, I will
show you how to create pulp that will eventually
become our paper. Pulp looks like this, and when it dries,
it looks like this. I will tell you later why
we got to dry it too. But first, let's make
some classic paper. We're going to need a
blender for this one. I will show you how to do it without a blender also later. To start, take some
of your old notes, sketches, newspapers, and tear them into small pieces. Don't make the pieces too small, something about 2-5 centimeter. Otherwise, the paper fibers
won't stick together. They need to overlap
in certain way so that the paper is strong and doesn't tear
or break easily. If you want to add some
color to your paper, you can use some colored
paper additionally. It will give the paper a
slight tint when it dries. I take this neon shade
to see what happens. To avoid creating a
muddy or brown color, it's best not to mix too many different
colors of paper at once. This amount of paper should
be enough for something around 4-6 sheets
depending on their size. The next step is to blend the paper into pulp
using a blender. You will need to add hot water to the blender
filled with paper. Make sure the water
is not boiling, but rather quite hot. I will try it with
one part paper to two or three parts of water. Check what amount of paper
mass your blender can handle. Mine needs a bit more water. You can use a sieve to strain it later if there's
too much water. Remember that the
more water you add, the thinner and smoother
the paper will turn out. Once you added the water, shred the paper and
see the results. The pulp will be quite thick. So maybe we will need to
add some more water later. One tip, rinse your
blender right away to prevent the remaining pulp
from drying out inside, which can make it more
difficult to clean it later. Now that we have one
type of pulp ready, the next video, we'll
demonstrate how to make pulp without
using a blender.
6. Making Pulp Without A Blender: Now let me show you the way to make a pulp without
using a blender. However, you should
know that the paper won't turn out as
thin and smooth. You'll see larger beats
of pulp in the paper. Now, this paper was
made with a blender and as you can see,
it's much thinner. On the other hand, this paper was made without
a blender and you can see clear that the texture
will be quite noticeable. The paper pieces in the pulp
can be smaller or bigger. It's better to use a
bit softer paper for this method if you want
your paper to be smooth. I teared the paper into small pieces again
and soak them in hot water for a few hours or
even overnight if possible. Then I shred the paper and there are several
ways to do this. You can easily
tear them by hand, rubbing it between
your hands until it softens and the
pieces become tiny. Alternatively, you can
use a kitchen whisk or potato measure to
break up the paper. The time this takes depends
on the paper thickness and it can be anywhere
from 5-10 minutes. Experiment with
different methods to see which one
works best for you. Here's another technique for
making pulp a bit smoother. I pour all the pulp
in the plastic bottle and add hot water, not boiling, just hot, then I shake it vigorously until the mixture becomes as smooth as possible. This can take anywhere from 5-15 minutes depending on
the paper's thickness. You're acting like you're a blender yourself
in this method. I've also thought about adding small pebbles to help
break up the paper, but I haven't tried it yet, it's just an idea. This is another way
to make a pulp from old paper and now we can see how it works by
shaping the paper.
7. Papermaking: Now it's time to
make some paper. Let's start by molding
and shaping our pulp. Here's what our pulp looks like, but now it's too thick
so I'll add more water. Then I'll steer it well to get all the material
of the bottom. Next, I'll take both parts of the mold and hold
them like this. You can clip it together on the sides but it's
not necessary. Just hold it with your
hands at 45-degree angle. Then we'll put it into a
slurry and lift it up again. Some of the pulp will remain
on the surface of the mesh. As you lift it, give it
a light shake back and forth and left to right
to align the fibers. Let us drain the water and see the paper is
not floating away. Now, I'll grab the
sponge and blot the bottom of the mold to
remove any excess water. After that, I'll
squeeze the sponge into a container to reduce the
amount of water in the mold. This will help the
paper dry faster. There are different
ways to dry your paper, but for now, let's
keep it simple. Now that we have
shaped our paper, we can remove the deckle and place the mold on
a piece of cloth. Use a sponge to remove
any remaining water, especially in the corners. Once we remove the mold, the new sheet of paper
stays on the cloth. You can put another cloth on top of the paper sheet and smooth it with a rolling pin glass or
bottle to make it more even. To dry the paper, you can simply hang
the fabric with the paper on the
clothesline or drying rack. This save space and allows the paper to dry
evenly on the cloth. Alternatively, let me show you another way I like to dry paper. First, I'll form a
new sheet by steering the pulp so that it rises from the bottom
of the container. Then I'll use only one part
of the mold without the deco. I'll place it into
the slurry with the side with the
recess facing up. The pulp will settle as
I sink the frame and I'll remove the excess water
by gently blotting the mesh. Next, I lay the paper
on the flat surface, such as a table with a
piece of foil for example. I will cover the other
side of the mold with a cloth and remove as
much water as possible, especially in the corners. Once the paper is dry enough, it will come off
the mold easily and stay on the surface
of the table. This method makes
it easier to add texture or other
materials to the paper. I recommend you to
try different ways of drying paper such as using
cloth or a flat surface. I suggest starting with a simple classic version of
paper without any additives you will develop your
workflow with the time and figure out what
works best for you. Making paper is a
meditative process and it's rewarding to see
useless paper sheets becomes something special and
almost like a piece of art so let's keep
experimenting and have
8. Creative Touch Part 1: In this lesson, I will
experiment a little and show you some cool effects that you can create by adding different
things to your paper. Firstly, I'm going to use the same neon green paper
as before, but this time, I'll cut it into tiny
pieces to create a unique look with
separate inclusions. I'll start by cutting
it up really fine. Once that's done, I'll
add it to the pulp and mix it thoroughly with
the rest of the mass. Now, I take a mold and shape
another piece of paper. It will have this
small green additives and let's see how it looks like. I'm pretty happy with
how it looks so far. We will have to wait until it's dry to see
the final product. In the meantime, let's
make a few more sheets. Next up, we've got a new pulp in a container that I made
without using a blender. Let's compare how the paper
turns out from this one. The mass looks pretty uniform with only a few rough
and large pieces. Maybe it's because I
let the paper soak in water for a while and
shook it up really well. Anyway, I'm going to keep
experimenting with this pulp. The color of this pulp seems
a bit dull and gray to me, so I'm going to add some food
coloring to liven it up. You could also try using
ink or watercolor paints, but make sure they
dissolve easily in water. Just a few drops of
color should be enough. Otherwise, it might
end up too dark. The key is to mix
it all really well. I wouldn't recommend
using too many colors though or you might end up
with [inaudible] brown shade. Usually just one
color is enough, but if you've got
yellow and blue, you can mix them to create
a gorgeous shade of green. Just remember that
the pulp itself has a certain shade which can affect the color of our paper as well. For the first few sheets, I'll stick to just one color. After that, I plan to add some more additives to make
things even more interesting. It's pretty clear that the
paper made with the blender is vastly different from
the one made without it. The last one has bigger pieces giving
it a really cool look. You can easily see
the way it's made, which is pretty neat. Now, let's continue
with the experiment. For this next sheet of paper, I'm going to add
some glitter to it. Any glitter should work really. I've got some fine, almost dust-like glitter that
I'm planning to sprinkle on the surface of the
finished sheet instead of adding it
directly to the pulp. That way, not all the
sheets will be shiny. Since the paper's
surface is wet, the glitter will stick
to it really well. If the sheet is thick enough, I might even flip it over and add some glitter
to the other side. Next, I'm going to add some colorful threads
to the paper. I've picked out a
few different shades that I like and will cut them into small pieces
to mix in with the paper. These are basic sewing threads and might even make
the paper stronger. Just make sure to mix everything
together really well. I already like how
it's look like and I have made sheets
of different sizes too. In my next video, I'll keep trying out new things, so stay tuned and see you there.
9. Creative Touch Part 2: For new experiments, I will
mix a little more pulp. Remember that the ratio is approximately one part pulp to two or three parts of water. For this paper, I
want to add flowers. You can also throw
them into the mixture, but I suggest trying another
option and first laying out the flowers and then laying the formed wet sheet
of the paper on them. Now I'm forming the
sheet as usual. I will show the result
in the next video. In the next experiment, I will add flower
seeds to the paper, which is a unique way to
make something special like a card that can be planted
in the ground and bloom. That can be a great surprise for the person who
receive such a card. It's a very unique and
special gift idea. Another way to add something to our paper looks like this. First, I formed the
sheet as usual, then I add the
seeds directly into the mold by sprinkling them and spreading them out
on the surface. To secure them, you can press
them a bit into the paper. Then I proceed as usual
by laying out the sheet, drying it, and
removing the frame. You can also hide the seeds
a little within the paper. After the sheet is formed
and the seeds are added, you can add a bit
more pulp on top. However, this will make the
sheets slightly thicker. Now, I will make paper
with a structure. I'm using glaze and
bubble wrap for this. Like with the flowers, at first I lay out the lace and then put
the formed sheet on it. Look for different
interesting materials with structure and
experiment with them. Texture looks best on
thick and smooth paper. The material will literally
press into the paper. Finally, I decided
to make a version of tea paper when there's
not much pulp left. Instead of putting the
mold into the slurry, you can pour the pulp
directly on top of the mesh. This is another traditional
method for making paper. If you have some leftover
pulp that's hard to use, you can put it through a
sieve to separate the water. After that, you can dry the
pulp on old newspaper or cloth for a few days and
then add it to a new pulp. It's important to make
sure that the pulp is completely dry to prevent mold. This way, you will not waste any pulp in the
paper-making process.
10. Results: Now let's take a look at the results of the
paper making process. Here are all the different types of paper I made with you. Now let's take a closer look at how the paper looks
like when it's dry. The first version is most
traditional.The surface is smooth enough and you can see the mesh structure we
used to make the paper. It's quite smooth,
but you may need to press it or use an iron
to make it even smoother. You can tell it's handmade
paper by its beautiful edge. Next, let's look at the
paper that dry it on fabric. There are no additives
in this paper either. It comes off the fabric
easily and it's also very smooth and
even when it's dry. The result is just as
good as the previous one. I like them both. Now, let's take a look at
the sheets with additives. I'm holding them
in my hands right now and I really liked
the effect they have. The paper looks really cool
and the thickness is a bit different depending on how much pulp was in the frame. Any texture stays
visible very well on the paper if it was dried
on a textured surface. Unfortunately, I
had a small fold on my foil and it shows up
perfectly on the paper. Next, I tried making paper
without using a blender. I added some food coloring to give it a pretty
intense pink color. When it dried, the color was
much lighter than expected. Now you can clearly see
the difference in texture between the paper made with
and without the blender. The paper made
without the blender has much more visible
large flakes, but it definitely
has its own charm. Do you remember the
version with glitter? Here's how it turned
out after drying, I think it looks great. The paper shimmers
really nicely, making it perfect for creating stunning invitations for
wedding or birthday parties. Next, I added threads to the paper and I really
like how it turned out. The combination of
colors is very nice. Since the thread pieces
are pretty small, you can still write
or draw on it. I like this effect
so much that I even made a couple
of larger formats. Now let's take a look at my
experiment with flowers. I see now it's better to
use flat flowers or petals. My flowers were too voluminous and they might fall out now. You can create great labels or invitations with
this technique. Moving on to the seed addition. Here are both sheets of paper. On one sheet, I tried to color the seeds a little bit and
it worked out pretty well. They're are less noticeable. This type of paper
can be planted in the ground and it will bloom. Choose flower seeds that germinate quickly and do
not require special care, for example, wild flowers. I also have paper
with structure. This is how the paper turned out after drying on bubble wrap. If you use a material with an even more pronounced texture, it will be even more noticeable. However, it still
looks cool as it is. Next we have the lace version. The structure is visible, but it doesn't look
as nice as I'd like. I think it's because I made
the paper without blenders, so it has a stronger texture. If the paper were smoother
the lace would look prettier. Lastly, there are a couple of more sheets of paper
that I added tea to. You can see the effect of using coloring additives
like tea or herbs. They can look spectacular, but can color the
paper unevenly. Notice this yellowish spots, although it creates
the effect of homemade crafts or
even old paper. This is what my paper
making experiment resulted in. What about you? I would love to
see your projects. In the next video, I will show you the ways
to straighten your paper with a press or an
iron. See you there.
11. Perfecting Your Handmade Paper: In this video, I
will show you how to make your paper more even. Once it has dried, it may be uneven, which can make it
challenging to write, draw, or print on it. One easy way to make it more
even is by using a press. You can buy one or make
your own with two planks, four screws and nuts, which are available at
most hardware stores. If you prefer not
to make your own, you can usually find presses
designed for drying flowers. Here's how it works. I put the paper sheets
between cardboard to prevent the wood texture
from imprinting on them. Then I put them inside the press and tighten
the screws completely. This applies pressure
to the paper and I let it be like this for
at least 24 hours. Here are some sheets that I
pressed using this method. You can also use large heavy
books instead of a press. Just make sure to place
plain paper between the homemade paper and the book pages to
avoid any imprints. Stack multiple sheets between the book pages and
place additional large, heavy books on top to
apply more pressure. The third method is
probably the quickest. I will demonstrate how
to iron the paper. I place a piece of a
natural cloth on the table, although a regular ironing
board works just as well. Then put a sheet of
the paper on top, followed by another
piece of cloth. Then I iron it with a hot iron. The result is impressive. I don't recommend
pressing the paper with texture because the
texture will just go away. It's also not a good idea to iron the paper with some seeds. It can just damage them and
prevent seeds from sprouting. Instead, use a press or book
to flatten such a paper.
12. Printing On The Paper: In this part of the class, I will show you how to make an amazing finished product
out of paper that we made. I want to make
birthday invitations and small seating cards. Now, printing on this kind of
paper can be a bit tricky. If you try to push it
straight into the printer, it can get stuck. What I like to do is to
tape the homemade paper onto an ordinary
office sheet of paper. This method is
pretty reliable and works well with even
the simplest printer. To print something
on this paper, I need to prepare a
file on my computer. I measure the sheets roughly because they are all a
little bit different. If I'm only printing
on one sheet, I can take its size. But if I'm going to print
on several paper sheets, I would take the size
of the smallest one. For my invitations,
I measured the size of 14 by 10 centimeters, which is slightly smaller
than a standard postcard. That's the size of my file. I create a new document in
Photoshop or InDesign and set the size to 14 by
10 centimeters. The resolution is
set to 300 DPI. Next, I'll type the texts I want and center it on the page, leaving some space
around the edges. Nothing important is
too close to the edge. I choose a font and
size that I like, then I save the file as a JPEG
or other suitable format. Let's proceed with
the next steps. First, get irregular
office sheet to attach your
homemade paper to it. Make sure to measure
the distance from the top and left edge of the sheet so you can place your print file in
the right spot later. I usually go with about six centimeters from the top and five
centimeters on the left. Once you've got that sorted, pick a side you like and use some paper tape to
attach the sheet. Just be careful and use tape that won't mess up your paper. Stick the tape
right on the edge, but leave plenty of space free. Be careful if you're
using a laser printer, some tapes can melt and
cause damage to the printer. Once the format is
taped to the paper, double-check which side
your printer prints on and put your sheet inside. Now, let's move
on the next step. Open up a new file, but this time it should be
a format of office paper. Use the guides to
mark the right space. It was five centimeter
from the left and six centimeter from
the top in my case. Then transfer the
postcard format you made earlier
into this document. Make sure to place it
exactly between the marks. Now it's time to print, and here it is. You can use the same
technique for seating cards, labels, or anything
else you want to make. Well, now you're a
paper-making pro. I hope you enjoyed
this class and feel inspired to experiment with
paper-making techniques. Thanks for following along with my tutorial and
experimenting with me. I'd love to see your projects on social media and
here on Skillshare. Just take me and show
me what you've got, and I'll be happy to showcase your work on my social
media. See you there.
13. Final Words: Congratulations on completing
paper-making class. Now you are a pro
in making paper. Whether you plan to use
it for writing, art, or decoration, the
possibilities are endless. I think it's also a wonderful reminder of simple pleasure of
creating things. Go forth and make some
beautiful invitations, cards or postcards or labels or anything your
creativity wants you to make. If you liked this process, just keep experimenting
and looking for your way to work with paper, it's color, and texture. I would be really happy
to see your process and results in the project
here on Skillshare. I also would be really
grateful if you leave me a review
for this class, and I would be happy if you subscribe here and on Instagram. Feel free to share your work, to tag me so I can share
it in my social media. Thank you very much and see
you in next classes. Goodbye.
Anna Zaretskaya, Illustration and graphic design
