Making Paper

I throw away so much paper from school work. So I decided to recycle it to make more paper. I find little arts and crafts like this challenging but therapeutic.

First, I went to Michael’s and purchased a $10 mould and deckle, the tool I would use to strain the water with. I then emptied out a random storage tub and started shredding paper. I blended water with shreds of paper, which made a yucky grey water. The process was pretty straightforward… after I messed up 10 times. The most excruciating part was the drying process, though.

I had to press the paper down on a piece of fabric with a sponge to soak up all the water. This definitely tested my patience.

After, I removed the mould and deckle then let the paper sit and dry on the fabric for an hour. I carefully tore off the paper and made this!

The paper was not as flat as I would’ve liked. But I thought it still looked cute and unique. I ended up making 15 sheets to turn into a mini notebook.

I can’t write on the paper with pencil, but pen and marker worked perfectly fine. I think I’ll turn this into a scrapbook where I cut and paste other paper and stickers.

Would I do this again? I like to reuse and upcycle everyday items and put more use into them, so this was the perfect craft!