Paper Making II - a.k.a. Blowing in the Wind!

Setting up for Paper Making II - on a windy day!

If you read my last post then you know that my wildly creative friends and I spent a fabulous summer day learning to make homemade paper.  

You might recall that barely had we learned the basics of dipping our screen into the tubs filled with paper pulp and water than Suzette, Annie and I were already wondering,

What if...

A deckle fits above a screen to provide an edge to freshly
dipped paper pulp.

That day we added all sorts of embellishments to our freshly-dipped paper.  I chose scraps of ribbon, a dash of glitter, a few dried flowers and even changed the paper pulp to pink!

Susan, who has been making homemade paper for many years, was probably amused at our zest for coming up with crazy combinations but we had a joyful PLAY DAY messing with paper pulp on a warm August day.

Some of my precious results sparkle (literally) from Paper Making 101.

Barely had I left Susan's driveway on my way home than I began to think more

What if I were to use tissue paper after drawing a screen of wet paper pulp? Could I layer it to create various hues, similar to the lovely shades of blue that I admire when I look out at the foothills and Rocky Mountains from my west deck?

Breathtaking views of the foothills and Rocky Mountains inspire me.

A few weeks later Susan invited us to come back for a second PLAY DAY to continue making homemade paper!

With creative anticipation I immediately went to Amazon to google "tissue paper."  Knowing nothing about tissue paper except as a gift wrap I was intrigued with the description of some as "bleed-able" and ordered two different brands, hoping they would do just that if wet.  

Despite a September that was above average in hot sunny days without rain, our Play Day was a refreshing 15 degree drop in temperature!  Sweatshirts mandatory!!  And, not too surprising because this is Colorado after all, really windy!  Gusts up to 35 m.p.h. and higher. But, hey!  A day to make ART is not to be squandered--and, besides, Susan has a barn!!

We set up our drying tables inside Susan's barn.

So we set up two long plywood tables inside the barn for our "creative" work and for the paper to dry and set up our dipping tubs outside.

However, we realized several hours later, that the barn was SO protected from the wind that our paper wasn't drying AT ALL!

Realizing our afternoon was already drawing short we made the decision to move our drying tables outside.

Before we had a chance to gather small rocks from the driveway, our precious paper was flying like leaves in autumn wind!  I wish you could have seen the four of us scrambling to hold down what was still on the table and run to retrieve what was lodging, fortunately, in nearby bushes.  

We dashed inside and found coffee cans filled with wrenches of all sizes--perfect to use to keep paper grounded!

Rocks and wrenches keep the paper from flying!

And, what about my little tissue paper experiment?  

Well, inside the barn and protected from the wind it seemed to be going rather well.  

I opened the package of Spectra Art Tissue and appreciated all 25 assorted colors and I tore strips and laid them atop the wet paper pulp.  I was getting some amazing results as the layers blended and bled. 

However, once in the wind, as the tissue layers dried (which was rather quickly) the wind easily blew the layers off the paper and into parts unknown.  I tried to retrieve the pieces I could find and Susan suggested I use the sizing fluid to paint over the ones I saved to better adhere them to the paper, which I did.

With help from the wind and sizing
my composition is vastly different from
what I thought I had inside the barn.

  Although my piece was not exactly what I had in mind, I learned some handy new information--

1)  Tissue paper doesn't seem to have enough "teeth" in the paper itself to attach to wet paper pulp. It needs to be adhered to the paper.

2) And, bleed-able tissue paper can create some beautiful results.

We are friends who bring things to share and it was amazing to see what the others were doing with the tissue paper.  By dabbing it to wet paper pulp, one could almost "paint" as the tissue paper did, indeed, bleed.

Oh, and one more thing I learned--

3) Bleed-able tissue paper bleeds on paper pulp AND every crevice in your hands--around your cuticles, wrinkles, dry skin--EVERYWHERE--and it lasts for a couple of days.



Note to self:  Remember the plastic gloves if I don't want to look like I've been mashing grapes with my hands!

Suzette paints sizing onto her paper mask that she "painted" by dabbing
bleed-able tissue paper to wet paper pulp.

Torn tissue paper and a paper napkin create my design.

As I was chasing my paper around Susan's yard I was reminded that 

art is all about failing forward.

On this wonderfully cool, sunny, WINDY day I savored doing exactly that!