How to Tea Stain Drawing Paper

Create drawings that look like they came out of the age of the old masters with tea-stained paper. Tea staining is an easy way to make your drawing paper look aged. It can also be used for scrapbooking, card making and other crafts.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Black tea bags
• Heavy drawing paper
• Paper towels
• Heavy books

1. Allow 3 tea bags to soak in 2 cups of warm water for about an hour.

2. Take one of the tea bags out and rub it over the surface of the paper randomly to saturate it with a deep shade of brown. It's okay if the tea bag breaks. Toss it out once you've used up all the liquid inside.

3. Repeat step 2 with the remaining tea bags until you achieve the desired effect.

4. Blot up any excess moisture with paper towels.

5. Place a paper towel on either side of the sheet of paper.

6. Place the paper on a flat surface and stack heavy books on top. This will prevent the paper from warping as it dries.

7. Leave for about 12 hours.

Tips & Warnings

• Once you've tea stained the paper, try brushing on a sheer coat of metallic bronze acrylic paint. You could also add to the effect using coffee grounds or walnut ink.
• Rip off the edges of the paper unevenly for even more of an aged look.