How to Make Paper Using a Flower From Your Yard

Turn a flower into a sheet of paper. We thank Michael Coxhead for this unique and fun contribution.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Shallow Trays A Bit Larger Than Frame
• 2 Plywood Scraps
• Weights To Press Flower
• Wire Meshes For Frame
• Water
• Blenders
• 3 Blotters
• Scrap Papers
• White Notebook Papers
• Common Nails For Frame
• Hammers To Make Frame
• Water
• 4 8-inch pieces of wood for frame

1. Pick a flower from your yard.

2. Place it between two sheets of white typing or printer paper.

3. Place the two sheets in a book, and place the book under some weights.

4. Build a wooden frame, 8 inches by 8 inches, and cover it with wire mesh.

5. Collect scraps of paper that you want to recycle.

6. Tear up the paper into pieces the size of a quarter.

7. Put the bits of paper in a blender, filling it loosely to the three-quarter mark.

8. Fill the blender with water up to about 1 inch from the rim.

9. Turn the blender on high for about two minutes, or until you have a smooth pulp.

10. Pour the mixture into a shallow tray that you can put the wire-mesh-covered frame into.

11. Remove the flower that you previously pressed in the book and place it on the screened frame.

12. Lower the frame into the tray of pulp and gently move the frame around to get the pulp onto the wire mesh and to cover the flower completely.

13. Lift the pulp-covered frame, gently turning it over pulp-side down.

14. Place frame on a blotter and gently rock it back and forth until the new sheet of paper loosens and comes off the wire frame.

15. Place the wet piece of paper between two blotters.

16. Place the two blotters between two scraps of plywood and walk on them to squeeze out some of the excess water.

17. Remove the sheet of paper from the blotters and dry the new sheet of paper for about a week.

Tips & Warnings

• The flatter the flower, the better the paper.
• Fold the paper to make a card.
• Kids can add glitter to the pulp mix for paper that sparkles.
• Blender use by children should be supervised.

on 11/22/2005 You can iron flattened flowers between two sheets of wax paper for easy flower paper. Just make sure you lay the flowers as thin as possible (no chunky pieces). Iron the wax paper between two towels so it won't stick to the iron. You can add glitter also. Makes great wrapping paper!