How to Make Handmade Origami Paper
Creating handmade origami paper is much more difficult than creating handmade paper for a cards or letters. Origami, or the art of paper folding, requires extremely thin and flat paper for the best results. Handmade paper tends to be thick and lumpy, so you must take special steps to ensure your homemade paper is light enough to use for origami. When you start gathering supplies for the project, remember to check that your plastic bin is slightly larger than your paper-making screen so the screen can slide in and out of the water with ease.
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Things You'll Need
- Tissue paper
- Large bowl
- Measuring cups
- Blender
- Large rectanglular basin
- White glue
- Plastic spoon
- Paper-making screen
- Felt
- Sponge
- Knife
Instructions
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1
Combine 2 cups hot water and 4 cups lightly packed, ripped tissue paper in a large mixing bowl. Let the water soak into the tissue paper for five minutes.
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2
Pour the water and tissue paper mixture into a blender. Puree in pulses until no chunks of paper are left and the mixture is smooth.
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3
Place a 4-quart plastic basin on a flat surface and fill it halfway with warm water. Add 2 tsp. of white glue to the water and mix well with a plastic spoon.
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4
Pour the pulp from the blender into the basin. Use the plastic spoon to swirl the pulp into the water so that an even layer floats across the upper half of the water.
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5
Slide your paper-making screen into the water with the screen-covered side facing down. Place the screen flat against the bottom of the bin. Slowly and evenly raise the screen so that it catches some pulp. When you create a thin layer of pulp that covers the entire screen, gently lift the screen out and over the water.
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Let the excess water drip from the screen and back into the basin. Shake the screen slightly if you need to even out the pulp as it drips.
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Place a piece of felt flat over the paper. Place the paper-making screen on a dry towel, felt side down and screen side up. Press a dry sponge along the screen to suck up the excess moisture from the piece of paper. Wring the sponge out as needed and keep pressing until you cannot soak up any more water.
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Lift the screen from the towel and gently peel the felt away. The felt should hold the paper so that they both peel away from the screen. Place the felt, paper side up, on a flat surface and let dry for at least 12 hours.
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Once the paper is dry, it should be easy to pull away from the felt in a solid sheet. Use a sharp knife to cut even edges and turn the paper into a perfect square for origami.
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Tips & Warnings
A paper-making screen is basically a small wooden picture frame with a fine screen secured over the front opening. As you move the frame in the water, the screen catches the pulp and forms a fine sheet the same shape and size as the frame.
You need to cut out a piece of felt the same size as the paper to help with drying and removal. You will need one piece of felt for each piece of paper you plan on making.
