How to Make Tapa Cloth From Paper Sacks
African art and textiles are usually very colorful and expressive. An example of this is the Tapa cloth. Tapa cloth is a paper from South Africa that is made from mulberry bark and the inner bark of various plants. It is thick, soft, deep brown, and decorated using vibrant colors and different geometric shapes and patterns. Tapa paper artwork can be made using brown paper sacks instead of bark since mulberry bark is not something that is easy to acquire.
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Things You'll Need
- Fine tip markers
- Watercolor paints
- Watercolor Brushes
- Scissors
- Newspaper
- Brown paper sack
- Paper towels
- Container(s) of water
Instructions
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1
Cut your brown paper sack into pieces with scissors.
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2
Place the paper pieces in water and squeeze them out with your hands. You may choose to ball up the pieces of paper and stomp on them instead of putting them in water. Both ways create a textured look.
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3
Flatten out the wrinkled paper pieces and allow them to dry by placing them on paper towels between newspaper. Place a heavy object on top of the papers to keep them flat.
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4
Use fine tip markers to draw shapes and make designs on your Tapa cloth. You can use traditional African patterns or create your own.
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5
Use water color paints and brushes to finish your design. Allow the cloth to dry thoroughly.
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References
- Photo Credit Traditional doll from Swaziland image by Elzbieta Sekowska from Fotolia.com
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Comments
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Do a search for tapa cloth and you will find that tapa is made in the islands of the Pacific Ocean, primarily inTonga, Samoa and Fiji, but as far afield as Niue, Cook Islands, Futuna, Solomon Islands, Java, New Zealand, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and Hawaii, and in some places in south africa.
