Papermaking (washi) with invasive paper mulberry
Back in September I put up an extensively researched post on my mimeograph site that actually might be of interest to green wizards. I was looking at what was used, historically, in the making of mimeograph stencils (something that's no longer manufactured anywhere as of last year). I haven't gotten to the wax coating, but the paper is what we know today as washi paper (of washi tape fame, for those of you who do paper crafts).
Washi paper is extremely versatile and long-lasting. It's also used in restoration work, and a similar type of paper has been used for currency. It's a very interesting product that is made with skill by some remaining traditional papermakers in Japan, Korea, and China. It's also possible to make it in the southeastern and eastern US as its main fiber plant has spread widely throughout those parts of the country.
The post can be found here: https://www.mimeographrevival.com/posts/stencil-paper/.
spiritchi
Fri, 02/18/2022 - 10:00
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papermaking
what are the chances we can get you to run a Zoom workshop on making paper from mulberry? this looks interesting, but I am a visual learner and am struggling with the written words....
temporaryreality
Mon, 02/21/2022 - 13:09
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papermaking videos
Dear spiritchi, thank you for your interest! Unfortunately, the likelihood is next to nil because I don't live in a region where paper mulberry is to be found.
Do check out all the videos I linked to though - my words are simply reiterations of what the videos convey.
If you scroll down the page to the subheading "The process of using paper mulberry to make washi" and then on to "making washi" you'll see that I have embedded several very good video tutorials that lay out the whole process.
I hope this suffices - my utter inexperience with making washi, and my (likely to be) poor videography skills wouldn't get you nearly as close to the process as the videos I've linked to.