Tip #5 - Handmade paper: what you can do with it

12 pieces of advice that I wish I knew when starting out as a beginner papermaker, with May Babcock, artist and founder of Paperslurry.com 👋. Coming to you weekly on Tuesdays.

Hey it's May,

Let’s say that you’ve followed through and made some of your own paper by hand.

Well, now what? What can you do with it?

The good news is that you can do almost anything with the paper you made that you could do with purchased papers. You can use it for whatever it is that you do—watercolors, writing, paper sculptures, book binding, cut paper, sketching…you get the picture.

HOWEVER.

HOWEVER.

For the paper to behave in an ideal manner for what you're using it for, it helps to have your intended purpose for the paper in mind, right at the beginning of your papermaking process.

Having a Clear, Sharp Purpose

Before you even actually start making paper, ask yourself this: what are you going to DO with the handmade paper? What qualities do you need the paper to have?

These questions are key, because hand-making paper involves a kaleidoscope of decisions from start to finish. There are many different approaches, tools, and fibers to choose from. There are endless methods for couching, pressing, drying, and pulp combinations. Even after the paper is made and dry, you can modify its properties with natural dyes, sizing, burnishing, and more.

The papermaker (whoa that's YOU) chooses each step of the process, each tool, and each material. And this means that you choose the paper’s final characteristics as the papermaker. You choose how you want the paper to look and behave.

Because hand papermaking allows for a breathtaking range of papers that can behave in different ways, choosing a clear, sharp purpose from the beginning will help to guide you along the way as you make each decision.

Understanding this also answers another frequently-asked-question that I get: what are the best methods for making paper?

The best method really depends on the purpose of your papers—the intended use. So that means the best method varies from project to project.

In my own studio, this is a guiding concept to most projects. For example, I do a lot of cyanotype printing on my handmade paper (cyanotype is a historical photographic process where I coat the paper with light-sensitive chemistry and expose it to the sun, resulting in a blue toned image). When I make the paper for cyanotype, I know I need it to evenly absorb the cyanotype solution, be light enough to get a contrasting image, and hold up well through the water rinse. Knowing that, I make each decision accordingly.

Other factors do come into play that dictate the quality of your handmade paper, such as your studio setup and available materials and tools. However, what you want to do with the handmade paper is your foundational guide through it all.

Onwards and upwards,

- May

PS. If you're not sure why you're getting this email or how you got on the Paperslurry email list, read this. Also here's the last pieces of advice if you missed it.

May Babcock
Founder at paperslurry.com​
Artist at maybabcock.com​
Self-proclaimed paper geek