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How to Make Paper from Plant Fibers. Make paper from scratch with this fun project.
You will need Plant material Garden shears A blender or food processor Water A basin
or sink with a stopper A mold and deckle A flat surface A damp cloth Two flat picture
frames (optional) and a screen (optional). Step 1. Cut the plant material into postage
stamp-sized pieces using the garden shears. Step 2. Boil the plant material in water until
it decomposes. This can take several hours. Soaking most plants in warm water before boiling
them will reduce their decomposition time. Step 3. Rinse the plant fibers thoroughly.
Then fill a blender or food processor with water. Add the fibers and blend the mixture
until the plant fibers are evenly distributed in the water. Step 4. Pour the pulp into a
large basin or stopped sink. Continue blending and adding pulp until the sink or basin is
half full. Step 5. Place the deckle on top of the paper mold. Dip them together into
the pulp at a 45-degree angle, drawing them toward you. If you cannot find a mold and
deckle at a crafts store, construct your own from flat picture frames with a screen attached
to one of them. Step 6. Raise the mold and deckle to the surface in one continuous motion.
Then remove them from the pulp and allow the water to drain. Step 7. Remove the deckle
and transfer the layer of pulp to a flat surface covered by a damp cloth by placing the mold
upside down on the surface and then raising it up. Let the paper dry. Did you know Did
you know? Paper wasps create nests of paper made by mixing their saliva with fibers rasped
from dead wood.