The Mylar should be cut to fit three sides of the mould fitted with the deckle, and to overhang one short side of the mould by about 6 inches. Pour the fiber and water on top of the Mylar. Quickly pull out the Mylar, leaving the pulp to settle and drain on the mosquito netting. Jiggle the mould a bit to even out the fibers. The sheet is then ready to be couched, pressed, and dried. This technique is a great solution when making large sheets with extremely slow-draining fiber, producing ultra-thin tissue, and forming sheets on a large mould that does not fit in a vat. TIPS ON USING THIS TECHNIQUE Deckle: Use a deckle that is at least 1 inch deep. Temporarily alter a shallow deckle by inserting Plexiglas or wood strips around the interior perimeter, or stack two deckles atop each other and tape together. Fiber to water ratio: Make several test sheets at the start of a batch to decide how much fiber is needed to get the desired thickness. Add enough water to allow enough drainage time for even fiber distribution. Drainage time: Just about any fiber can be used with this sheetforming technique. I have had the best success with slowdraining pulps. To slow down fast-draining pulps you can add formation aid, and use a deeper deckle with more water. Netting or no netting: The mosquito netting is an optional element. Using it on a laid screen surface or a coarse bamboo screen will prevent the fiber from sticking to the mould. left: The author getting ready to pull out the Mylar from underneath the raw flax pulp (uncooked, unrinsed, beaten for at least 8 hours) and water. right: Fine tuning the fiber distribution as the sheet drains. Note the Mylar held in the left hand. Keeping the Mylar in hand allows the papermaker to grab hold of the mould and deckle more quickly and keeps the Mylar sheet cleaner than setting it down someplace (like the ground!). Photos by James Kleiner, 2013.

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