One can make an affordable mould and deckle with no woodworking skills whatsoever (unless one counts sanding and hammering nails into wood as woodworking skills).

As a new papermaker who is unlikely to have a fancy studio set up, you may find yourself an itinerant papermaker, making paper wherever you can finagle access.

In the last issue, I discussed a method for using computer and laser printing technologies with handmade paper in order to work large.

This is the first of two columns addressing the incorporation of recent printing technologies with handmade paper.

What happens when you incorporate dry materials into your wet paper pieces?

For book makers out there who want a break from needle, thread, and paste, I introduce the wet-bound book.

So you’ve managed to beat your pulp, master the pulling of a sheet, press out the water, and get the things dried.

I was first introduced to the idea of using sand as a casting medium at the 2000 Paper & Book Intensive held in Oxbow, Michigan.

I’m always amazed when I stumble across yet another innovative use of a household tool in papermaking.

There are many drying methods and most of them are fairly simple.

After you make a sheet of paper, you need to couch (pronounced “cooch”) it -- or transfer it -- to another surface.

Egyptian papyrus is made by overlapping pieces of the stalk of the papyrus plant and pounding or pressing the pieces together.

In general, harvesting at the end of growing season or during dormancy will yield the most papermaking fiber, but there are a few things to consider.

You do not have to go further than your own backyard to find a number of plants suitable for papermaking.

If you get serious about papermaking and decide to dedicate a space to it--whether it be in your basement or garage, or in a special place--here are a few tips I’ve gathered over the years as I’ve visited other studios and worked on setting up my own.