How to Do It: Making Paper by Hand

The earliest process of making paper was done almost five thousand years ago in Egypt and the Nile Valley. In those days, paper was made from strips of the papyrus plant.

Modern paper-making began in China about two thousand years ago. This process produced paper from cloth, straw, wood or the bark of trees. The raw materials are struck over and over until they become loose. Then they are mixed with water.

After the water has been removed, the flat, thin form remaining is permitted to dry. This becomes a sheet of paper.

Large machines started to be used for making paper near the end of the sixteenth century. Today, paper-making is a big business. But it is still possible to make paper by hand, since the steps are the same as using big machines.

You should choose paper with small amounts of printing. Old envelopes are good for this reason. Colored paper also can be used, as well as small amounts of newspaper. Small pieces of rags or cloth can be added. These should be cut into pieces about five centimeters by five centimeters.

Everything is placed in a container, covered with water and brought to a boil. It is mixed for about two hours with some common chemicals and then allowed to cool. Then it is left until most of the water dries up. The substance left, called pulp, can be stored until you are ready to make paper.

When you are ready, the pulp is mixed with water again. Then the pulp is poured into a mold. The mold is made of small squares of wire that hold the shape and thickness of the paper. To help dry the paper, the mold lets the water flow through the small wire squares.

After several more drying steps, the paper is carefully lifted back from the mold. It is now strong enough to be touched.

The paper is smoothed and pressed to remove trapped air. You can use a common electric iron used for pressing clothes.

There are many other technologies for people making paper using small machines.

Internet users can do a search and find directions for making homemade paper. You can also order information about making paper from the group EnterpriseWorks/VITA. Its Web site is enterpriseworks.org.

最早的造纸工艺出现在大约5000年前的埃及和尼罗河谷。当时，纸张由造纸作物的纤维制造而成。

现代造纸技术于大约2000年前出现在中国。这种造纸工艺利用布料，稻草，木柴或者树皮造纸。原材料经过反复敲打，直至松散，之后掺水混合。

水除掉之后，剩余的平坦，薄薄的一层可以烘干，变成了一张纸。

16世纪末开始使用大型机器造纸。今天，造纸已经变成一项大的产业。但是仍然可以手工造纸，因为整个过程和机器造纸是相同的。

你可以挑选少量印刷纸，老信封一般比较好。彩纸也可以，还可以用少量的报纸。也可以加入一些小块的布料，这些应该切割成小于5*5厘米的小块。

所有材料都放入容器中，加水，然后煮至沸腾。用普通化学物质混合大约两小时，之后冷却。随后将其放至大部分水干燥。剩下的物质叫做纸浆，可以储存至准备造纸的时候。

准备好之后，将纸浆再次与水混合。将纸浆倒入特殊的盒子或模具中。模具由小的正方形的铁丝做成，可以控制纸张的形状和厚度。为了使纸张风干，模具允许水通过铁丝流失。

再经过几次干燥过程之后，小心将纸张从模具中取出，此时的纸张已经很强壮，可以触摸了。

纸张经过挤压来除掉空气，可以用烫衣服的电熨斗。

还有许多其他通过小型机器来造纸的技术。