Hand Papermaking from kozo (mulberry) in South Carolina
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- čas přidán 8. 09. 2024
- Karen Hall makes paper by hand directly from the plant. Paper mulberry (Broussonetia papyrifera) is a common bast fiber used throughout the world for handmade paper. It was one of two mulberry species imported into South Carolina for the silk trade. Karen walks us through how to make paper by stripping the bark (inner and outer) from small stems of mulberry. For teachers hoping to include this in science classes OR for artists hoping to understand what they are using, the video includes an explanation of anatomy and chemistry of the fiber. Filmed in the Upstate of South Carolina. See www.chaoticgard... for a flowchart for paper making and a list of favorite plants for paper making.
I hope you are a school teacher, it was a pleasure listening to your narration... You have a new fan.
Peace people
This is the firstime i was relaxed .listening in the narator's voice and loving it..
Thank you, thank you, thank you! As a papermaker, amateur ethnobotanist and sometime teacher of both, I'm really excited about this video!
I just LOVE everything ab your class,especially the science part, First time I understand what EVERYONE else calls "magic". THANK YOU for your superb explanation🙏🌳💦💚
See the claymation video for a fun explanation of the same process. Thank you for the compliment!
Thank you for the quality video, and for sharing your wisdom.
Enjoyed watching your video. 😍 Thank you so much.
So interesting! Thank you
Thank you! What a treat to have this information.
Extremely helpful. Thank you! : )
Thank you so much. I m a paper making AND plants lover. You 've been amazing teaching about both. 🌳📄📄📄💚
Many thanks for sharing.
I really enjoyed your video! Thank you. ❤️
What a neat approach you have!
You know, people figured it out by trial and error. I’m certain that paper makers probably experimented on different fibers to see which was superior, and in which way. Check out woad - that one is an unusual plant as well, but I am certain the dye properties were discovered where the plants grew in cow pastures. Cows sometimes make puddles, and they trample plants into the puddles. So I think as time goes on, anything that can happen, will. Thanks for your video by the way.
Ancient Mexicans Invented Paper Making Thousands of years ago. They use a relative of Mulberry, too. Mostly Ficus spp. trees (Moraceae). They call it "Papel Amate" .en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amate
you got my sub teacher lady
Great video friend.
This is very interesting, thank you. At the moment I only have access to leaves from Morus Nigra and I wonder if I can use these to make paper?
Making paper from leaves is a little different, unless you're planning to deconstruct them in lye. The way I've seen it being done is through layering of leaves on top of each other. But, I don't have experience with that - so I'm not even sure of the process. There are books that delineate how to do that, however.
Good
Love ur voice😊
Thanks, Mary Jane! I always wished I could do voice overs. :-)
Second question. I am raising silkworms on my mulberry leaves. I hatched 5000 silkworms. probably around 4500 will spin and they are beginning to spin now. So, as I turn to the bark t pull out the bast fiber for papermaking, I am looking at the needs. one of the ingredients is a glue of some kind. why not use the glue that is soaked out of the silk when softening the cocoons for reeling. it seems that Nature always puts the things we need together. it seems like it would make sense that the glue most suited to papermaking would be the one the silkworms excrete as they spin from the mulberry leaves they have eaten. thoughts?
You don't need glue to make paper. It's created naturally from bonds in the cellulose fibers of the plant one uses. Papermaking simply reorders them from being organized in the plant, disorganized as one pulls them apart and beats them, more organization within a vat as fibers bond lightly to water molecules and then fibers bonding to each other (again) as them water drains from the paper.
What state & temperature climate do you live in? I want to raise silkworms too in USA. Where did you get the silkworms and know how to raise them? Do you turn the threads onto a spool and weave with the threads? How much silk can you get from 4500 cocoons. Why won't all of them "spin"? How many trees do you need? Are these peace silk? That's what I really want to make. What do you need to raise silkworms and make silk fabric?
@@tracyphoenix8 I'm in Tennessee but mulberry grows in a lot of regions. I get eggs from Mulberry Farms. if you let them spin and keep some of the pupa, you can let them mate and put your mated couples under small paper cups on a sheet of paper, keep the paper in the fridge until next spring and raise your own
@@tracyphoenix8 I've no experience in raising silkworms. Peace silk is made from the spent cocoons of the moth - in other words, the pupae has already turned into a moth and escaped the cocoon. In traditional silk making, the pupae is destroyed.
we have an enormous mulberry in the back yard and the power company is cutting it back a great deal. most of the branches are nice and small because it is topped regularly. I'm planning some paper making. my question is, leaves. do you use them at all? If nothing else, I might use some whole to patter one side of the paper. second, what is the couching cloth? unbleached muslin? just something onto which you can transfer the paper to dry then peel and then go on?
How would you finish your paper if you want a smooth side? I would want to use this for calligraphy as well as other things.
You could experiment with leaves, but your suggestion of their use as decorative element is probably more reasonable. Small limbs ~thumb size in diameter or smaller are best. You'll see as you experiment that the bark on larger limbs is more compressed, harder to remove and has less usable (by the handmade papermaker) fiber. Couching cloth can be as simple as 'handiwipes' or old sheets to nicer options like felt (including polyester interfacing alternatives). See Carriage House Paper for those. Strictly speaking, you don't have to have couching cloths. I've certainly transferred wet paper directly onto boards (I used old wood paneling) to dry. Keep in mind that couch cloths can confer pattern onto dried paper -- which may or may not be desirable. For paper that is good enough quality for calligraphy, you'll need to add sizing so that the ink doesn't run (unless you prefer that effect).Smooth papers can be created by drying in a press. I've also known papermakers who actually burnish one side with a smooth stone to get a nice effect. Also, ask others -- I haven't created a lot of paper for this purpose, so others will have more experience and better ideas.
You can use leaves, but the process is different. I wouldn't mix leaves and bark. I use old sheets as couching cloths. Then, I transfer the paper to a flat surface (back side of wood paneling), set in the sun and dry.
Wouldn't the paper be more usable if you fashioned a makeshift press to flatten the paper somewhat?
alfredesquer it depends entirely on what the intended usage is...for me, the usage is in 3-D artworks and so I don't want it to be flat. However, when I am looking for flat paper, I typically use my plant press which flattens things nicely. Also, to flatten out existing non-flat sheets, I spray a little water on them and put them in the plant press for a couple of days to dry (along with heat -- not an issue in Texas).
It totally depends on what your end product is. Personally, I like paper that is more sculptural because I use it that way. But, if I were making paper to write or draw on, yes, a press would be nice. I have often used my own plant press to dry papers. It does a decent job, but not nearly as nice as some of the large presses out there used by professional papermakers
I live in the PNW so I have to buy the bark. I know about the place in NYC, but is there another option to buy the bark online?
I don't know of any besides Carriage House. Do you belong to the listserve PaperMaking on yahoo groups? If so, you might ask this question of the group. Alternately, you could grow your own if you have space. I grew a weeping mulberry and harvested from it with some regularity - it made nice paper.
aloe is easy to grow, but would it work/
Good information. I wish you would not have the loud music. It makes it difficult to hear you.
How many sheets were you able to make with the fiber you harvested in the video?
Been too long -- don't remember. It was a small handful of fiber. I suspect less than ten sheets...BUT, if memory serves, I refrigerated a portion of what I harvested and used it later. So, what you're seeing in the video is not ALL of the fiber.
could i use ash instead of lye
Yes, but it would take much longer. You could make your own lye from ashes - that would concentrate it.
Why my broussonetias grow up too long???
i wonder if there's a way i could get around using chemicals to make my paper.
the slimiest plant i know of is Aloe Vera. i used to have a BUNCH of them.
farley pants Well, paper is made possible by chemistry -- the interaction of multiple chemicals makes it all possible. One can experiment with plant sources used in paper making that were later substituted by chemicals, though. Instead of purchased formation aid, you could try the roots of okra. Japanese papermakers use neri, which is a relative. Typically roots are beaten, soaked and hung over the vat to drip the mucilaginous gel. While aloe vera has a gel, I am not sure how they would work. Sounds worth a try on a small scale so you don't lose precious fiber.
+SEEthnobotany They kind of use Abelmoschus manihot
Would okra slime make a good flocking agent?
Colleen Forrest okra slime from roots could be a good deflocculant. That’s different from flocking. The purpose of a deflocclant is to puff up the fibers and therefore slow the drainage through the screen-it makes for a more uniform sheet of paper and allows thinner sheets to be made. Flocking is a term more often used to denote the addition of fiber as a finishing technique on paper (or cloth).
@@SEEthnobotany Thanks! Good info. I have paper mulberry on my property. Its thought of as a weed here. I grow okra every year in my garden, so this could be a fun Fall experiment.
I forgot to say that Tororo aoi' (Abelmoschus manihot) is related to okra distantly. People used to beat the root of Tororo aoi, put it in muslin, soak it and hang it over the vat (assuming you were working a vat for a few days or more. The resulting slime would drip in.
i just wanted to know how to make paper without science class 😉
hi from mark i am interested in makng paper using bamboo -i am english living in japan iwish to create a hand made paper using organic plants-i saw your video on y tube i am a sculptor creating art in steel - i have been using paper in my art work so pehaps it could be good to make my own paper - i have a lot of bamboo in my garden if you like my work on marktruscott. com then please advise me as to what natural trees i need to expand my imagination--- a truly inspireing video-- good luck with your work
The video was good and educational. But to me it was TOO technical and she talked way over my head. I want an art tutorial, not a science tutorial. But I have to say she certainly knew what she was talking about. And I am sure her papers are unique and beautiful,
Kimberly Smith Well, the description did say that it was created for science classes (and artists wanting to know more). I am more worried about it being 'too technical' for you at the same time you note that I know what I'm talking about, which leads me to ask, "Huh?".