Papermaking week

Friday

Today I added the daylily to the mix........

First I added it to the 1 hr beaten abaca and then I blended it really finely before adding it to the blue cotton pulp.

Next I played around with some pigmented gold, orange and red kozo that I processed last week............with this I created a layer that would reveal the varying layers of blue/daylily and abaca/daylily underneath........

This image shows all the samples

Papermaking week........

Thursday

Lots of experimenting......the cotton shirts on their own made good paper when it had been beaten for 60 mins, 45 mins. 30 mins would be fine if the sheets were thicker.

Adding 60 min cotton really helped to make a stronger sheet that would be usable to letterpress or screen print on......not so sure about etching.

The cotton shirts that were beaten for 30 mins and added to the cotton and made a nice all over distributed effect. The 15 min cotton was very chunky and difficult to make a good sheet but it may be useful in creating unusual pieces.

Papermaking week..........

Wednesday

Well today was even more productive........earlyish start at the LCBA.......
Started by beating half a pound of abaca in the Hollander........for an hour, which may have been a bit too long because the fibres were starting to knot.....'ah' - live and learn....practice with a new machine/process!!

Recyled material pulp experiments

Next I cut up some of Simon's 100% cotton shirts. I choose two that are better brands because, maybe, they are made with good quality material and pigments.

This is a French Connection shirt and this is 60% of the fibres.

 This is a Ralph Lauren shirt which will make up the rest.

40% of the fibres.

The cut up pieces of cloth are put in the Hollander

 and after 15, 30, 45, and 1 hour 

I took samples and photos of the process.................

15 mins

30 mins

45 mins

1 hour

By now all the different fibres have become indistinguishable....they have been pulped into a state that I think will produce a rather plain blue sheet. I personally prefer

 some texture/bits that give a sheet some character -

but........the resulting pulp is definately leaning towards the blue.........which only made up 40% of the pulp..hmmmmm we'll see how the dried sample sheets look tomorrow.

Papermaking week...........

Tuesday
Had a terrible time getting to the LCBA. Tried the new overground from Clapham North to Hackney Wick.....it took forever and then....got a bit lost...but got there in the end!

It took about three hours to clean the Hollander beater and then I beat half a pound of cotton linter for an hour..........will return tomorrow with some abaca.........

 It was so cold today and when I left to get home IT WAS Freezing!!!!!

Papermaking week........

Having been given a week off from work I have decieded be very productive.....

Monday
Cooked up some Daylily that I harvested from my Minneapolis front garden, after the snow melt, back in 2008! Had packaged it up and sent it to myself a couple of years ago!!

Daylily (Hermerocallis): Stella D'oro

Then I finished making an A3 mould and deckle........adding a backing of plastic behind the nylon screening..........tomorrow it's of to Hackney Wick and the London Centre for Book Arts!