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This information is reprinted from the For Beginners
column of Hand Papermaking Newsletter #80 (October, 2007).
To learn how to order Hand Papermaking bi-annual magazine
and quarterly newsletter, click
here.
Wet Collage and Inclusions
What happens when you incorporate dry materials into your
wet paper pieces? Suppose you have some small scraps of a
patterned red paper you adore that would look stellar in the
maroon sheets you are now pulling. You can collage these
scraps into your paper.
First, however, you’ll want to test the paper to see
whether or not the color bleeds. Dip a small piece or corner
in water; then press it briefly between heavy pellon, white
scrap paper, or blotter, and see whether the color
transfers. If no color transfers, you’re good to go. But if
it does, you have some decisions to make. Some bleed may be
okay with you, but you should be aware that this color will
bleed through your sheet of paper. The color will also
transfer to the pellon or felts that come into contact with
the wet sheet, and quite possibly, depending on the amount
of bleeding, onto other sheets that you’ve couched or
pressed on top. Also watch out for whether or not you see
lateral bleeding. If the color not only transfers to your
test material but also spreads out beyond the edges of the
paper scrap, that color is going to spread out in your
collage as well.
If you are considering using materials that bleed, also
take care in choosing a drying method. Do you want that red
to offset onto your drying blotters? Or is this sheet a
better candidate for drying on a board or on its pellon?
Happily, our hypothetical piece of red paper does not
bleed at all. We’ve pulled a base sheet. We have two methods
at our disposal for incorporating our collage piece:
adhesive or non-adhesive.
To include the piece without adhesive use, wet the red
piece of paper--wet it thoroughly by dunking in water or
using a spray bottle. This will reduce buckling as our
collage dries; since paper expands when it’s wet and shrinks
as it dries, we want to keep all elements of our sheet of
paper behaving similarly.
Next, trap the red paper on the base sheet with a new
layer of pulp. Form a second sheet and pull out an area of
pulp that will create a window to expose the center of your
inclusion. Couch this layer on top of your base sheet and
inclusion. Ensure that the edges of your inclusion are
covered completely. An alternate method to creating this
window to showcase your inclusion is to hold a pellon or
craft foam stencil on your mould as you form your second
layer, removing the stencil once the water has drained from
the sheet. If you are using thin, translucent veil layers,
you might also cover the entire inclusion with this second
layer, allowing your inclusion to be slightly muted or
obscured by the pulp. Just keep in mind that your veil layer
might be more opaque once it dries than it appears when wet.
An adhesive method is recommended for larger inclusions
or if you want some edges of your inclusion exposed. Use a
thin methyl cellulose mixture to adhere the addition to the
base sheet either by brushing it onto the back of the sheet
of red paper or by dipping the red sheet into a dish of
methyl cellulose.
You can include your own prints and drawings into your
work if you’ve used inks that are waterproof. Photocopies
and laser prints also work well. However, avoid
inkjet-printed items as they will bleed. You might also try
to incorporate slightly dimensional objects such as lace,
rickrack, buttons, or string. Dip the string directly into
your vat to pick up a layer of pulp and then lay it across
your sheet. You’ve just added your inclusion and veil layer
in one fell swoop. Remember that when adding dimensional
objects, you should consider pressing these sheets
separately and using suitable drying methods.
For some tips on including plant materials, take a look
at Marilyn Sward’s column in Hand Papermaking Newsletter,
Number 68.
Don’t be surprised if not every sheet comes out as
planned at first. It takes time to learn to predict how a
wet collage will look when dry. With these tricks at your
disposal, though, you will be able to turn each sheet into a
piece of art.
Copyright 2007 Hand Papermaking, Inc.
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