What is Papercrafting?

Almost every kind of paper can be used for one of the forms of papercrafting – handmade papers, plain papers, patterned papers, scrap paper, brown craft paper, even newspaper.

Whether you choose découpage, papier mâché, decorations or card making, creating anything with paper is easy and not expensive!

Découpage

Originally used to decorate furniture in China and Japan in the 18th century, découpage is now widely used in many ways. It can be applied to wood, plastic, cork, china and, of course, card and paper. You don’t even have to be able to draw as printed papers are readily available.

Basic Tools

Suitable pictures can be found in magazines, on packaging, in catalogues on printed papers, in fact anywhere.
Adhesives such as PVA, spray and clear can be used.
Paint brushes in various sizes will be useful, keeping different ones for different jobs and make sure you clean them well afterwards.
Hole punches and fancy paper punches are handy.
Craft knife and scissors.
Sandpaper.
Masking Tape.

For flat découpage...

Carefully cut out the images you want to use and lay them out on your chosen surface. When happy with their positioning, glue them in place with a PVA glue. Once dry, several coats of varnish can be applied.

For 3D decoupage…

For this method you will need several copies of the same image. Gift wrap is a good choice here as many images will be on the one sheet. However, if you only have one image simply scan and print or photocopy more images.

Cut out one complete piece first, then select various smaller pieces from the other images to layer together with foam pads.
The end result is a beautiful 3D piece. This can be applied to small pieces that look great on cards, to larger pictures that can end up being very intricate.

Try thinking of other than flat surfaces – trays and jugs for example can also be decorated. The traditional finish was anything up to twenty layers of varnish, but for an item that is going to be ‘used’ around 8 layers will be enough.

Papier Mâché

This is great for making small bowls etc. There are two different techniques here – paper pulp and layering.

Papier Mâché

This is great for making small bowls etc. There are two different techniques here – paper pulp and layering.

Paper Pulp

Usually this is used to cover a basic form, i.e. something made from cardboard, but it can also be used for modeling. You can either use a mixed wallpaper paste or a flour and water mix.

Recipes:

Wallpaper Paste Pulp

As a rough guide use 6 double sheets of newspaper to 6 large spoonfuls of wallpaper paste. You can also add 2 medium spoons of linseed oil, 4 of PVA adhesive and a ¼ cup of fabric conditioner.

Put the paper in a bucket and cover with water. If using, add the fabric conditioner and soak for 12 hours.
Then boil the mixture in a large pan for 30 minutes, skimming off any scum.
Once cool, use a blender to break it up.
Strain the pulp through a sieve and use the back of a spoon to press as much of the water out as possible.
Place in a mixing bowl and add the wallpaper paste, linseed oil and PVA. It is now ready to use!

Wallpaper Paste Pulp

As a rough guide use 6 double sheets of newspaper to 6 large spoonfuls of wallpaper paste. You can also add 2 medium spoons of linseed oil, 4 of PVA adhesive and a ¼ cup of fabric conditioner.

Put the paper in a bucket and cover with water.
If using, add the fabric conditioner and soak for 12 hours.
Then boil the mixture in a large pan for 30 minutes, skimming off any scum. Once cool, use a blender to break it up.
Strain the pulp through a sieve and use the back of a spoon to press as much of the water out as possible.
Place in a mixing bowl and add the wallpaper paste, linseed oil and PVA. It is now ready to use!

Flour and Water Pulp

The wallpaper paste will most likely contain a fungicide so if children are making something, the flour and water method might be better. For this simply mix flour and water together to a thick cream consistency. It will thicken and it can be diluted as necessary. For every 6 cups of paste, add in a large spoonful of salt to prevent it from hardening and it should then keep in the fridge for a few days. If you are using it all straightaway, the salt is not needed.

Torn newspaper is usually used for this but scrap copy paper etc. can also be used. Once mixed with the ‘paste’, the pulp can then be modeled with your fingers rather as you would clay. You can also use it in a mould. If a deep mould, such as a jelly mould, is being used, build it up in layers, allowing each to dry before adding the next. Whichever you do, let it dry very slowly. Once finished and dry, it can then be painted and decorated.

Layering

This is a great way to make small bowls. Place the item you are using as a mould, a small bowl, upside down on a protected work surface, placing it on a prop to hold it off the surface. Lubricate the surface of the mould with a grease such as petroleum jelly or dampen the first layer of paper strips instead of pasting them onto the mould.

Tear the paper into small strips of about 1 x 5 cm. The size should be adapted for the size of item you are making.
Start at the top of the mould and apply the strips to it. Use a brush to then cover the strips with paste. Any strips overlapping the edge of the mould can be trimmed off later. Smooth the strips down with your fingers which will remove any air bubbles. Continue adding layers in this way until it is thick enough to maintain the shape.
If you want a smoother finished surface, you can apply strips of tissue paper as the last two or three layers.
Leave it in place on the mould to dry. This can take a few days, so be patient! To remove it from the mould, gently use a thin palette knife to break any vacuum that has built up. Then twist the bowl to ease it off. Use scissors to trim any uneven edges and if you see any thin parts, you can build then up with a few more strips of paper. Use a fine sandpaper to smooth any uneven bits!
It is now ready to paint and decorate!

Cardmaking

When you move on to card making the possibilities are endless. You can use either the flat or 3D decoupage, you can make pulp moulded pieces and then you can move on to any number of papercrafting techniques.

There is:

Iris Folding
Teabag Folding
Paper Pricking
Spirelli – the list goes on.

Various basic techniques for these will be added to the web site, to build up a large collection of basic ‘how to’s. If you have a technique, let us know about it and we can include it in our more detailed Technique Library!