Making recycled paper is easy, fun, and helpful to the environment. Since paper is so important to our society and we use so much of it every day, we must be careful not to exhaust the supply of our precious natural resources--trees. So, roll up your sleeves and make your own recycled paper. The simple procedure described below takes less than one hour spread over several days.

Materials:

• Several sheets of paper such as newspaper, white paper, colored construction paper, paper bags, etc. (You can experiment with using all of one or a mix.)
• Screen on a frame (You can use a small, clean window screen, or make one with window screen stapled onto a 8" x 8" wooden frame.)
• Large bowl
• Large bucket
• Large container with a mouth wider than the frame (dishpans work well)
• Electric blender or hand mixer
• Water
• Newspaper
• Old bed sheets
• Towels (for clean-up)

Procedure:

1. Tear paper into pieces about 1" square. Soak in a bucket filled with water for several hours or overnight.
2. Place one-half cup of wet paper into the blender or separate bowl. Fill the blender with water from the bucket (approx. three cups) and blend to a pulp. Remove to the dishpan or other large-mouth container. Repeat with remain paper and water until all the paper has been blended.
3. Hold the screen on opposite ends, slide the screen into the paper pulp and slide it back and forth several time to create an even layer. After the pulp collects on the screen, lift it straight up (to keep the pulp distribution even). Hold the screen over the dishpan and let the water drain out.
4. Layer bed sheets above and below the screen and gently press out the excess water. Turn the screen over (so the pulp is on the bottom) and set it on the table covered thickly with newspaper (on top of a bed sheet). Carefully lift the screen off the wet paper, leaving on the table. Gently press out more water with the old bed sheets.
5. Remove the paper to a dry, flat surface and let dry overnight.

Variations:

• Experiment with different types and textures of paper.
• Add dried flowers, leaves, grass, potpourri, etc. to the paper after you have an even layer of pulp on your screen.
• Add one tablespoon of starch to the wet paper when its in the bucket to create a finish on the paper.
• Add natural dyes to the wet pulp to add color.
• Add spices or perfume to the wet pulp mixture to create scented paper.

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