Paste papers

A few people have asked me over the past few months if I've ever made paste papers, never one to knock back a challenge, I decided to give it a try. The recipe I had called for three parts water to one part flour. You mix the water and flour together so that there are no lumps, then gently heat it in a saucepan on the hot plate until it thickens, being careful not to let it burn.

Well, I thought, I'm sure I can do this easier than that. So, I mixed cornflour with the water and cooked it in the microwave for one minute, stirred it, then cooked it for another minute, voila, flour paste.

I then added three different colours of acrylic paints, applied it to the paper with a brush and then gave it some texture with cardboard tubes, wooden skewers, anything that was on my table top. These are the results. It takes at least twenty four hours to dry completely.

You can keep any that's left over in the fridge for a few days. I added a few drops of water to it as I worked to keep it to the consistency of thick paint.






I also managed to squeeze in some time to finish this 'chunky' necklace. I now have to get back to finishing the invitations for the show, by the way you're all invited to the opening night.