frame for handmade paper

Making paper by hand is quite easy, the types of paper that are produced depend on the materials used; in the do-it-yourself we preferably use recycled materials that can be of different kinds, yes .. mainly paper but not only, water and, to facilitate and speed up the fragmentation process, an immersion blender ... finally, the frame is essential.

 In this post I show you the frame I made to produce my paper, on another occasion I will have the opportunity to show the process of making the paper.

We need wooden rods a couple of cm thick, I used those with a 2x2 square section but a 2x1 section is also sufficient; a hacksaw and clamps for frames (not essential); some vinyl glue or glue for wood; 8 iron or brass L-shaped clamps with wood screws; net for mosquito net or similar; nail gun or staple for use with a hammer.

Using the frame clamps you will cut the rods at 45 degree angles otherwise I will cut straight, you need 2 equal frames then 8 wooden rods of 2 sizes. The measurements correspond to the base and height of the sheets we want to make so you choose.

The work is simple, easier to do than to say, we put two rods in position (one long and one short), place the clamps for the corners and mark the points where the screws go, fix the screws on one of the two rods, glue in the points of contact, screws also in the second rod; we prepare 4 half frames then join the two halves.

The net must be nailed onto one of the 2 frames: first the long side then the opposite side, tightening the net well, finally the sides; the net is better not to cut it to size we must have margins to stretch it, it will be trimmed after having fixed it. I also added a thin layer of silicone-like glue over the staples to prevent the mesh from tearing.