DIY Cotton WATERCOLOR PAPER at Home (with cotton balls)
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- Опубліковано 18 гру 2020
- WATCH PART 1 HERE: • Video
SUCCESS!! My paper-making journey actually worked out in the end! The majority of tutorials I've seen online typically rely on recycled paper only, but we actually managed to make cotton paper (that doesn't reek lol). If I were to take on this project again, I'd try to find a way to make my paper much smoother and more flexible.
And if you have any tips on what kind of sizing to use to maintain flexibility, please share in the comments below-I'm honestly stumped!!
Thanks for joining me throughout this era. I doubt the chapter will be completely closed, but it'll likely be a while before I get back into paper-making. Also, tune in to my next art supply DIY project: Botanical-ink making! Which went shockingly well. I have all of the footage, just have to edit everything together, so that video will be ready before Christmas.
Peace~
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ART SUPPLIES used in this video:
Mei Liang Watercolors: amzn.to/2JSRXST
Pre-made Mould and Deckle: amzn.to/377HO17
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This is the most successful diy watercolor paper I have seen thus far! Trial and error, you did great!
How did you figure out to use the gelatin mixture?
Thank you!! I'm so happy you think so. I found out through a lot of googling. First scouring Reddit forums on why my handmade paper was so absorbent, then discovering different types of "sizing" (internal & external). Gelatin seemed like the most accessible (plus my paper was already finished, so internal sizing wasn't an option), though it was hard to track down any directions on it. Of course there was no information about using some sort of preservative, so my first batch of paper stunk like heck!! Then it was back to the forums to figure out what else I could do. Luckily I have some aluminum sulfate/alum kicking around from a different DIY art supply project, so just added some into the gelatin-I think I read about this on a random website, if not Reddit. Anyways, it was a PROCESS lol. The gelatin made the paper super stiff, so if you end up discovering something that works better, please let me know!
I started water coloring since quarantine and now I’m so much in love with water color papers I wish I own a art supplies shop 😂😂.. I simply love how you tried from the scratch and how down to earth you are open to suggestions . I’m really gonna try the same . Much love ❤️
Hi Swathi! Thanks for stopping by. I'm glad you got something out of this video ☺️ OHH it would be so cool to own a little art supply shop! Good luck with your paper-making. Let me know how it goes 💕
This is really helpful. I made some paper from paper scrape but obviously couldn't do watercolor on those. Those are so absorbent. I found sizing could make these paper into watercolor paper. But didn’t know / couldn't find any sizing here in my local area. u did such a wonderful job. So helpful thank you. Watercolors are holding pretty welll. Thank you so so much.
Ahh I'm so, SO happy to hear that it worked out for you 🤗 Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment. It makes me happy to know that this vid is actually useful lol. Happy paper-making 💕
You can use unflavored gelatin as sizing.
I think you did a wonderful job! Enjoyed the video. I haven't tried with cotton yet but I'm thinking about it.
Thanks for sharing the process, it was so fun! I am making some research for trying this at home without spending money. Your video is very useful! Thank you so much for sharing!!!! Kisses from Brazil!
Hi Giovana! Thanks for stopping by, I'm glad you enjoyed it. Have fun, and let me know how it goes 🤗 Beijos from Canada 💕
Just an fyi... 100% cotton watercolor paper isn't made from actual cotton from the plant. It's made from the shell parts where the cotton blooms out of. I know alot of paper makers in India use cotton fabris waste ( from jeans and fabric) and they make a slurry from that to make paper. It's actually pretty good and you should try to look up their process on how they do it.
Interesting!! I do recall watching a video a long time ago about fabric waste being turned into paper, but I don't remember too many detail. Just that it was fascinating. All of the tutorials for cotton rag paper called for the use of "cotton linters". Is that what the shell part is called? Or is that a different type of paper entirely? Thanks for sharing your insight!
They add the sizing in the slurry btw
Ah yes, I added a corn startch sizing in the slurry, but it didn't work out well for me. I'll try different sizing methods in the future. If you have any recommendations, please share!
That is looking excellent!!! The watercolors laid great!!!
Thank you! It definitely worked a lot better with the white paper. But hey, live and learn 😙
@@JuliRoxArt im planning to fo this too. Thanks for this ❤️
Good luck!! Let me know how it goes
Thank you, im going to try it.
Good luck!! Let me know how it goes 🤓
This wouldn't be cotton watercolor paper, but it is much easier: I fold two 11" x 15" sheets of 80lb drawing paper into half (I stack two, then fold into half ), run them under cold water until it feels soaked through fully, then pat excess water off with a clean towel. I leave it to dry, and the sheets are now stuck together, around the thickness of 300gsm WC paper. Once dry, I dissolve some powder unflavored gelatin into a spreadable liquid and brush my dry paper until it feels soaked with gelatin (around 3 coats). I dry it once again, and it works beautifully as practice paper for me! Only one side of the sheet is sized though, so the other side can be sized as well.
This one has come out a lot better.
Omg thanks so.much for watching it!! I wasn't sure that you would, it means a lot 🤗 Yes, it definitely turned out better haha, as most second attempts do 🤓
I'm for sure will try this method! I'm looking for ways to recycle paper, I have a box full of sheets from old drawings, and this looks like a really good recipie for ir!
Definitely give it a try! It was messy, but also a lot of fun. If you remember to, let me know how it goes 🤗
Wow amazing 😊
Im curious if you could size the paper with a glue mixture since alot of glues like elmers have gelatin i think
don’t know if this was already said but have you tried to pull the cotton apart before putting them in the blinder i just thought it would be easier to pull them apart dry than wet but i’m obsisess with this video i’m going out to get stuff tomorrow definitely!!!!
when you are drying the paper you should try laying a plank down or something similar then putting something heavy on top so its not lumpy
Yes!! If I make paper again I'll definitely do this. Before the paper is dry it seems quite flat. But as soon as it's dried completely it becomes super lumpy! It's so misleading. Threw me off twice already haha, but it won't get me a third time 😉
are you kidding? this paper looks great!
Very cool
Ooo, I love the painting of the woman.
You can use unflavored gelatin as sizing.
Can you make a quick video on how you made the gelatin and aluminum sulfide sizing? I can’t find sizing ANYWHERE for sale and I need to make some by DONT know where to buy the aluminum sulfide and how much to mix in
Hi Monica! I followed the instructions on the gelatin package in terms of how much water to add. Of course, instead of letting it set, I brushed it on in liquid form. To that mixture, I added about a tablespoon of aluminum sulphate/alum. Alum is a type of pickling salt, so it acts as a preservant. It made it so the gelatin didn't go bad as it set into the paper. I'm not sure what you can use as an alternative if you can't get your hands on it 🤔 Aluminum sulphate is a similar chemical compound, but is used as a fertilizer for certain flowers. I found it at a plant nursery. But I've also seen it in the outdoor section of my local home hardware store. Not the most accessible thing to find, but I hope that you're able to make something work! Good luck, and if you do find an alternative, please let me know 😊
Can you guide me step by step on how you made that illuminum whatever.... It's quite interesting....please and thank you
I followed the instructions on the plain, unsweetened box of gelatin in terms of how much water to add (came with 4 packs, I believe I used the whole thing for all of my sheets). Mix in about a tablespoon of alum or aluminum sulphate. Alum is a type of pickling salt, and aluminum sulphate is a fertilizer for hydrangeas. They both should be equally effective, so whichever is more accessible to you. I managed to find aluminum sulphate ("sulfate" is the alternate spelling to "sulphate") in my local plant nursery and at the fertilizer section of a home hardware store. Alum (AKA "potassium aluminum sulphate") can be found on America's Amazon. My paper turned out super stiff after adding the gelatin, so it might be worthwhile playing with the proportions of water to gelatin (e.g. adding more water than what the gelatin package calls for might reduce the stiffness). Experiment with it for sure!! I bet you can come out with something even better 🙌🏽
Very brave of you girl. How is it going now your endeavor. I will experience making cotton paper too, I will try to get smaller pieces of cotton first and adding some glue to stick together material.
Awesome! Give it a try and let me know how it goes. Be careful when using your blender to break up the cotton. It can be a bit tough, and I don't want you ruining your blender. Good luck 😄
This seemed really fun but a ton of work. I think they look beautiful. I didn't see you add any type of "sizing" to the mixture etc. I'm sure that you will need something just to keep the paper from immediately soaking up the water. I think a good idea would be to add a sizing to your mixture and then once it has dried. I've never made paper but I do know a little bit about regular watercolor paper and some of them are internally and externally and some just one. But I think a little bit of playing around with the mixtures would be fun and interesting. Thanks for doing this it was really cool but also makes me not to want to try making my own paper lol and especially cotton paper. Have a great day
Haha yes it is definitely a time consuming and messy process! It's takes a good amount of space too (ideally outdoors). My sizing definitely needs work. I added the gelatin/alum sizing externally, but I wonder if it'd work out better if I incorporated it into the paper as I was making it 🤔 It definitely required some experimenting. I don't know when I'll pick it up again- currently in South Korea in a tiny studio apartment. But maybe I'll give it another go when I visit home 😁 Thanks for your comment!
I gonna try this once the schoolyear is done
Good luck!!
I am planning to try 75%paper and 25%cotton....just wanna see what happens!
Go for it!! Let me know how the end result turns out 🙌🏽
Maybe you could try boiling the cotton or using enzymes to break fibers down
this is really good and helpful! may i ask what you used to make the external sizing?
Plain, unflavored gelatin plus some alum/aluminum sulfate. I just followed the directions on the gelatin pack in terms of how much water to use, and dropped in about a tablespoon of the alum.
Great!! This paper seems like it can be used for acrylics and gouache too... actually I'm gonna try and see😁
Yes it definitely feels sturdy enough to handle both! Good luck, let me know how it goes 🤓
may I ask what the effect of alum on the sizing? i want to try it too😳
I added alum to preserve the gelatin sizing. In my first attempt, I used gelatin only, and my paper stunk like heck! Apparently alum-gelatin sizing has a long history in paper-making. It helps uphold the integrity of paper and reacts with the gelatin to prevent bleeding as well. But the main reason I used it was so my paper wouldn't smell narsty lol
wow
I wonder whether if you used some baking paper to protect the iron surface rather than a towel you could create a smoother paper surface. Some gelatine (or other sizing)in with the pulp when mixing might help with texture , maybe 🤔🤔🤔
…oh, you did try that 🤣🤣🤣
Ah baking paper would've probably helped. I think I used the towel to soak up some of the moisture though. But maybe I could used the towel first, then parchment paper right after to flatten it out some more 🤔 Paper making was super messy, but I'm tempted to try it again when the weather gets nicer. Maybe I'll try out different techniques.
Do you play around with papermaking? It sounds like you have some experience with it 😄
This looks like so much work, why not just start with cotton linters in the form of pulp lap (dried sheets)?
LMAO yeah that would've been smart.. live and learn I guess 🤷🏽♂️
Hello Could you point me to a forum with more information on how to make cotton paper?
What would happen if you boiled the cotton before blending? 🤓🤓🤓
How did you dispose the mixture?
I'm sorry, I don't quite understand your question. Dispose of the sizing or the paper? Either way, you could toss both in your compost.
I tried this before I saw your video and it nearly killed my blender, pulled the chunk apart blended slowly on pulse and it was still horrid. I chucked most of it and only added about 1/8 of a cup (a tiny chunk) to my recycled paper slurry and re-blended it, the results were okay but I like 100% recycled paper much better, I can get it so much smoother. I have thought of shredding some of my 100% cotton watercolor paper soaking and adding that to my slurry bucket just to add in a bit to my recycled soaking paper. I’m on my 4th batch now and it just keeps getting more fun!
Using cotton paper is GENIUS! I never thought about that. I have so many cotton paper scraps. It would be an awesome way to give them another life. Haha, yes, blending cotton balls really gives your blender a workout. I don't think I'll do it again with them. Although other materials, for sure! It's great to hear that you're enjoying making paper. It is a lot of fun 😁
What do you use your homemade sheets for? I've only ever tried painting on mine. I still have them sitting around and should probably figure out a way to incorporate them into crafts or something, haha. If you have ideas, please let me know! Thanks for sharing your experience~
@@JuliRoxArt I have some of my 100% cotton watercolor paper scraps soaking right now I’ll let you know how it goes, they will be mixed with my white(ish) recycled paper slurry I have high hopes. I’m not using my paper for anything at the moment, I did write on a sheet from each batch to make sure it was good for pen, I may try my colored pencils on them tomorrow. I only have a total of maybe 30 sheets (some 5x7 some smaller like postcard size). I will definitely let you know how things go. 👍🏻
@@JuliRoxArt UPDATE: okay I just made three small sheets with the watercolor slurry added to some of my regular recycled slurry about half and half with a gallon or so of extra water added in. They came out great so far but now we wait for drying overnight. I have high hopes but do know the paper will not be good for watercolors, you need a starch of sorts or some even suggested glue added for a stabilizer, I believe….must do more research on that. I’m also going to look into adding titanium dioxide into the slurry to whiten it up more, it’s a light grayish right now due to the printing on the shredded junk mail. I have some light brown paper that I made with shredded grocery bags, it pretty but feels too “paper towels”. 😆
Woah, you weren't kidding when you said you had a batch of paper soaking! Look at you go 🙌🏽 And 30 sheets in total? Plus the three you just made? You're really getting to work, haha. Thank you so much for filling me in! I love hearing about others' experience with making supplies! It's such a joy, ain't it? 😆
Also, I had no idea you could add products to your paper to make it more white, that's so interesting.
Yes, prepping paper for watercolors is a struggle! I still have no clue what kind of sizing works best for it. I tried my luck with the gelatin, but my paper is stiff as heck now. It'll definitely take more experimenting to achieve homemade paper fit for watercolor paintings. But I guess it's all in good fun 😉
Thanks for sharing! You're making me want to take it up again. I was going to wait until the summer, but maybe I should just sort out an indoor setup and give it a go... hmmm 😙
I enjoyed that! It was a lot of work - huh?! I bet a vitamix blender would have worked wonders. I would have probably added the sizing to the blending process. But don't take my advice- I have never made paper before. Sure would love to know how so I can save some money - Arches is expensive but it's THE best. Although yours comes a close second. Good job!! I have a great starting point thank to you, though.
Thanks for sharing!
I am watching your video using cotton and it makes me wonder if dryer lint could be used in paper making?
Oh interesting! I'm sure anything can be incorporated into paper, though I'm not sure how 100% dryer lint would work. If you give it a go, let me know!
@@JuliRoxArt I will try a small amount and let you know
Amazing, please do if you get around to it! Just be careful not to ruin your blender. I was a bit nervous about that when working with the cotton.
I smooth my paper using a die cutting machine Once paper is sry put the paper between the plastic boards and roll it a few times
Do you have any idea if agar-agar works instead of gelatin? I'm vegetarian so I don't use gelatin...(also don't use agar-agar cuz it's expensive, but I can buy it someday in a tiny amount)
Hello! I honestly have no idea if it would work :o The gelatin in itself was an experiment. If you give it a try, please keep me updated on how it works!
@@JuliRoxArt Sure thing!!! Also I know this is unrelated but I bought gum arabic and soft pastels and I'm gonna follow your video on how to do watercolor with these, right now I'm letting my binder set! Very excited to see how it turns out
That's so awesome! I'm glad you're giving it a try. It's so much fun to experiment with making your own colors. Enjoy the process 😁💕
It works with Agar Agar, too! :) You have to use more water than in the description, so it stays runny for as long as you need to brush it on. But then it has the same effect as gelatine. But: I only tried Agar Agar without adding any alum etc., so I don't know how it would interact in such a mixture.
Wow 🤔🙀🤭🤭🤭🤭
What is coddan?
Haha, sorry, it's my Canadian accent. We tend to pronounce "T" as "D" when it's in the middle of a word. I was saying "cotton".
젤라틴 혼합물의 혼합 비율은 얼마입니까?
was making it cheaper then buying?
Cheaper, yes. But incredibly messy and time consuming. The end result isn't like the watercolor paper you'd get in stores. The things you can create with it is limited because of the rough texture. So I wouldn't use it as a replacement. Think of it more as a fun novelty project 😉
What country do you live?
Canada at the time I made this video! Now I'm in South Korea 😁
I’m sorry for asking this 2 years later, but how do you make the mixture of alum and gelatin? Do you have to heat them while mixing?
I have a crystalised alum and powdered gelatin.
Haha no need to apologize. I just made the gelatin according to the instructions on the packet (in terms of how much hot water too add), but instead of letting it set, I mixed about a small spoonful of alum and brushed it onto my paper. Hope this helps!
@@JuliRoxArt thanks for the reply :) So it’s a teaspoon you use for the alum, I assume?
@@ridhosiregar138 Just under a tablespoon 😁 Let me know if you end up trying it out. Cheers~
You should first cut the cotton as small as you can before soaking so they don’t wrap themselves around the blades
Yeah, I definitely could've done a better job at that 😅
Why don't you try using the cotton that you fill your pillows with rather than cotton balls
Ahh I didn't even think about that! Originally I wanted to find a bag of cotton linters, which is what the forums recommended, but had no luck where I live. I'm sure cotton pillow stuffing would be easier to blend 🤔 You've got me thinking. .
@@JuliRoxArt i came searching for people like you doing just with cotton balls because cotton linter is just as expansive as a good watercolor block here where I live, but after reading this comment, I might just do 1 with cotton balls and one from pillows to see the results 🤔
@@jadesilveira4987 Haha right?? Very smart, I didn't even think about pillow stuffing. The only thing to look out for is 100% cotton stuffing and not the synthetic stuff. Let us know how it goes, I'm curious 🤓
Nerds more cotton
Welcome
how to make 100% cotton paper
Huge commercial papermaking machines basically start with a pulp mixture that is 95% water and only 5% fibre; be it wood fiber or cotton or a mixture. The wet end of the machine, basically starts with a pulp mixture that flows onto a very fine continuous wire screen. Lots of water is then removed from the pulp mixture and when only around 30% water remains, the pulp mix is strong enough to jump a small gap. It then travels through many drying and pressing cylinders.The end product only has around 7% water. Looking at your pulp mix, I would say that you have far too much cotton. I would mix up a much thinner pulp mix in a bathtub. Dip your deckle (wire screen) under your mix and then let lots of water drain out. Your deckle should be in two parts. The wire screen and a removable frame. After most of the water has drained out, remove the frame and drop your wet sheet onto a flat felt surface. You can make up a multi layer sandwich consisting of paper and felt layers. Then you need something to press it with. Perhaps a couple of sheets of plywood and lots of bricks.
Oh wow, thank you so much for this advice! Honestly, my blender wasn't powerful enough to shred my cotton into the tiny pieces I needed. I think it was doomed from the start haha. I don't think I'll attempt again with cotton, but would definitely be open to trying your advice out to make regular recycled paper. It definitely has its own character. I've seen wedding invitations created with handmade paper infused with flower seeds. That way, of throwing it out, you can just plant it in soil and watch them grow! Homemade paper is also neat for crafting and scrapbooking. But in terms of creating art on it as you would store-bought drawing/painting paper.. hmm my homemade attempts would need to go through a lot more R&D for that haha. It was super messy too, I don't know how much I'll be will to go through the trial and error for it. Thank you so much for your tips, and for taking the time to share your insight ^^
YOU DO KNOW THAT BERRIES AND FRUIT ARE USED TO MAKE DYES NOT PIGMENTS?????? THEY ARE VASTLY DIFFERENT THINGS AND DYES ARE NOT LIGHTFAST WHICH IS WHY THEY USE PIGMENTS. ANYONE WHO CALLS THEMSELF AN ARTIST SHOULD BE AWARE OF THE DIFFERENCE.
Oh wow, I honestly had no idea. I haven't done much research on the lightfastness of natural materials. Especially when it comes to making inks or pigment powders. I just enjoy experimenting with whatever gives off interesting colors. I like to have fun with it 😉