Paper Making Craft for Kids and Adults

Rose and Dried Leaves Picture

 Here's another paper project that incorporates some different paper making techniques including, embossing, water color painting, and molding paper. I used dried Dusty Miller leaves, a rose and leaf  that were made from a candy mold, and picture frame to emboss the border. The fruits of the spirit; love, joy, peace, etc., where printed on a piece of paper and then cut out and glued around the border.

What you will need: Picture frame with decorative border, dried Dusty Miller Leaves, flower candy molds, water color paints, glue, paper to print saying or verse.

What to do:

1. Make the paper rose and leaf by pressing a small amount of paper from your slurry into candy molds.  Let the paper dry and then remove it from the mold. (I placed my mold in a warm oven to speed up the drying time.)

2. Make a thick sheet of paper. (Click here for directions) Couch the paper and then press it between two boards or newspaper to remove most of the water. 

3. Place your picture frame with the decorative side down onto the piece of wet paper.  Press down hard so that the picture frame makes an imprint into the paper.

4.   Place some dried Dusty Miller leaves and the molded rose and leaf in the center of the picture to make a pleasing design. When you are happy with your arrangement press the leaves and molds down into the paper .

5. Let the paper dry with the picture frame laying on top of the paper.

6. When the paper is dry remove the picture frame.  Use water color paints to paint the impression from the picture frame. Paint the molded rose and leaf also. You will probably have to glue the rose, leaf and Dusty Miller leaves down to the paper with white glue.

7. To finish use your computer to print out words or a saying to go around the edge of your picture.  Print them out on a printer that has inks that aren't water soluble or make copies of your printout on a copy machine. Cut around the edge of the words and arrange them on your picture.  Glue them down with white glue.

"The Grass Withers . . ." Wall Hanging
"The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the words of our God stands forever.  Isaiah 40:8

What you will need: Basic paper making equipment, glue, paper punch, cardboard, sticks, leaves or other natural items, burlap, tea bag, paint brush, pattern printed on computer paper, lighter, glue, twine.

What to do:

1. Make a sheet of natural looking paper. (Click here for directions)

I recycled white computer paper and added a piece of brown construction paper, and a half sheet of orange and yellow construction paper for color (it also gave it a speckled look).  You could also put a tea bag in your slurry until it turns a nice color and then remove it (or just dump the contents of the tea bag in your slurry). You might also want to try coffee grounds. I ended up painting my sheet with tea water to make it darker.

2. When your sheet is dry glue it to a piece of cardboard that is just a little bit larger than the hand made sheet. I used a hot melt glue gun.  Tacky glue would also work.

3. Cut a piece of burlap a couple of inches smaller than the hand made paper.  Cut it at strange angles so that it looks more natural. Pull down some of the fibers so that they hang loose. My burlap was too light in color so I soaked it in my tea water for about 5 minutes. I used an iron to dry it.  Place the burlap piece on top of the hand made paper.

4. Print out the pattern for the bible verse. If your printer doesn't have water proof inks, take the printout to a copy shop and make a copy of it.  Make some extra copies in case you goof on the next step.

5. Cut out around the saying to about one inch of the words.  Now you want to burn around the edges of the paper to make it look old. DO THIS OVER A SINK. Start at one corner using a lighter to catch the paper on fire. Quickly blow out the flames and continue all the way around the verse. Now to make the rest of the paper look old, hold the paper at an angle with the back of the paper over the flame of the lighter.  Be careful not to get it too close to the flame so that it doesn't actually burn the paper. The flame of the lighter will turn the paper brown.  It is kind of like cooking a marshmallow without letting it catch fire.

6. Now soak the paper in tea water until the paper is pliable.  Place the bible verse over the burlap on the right side of the paper and press down so that the paper conforms to the burlap and hand made paper.

7. Now place leaves and other natural items (grasses and dried flowers) to the left and bottom right on the hand made paper and burlap.  Experiment with different objects until you are satisfied with your design.

8. Place the arrangement in a 200 degree oven until everything is completely dry.  You may have to place something heavy over the paper to keep it from curling up.

9. When everything is dry you are ready to glue it all together. 

10.  When everything is glued down tight, punch to holes in the top of the cardboard on each side. String a piece of twine through each hole and tie the twine to a twig for hanging. Now hang it up.