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Process of Making Handmade Recycled Paper
The process of making recycled paper can be referred as the process of waste management. This is evident from the fact that this process involves utilization of the waste coming from the garment manufacturing companies. This process though may seem simple, it involves careful monitoring and control of all the activities of the process.
The raw material used by us in making the recycled paper is different from the raw material used in the conventional recycled paper. Instead of using the used paper waste for making the recycled paper we make use of the cotton trim waste coming from the garment manufacturers. In conventional recycled paper, wood pulp is used at least in the initial stage of making the paper and thereafter it is recycled once used. The recycled paper made by us is the one in which there is no wood pulp used at all, neither in the initial stages and nor in the recycling process which means no harm to the trees at all.
In addition to being Environment friendly the paper that we offer is strong with a very high bursting strength. This results in products which are durable and of a very high quality. Also at any stage of the making the paper there is no acid, or any banned or harmful substance used by us.
The basic steps of recycled handmade paper making are described below.
SORTING & DUSTING
The raw material, waste cotton rags, and any added materials, such as flower petals or other natural fibers, must be sorted by hand to remove foreign materials like plastics, dust, stalks and leaves etc. that would contaminate the pulp, and cause imperfections in the paper.
RAG CHOPPING
The sorted cotton rags are put through a mechanized rag chopper that cuts the rags into small uniform sized pieces.
BEATING
Beating is the most important step in the handmade paper making process. The chopped rags are converted into a fine pulp in a 'Hollander Beater' and mixed with water. Inert chemicals, like rosin soap and alum are added to give the paper the desired consistency and blot free characteristic. When making colored and or textured papers, the color dyes and or textured materials like straw, hemp, grass, silk and jute fibers etc., are added during this process. The resulting pulp is ready for sheet formation.
SHEET FORMATION
Dipping is the traditional method. In this method the pulp is transferred from the beater into a masonry trough or vat. Depending on the thickness of the paper required, the pulp is diluted by mixing it with water. The mould, made of a wooden frame with a wire mesh or a bamboo stick mat, is dipped by hand into the pulp. The frame is then shaken side to side horizontally (this gives the fiber a cross linking pattern and strength - a unique characteristic of handmade paper) and lifted out of the vat. A sheet of pulp is formed over the mould. This method requires a skilled operator and is physically demanding.
COUCHING
The wet paper sheet is then transferred onto a cloth/felt piece of fabric, a couch, which acts as an interleaf separating the wet sheets.
PRESSING
A manual/hydraulic press then squeezes out the excess water from the sheets. This compresses the pulp adding strength to the fiber and facilitating the drying process.
DRYING
Each sheet is dried in the open air. For colored papers drying in the shade, though slower, is preferred in order to obtain uniform color on both sides of the sheet/
PACKAGING, CLEANING AND SIZING
The sheets are then inspected for unwanted foreign matter. Small particles and dirt are removed manually with a sharp instrument. The cleaned sheets may then be coated with starch in order to make them blot-free.
CALENDERING
Each sheet is placed between metallic plates and passed through spring loaded rollers in a calendaring machine. This smoothes the paper and also enhances the gloss.
CUTTING
At this point the sheets are cut to whatever sizes the customer desires. However, typically, the sheets are machine cut to a standard 22"x30" or 56x76 cm sizes and then packed for shipment as per the customers requirement.
After cutting the sheets, our skilled craftsmen transform these sheets into products like Bags, Gift boxes etc, which appreciated for their design and quality by our customers spread across the globe.
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