A hot July about fifteen years ago, my neighbor, Vicki, called and invited me to come over and make paper. What a fun-filled summer that turned out to be. Like kids, we spent hours in the backyard under the trees, making paper from recycled checks, stationery — whatever we could find with some cotton content. We pulled petals from flowers, scooped-up mowed grass, and saved coffee grounds to add to the paper pulp. We layered the wet sheets upon sheets with cords in between, squeezed it into gelatin molds, and dipped wire and gauze into the pulp and arranged in various shapes to dry. That fall and winter were spent sorting through and using our handmade papers for collage, lampshades, cards, and jewelry. That was my mesmerizing introduction to paper making and the beginning of my fascination with handmade papers and paper crafts. Paper Plus, published in 1997, was one of many projects that have evolved from the wonderful summer of paper making.
