Pigmenting Handmade Paper for Perminance

by Mary Reimer

author of 300
Papermaking Recipes

co-founder of Botanical
PaperWorks papermaking
studio.

Do you remember what happened to your
works of art (or your children's) which were done on
construction paper and displayed proudly on the wall or on
the refrigerator? Within days, the color began to fade and
to disappear in places. When you are making your own
handmade paper, each sheet carefully pulled, couched and
dried, it seems only reasonable that you will want the paper
to hold its rich color, even in bright light. The only way
in which to assure that your paper will be both colour-fast
and light-fast is to use papermaking pigments which are
suited for this purpose and which are chemically constructed
to make a permanent bond with the pulp fibers. The chemistry
for this is fascinating but not the material for this
newsletter. The question here is how to use these pigments
in your home papermaking setup. Are there equally effective
alternatives? Are these pigments a) difficult to use? and b)
expensive to use?

1. Are they expensive to
use?

The pigments may be purchased in small
quantities - you do not have to buy a life-time supply! Each
one is priced according to the ingredients used to make it
so there are wide variations in price (check
out this link). While the
initial investment may seem substantial, please note that a
16th of a teaspoon of pigment will colour a large batch of
pulp. (See 300
Papermaking Recipes for more
information) As a result, your little jar of pigment will
last a very long time and will not deteriorate as long as
the lid is kept tightly closed and dried particles around
the top are wiped off.

2. How do you use them?

Before adding pigment to the batch of
prepared pulp, stir the small amount of pigment into a jar
of water until it has completely blended with the water. In
this diluted state, it may be beaten or stirred into your
pulp for about 5 minutes to ensure even exposure of fibres
to pigment. Allow the pulp to sit overnight in order to best
use all the pigment. The water around the pulp should be
clear of pigment since the particles have all been picked up
by the fibres. If there is still colour in the water, add 1
Tablespoon of retention agent, diluted in a cup of water.
Stir thoroughly and let it sit until the water becomes
clear. When done, add sizing and get ready to make beautiful
color-fast paper!

3. Are there alternatives which are
just as good?

No. Pigments designed for use in
papermaking are colorfast and light-fast because of the
chemical interaction between the pulp fibres and the
particles of pigment. They are also more cost-effective than
the readily available fabric dyes and it is much easier to
use in very small quantities and to reproduce
results.

The following pigments and products
are available through Botanical PaperWorks:

•
Blue #15 - bright blue
•
Yellow #74 - bright lemon yellow
•
Red #170 - brilliant red
•
Red #101 - brick red
•
Black #7 - carbon black
•
Yellow #42 - ochre yellow