How to Recycle Paper at Home by Making Paper at Home: Find a Simple Recipe and Steps to Paper Making

How to Recycle Paper at Home by Making Paper at Home: Find a Simple Recipe and Steps to Paper Making
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Recycle Paper at Home

Many people recycle paper everyday. They use the recycle bins for their local community or they drop off their paper waste at various recycling drop off centers. There is another option available, where your household won’t be adding paper to the community bins.

You and your family can recycle paper at home and doing so will cut down on the costs of having to buy more paper. You can also make the recycling process an at home event, creating more family time while teaching everyone in the home about the importance of recycling paper.

In getting ready to start making your own paper, there are a few tools that you will need to have. Keep in mind that the size of frame or frames that you choose to use is what dictates the size of your finished recycled paper. The following is what you’ll need to gather:

  • Paper - printing paper, tissue paper, junk mails, any paper product will do.
  • Picture Frame and or frames
  • One Window Screen
  • Blender
  • White Glue
  • Water

Screen It

Now that you have your items together, first you will want to create a screen for drying the paper. Take one of the picture frames and stretch the window screen on it, then set it aside. It is important to remember that the size of the frame will be the size of the paper and you can only do one piece at a time with your frame. To create more sheets of paper at a time, you will need to make more screens. Take one of the picture frames and stretch the window screen on it, then set it aside.

Tear It

Next, you will want to start shredding up the paper that you’ve gathered to recycle. You can tear it up by hand or use a machine shredder but make sure that the pieces you have torn are two inches in size or smaller. Once you have a good amount of paper all torn to bits, you can move on to the next step.

Blend It

Take your paper bits and put them in the blender. Next, you will add enough water to just cover the paper. Let the paper soak up some of the water and then add more water. For the water level, you will want to keep it at least once inch above your paper bits. Now, put the lid on and turn the blender on the lowest setting for you machine. Keep blending until all the paper bits are broken down in the water and you have a water type slush mixture.

Note, that if you wish to create colored paper, scented paper or glittered paper then now is the time to do it. Put your color and or spices in the blender, then once again start blending on low. Stop the blender when things you have added are evenly mixed in to the paper slush.

Sink It

Here is where the glue comes in. You’ll want to fill your kitchen sink up with at least a four inches of water. Next, add two tablespoons of the white glue to the water and swish it around.

Take your paper slush from the blender and pour it into the sink. Now, get your hands in there are really mix the paper slush up with the glue water. Make sure that you have it thoroughly mixed in before you take your hands out.

Now, take your screen and place it on the bottom of the sink. Let the frame sit under the water for a few moments and then very, slowly begin to lift the screen out of the water. Try to lift the screen as evenly as you can, as it will be coated with your paper slush and glue mix.

Dry It

Once you pull the screen out of the water, just place it in an area where it will dry all the way through. If it’s a hot and sunny day, you can place it outside for drying. If the weather is not right for that, you can dry your paper in the stove. Just set the stove on the lowest setting your appliance has and keep and on it. If you leave the paper to dry to long in the stove it will burn and you’ll have to start the process all over again.