Papermaking

  Making your own paper is very simple, and has been done for millenia, and more if one counts wasps. It also takes little to nothing, and is an excellent way to spend one's leisure activity.



  The basic components are some sticks one finds on the ground, a vat or tub of water, some squares of felt, and a frame with cloth stretched over it, or alternately, a nice basket tray. One may also want a few rocks, just for simple utilitarian purpouses.

  Strip the bark off the sticks and return it to the soil, then bash the sticks between the rocks until one has very small splinters. After this, grind the splinters between the rocks until one has a fine dust; this is the pulp.

  Chuck the paper pulp in a tub and fill with water. Stir the water with one's hands until pulp is suspended, then dip the frame (or basket), pull up a thin layer of pulp, and tap it onto the felt mat to dry.

  When it dries, it will be paper.

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