The
domesticated silk worm, used for the finest silk, is cared for
and fed throughout its life in open trays. As it readies to change
first into a chrysalis and then the silk moth, it is placed in
open boxes rather like egg cartons. There it builds a protective
support of silk fibres within which to spin the cocoon.
The unreeled white and cream coloured tussah silk cocoons contain
sericin glue, this binds them into shape and is unique to this
fibre. In the wild, the silk worm prepares to form a chrysalis
by folding a leaf around itself, pulling the leaf into shape with
the first silk fibres it creates.
Silk
fibre is taken from the cocoons by unreeling them in hot soapy
water, catching the fibre of spun silk and then pulling off as
much filament silk as possible. Each strand of silk is joined
with 10-15 more cocoon strands to form the glossy reeled fibre.
Papers can be made from the gummy
reeled silk, which comes in hanks. The hanks can be cut up
and the fibres used to create a well organised fabric.
There
are a variety of silk fibres available and each are the result
of different production techniques. They are available from the
PaperShed as undyed
or hand-dyed
and can all be used effectively in silk papermaking.
By laying down unspun silk fibre and binding them with an adhesive
medium (CMC
paste or Silk Paper Medium are ideal for this purpose) you
can easily create a sheet of lustrous silk 'paper'. This can be
used in hand or machine embroidery, 3d sculptures, jewellery making,
wearable art, card making, collage or mixed media - simply let
your imagination loose!
Handmade Silk Paper
Follow these instructions to make silk paper using an adhesive
medium.
Materials:
- approx. 25gm silk
fibre
- 2 sheets netting
(the netting should to be slightly larger than the finished
paper)
-
CMC paste or Silk Paper Medium or other cellulose adhesive
- small sponge
Preparation:
protect surfaces with plastic sheeting
dissolve adhesive in a jug or bowl of water
place 1 sheet of the netting on top of the plastic sheet
Instructions:
- Pull off a small handful of silk fibre. Hold it firmly with
the heel of one hand and pull out lengths of fibre approx. 3-4cm
wide and 6-8cm long.
- Leaving a border around your netting, start at the top right
hand corner and lay down chunks of fibre in a row, overlapping
each piece as you go. Continue until you have created a row
approx. 30cm wide
- Begin another row overlapping the fibres from the previous
row
- Continue until the fibres cover an area of approx. 30cm x
20cm
- Cover fibres with the second sheet of netting
- Pour some of the prepared glue solution onto the centre of
the netting and work it into the fibres using a circular motion
- Using your fingers push the solution to the edges of the 'paper',
adding more when necessary. Intermittently, carefully lift the
back netting to ensure the fibres are wetted all the way through
- You can remove the top netting from the 'paper' prior to drying
it, (or leave it in place to add texture to the surface). Remove
netting slowly from one corner and carefully release fibres
that have adhered to it. Place paper on a cake cooling tray
to dry flat and allow circulation of air
- Finally, lift the corner of the back netting from the dried
paper and remove slowly
