Making a Card

I'm always amazed at the process to make one of the cards for Peru Paper. It's a fairly involved process, and the women do an incredible job to make these pieces of art. Read more below, then visit the website, www.perupaper.com to learn more and get your own!

Making a Peru Paper Co. Card

The women sort through paper that would otherwise be thrown out, choosing which pieces are best to be turned into handmade paper. This is paper that is collected from offices or from individuals who save their paper for us to recycle.

The paper is then torn it into very small pieces and soaked in water for a few days until it turns into a pulp.

The pulp is put into a tub of water and dye is added. Sometimes other things like flower petals or sugar cane fibers are added to give the paper special texture.

The pulp is sifted through a screen, and fabric is stretched over the screen on top of the pulp.

The screen is turned over and the excess water is absorbed off of the fabric.

The fabric is taken off the screen and hung to dry on a clothesline or laid in the sand with the wet paper attached.

Once the paper dries, it is peeled off the fabric. It can then be used to make designs for the cards.

The women hand-make all of the cards, cutting or tearing out each piece and crafting them into beautiful designs. The designs are then glued to card stock, packaged in a bag, and sent to the US! It takes about two weeks total from start to finish to have a finished card!