DIY Network

New Uses for Fancy Papers Put beautiful papers to work in your decor. From "B. Original" episode DBOR-134

Tear and paste handmade papers for an artisan wall you'll adore.

Michele Beschen's friend Barb Niccum has made fine papers her business, and she shared some of her insider insights on high-end papers and how to use them in décor.

Italian paper has been renowned for hundreds of years, and Barb showed some examples of these craftsman papers. She also demonstrated how to wallpaper a room with them, even though they don't come in wallpaper-roll sizes. Barb also came off the wall to show a surprise paper creation of her own.

Scroll down for the tips and to see just how far you can take crafting with paper.

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	Figure A
	Figure B

Artisan Paper Wallpapering

Materials:

high-quality paper
wallpaper paste for unpasted wallpaper
wallpaper sizing (optional)
paintbrush for paste
smoothing tool

• If you want to be able to remove the paper easily later on, apply wallpaper sizing to the wall before pasting on the paper.

• Tear paper into pieces of various sizes. You want variety and interesting, ragged edges.

• Use a paintbrush to apply paste to a section of wall (figure A), then apply the paper.

• Smooth the paper down to get rid of any air bubbles (figure B). Overlap the pieces of paper; step back from the wall frequently to get a better sense of the overall look.

Figure C

Papering Furniture

• Make sure you sand any furniture surface you plan to paper, then remove the dust with a tack cloth. The paste will not stick properly to a slick, finished surface.

• The wallpapering technique above works for papering furniture pieces. Use handmade or hand-dyed paper for an artisan look, or try some vintage printed material
  (figure C).

• Cut hand-dyed paper into squares (or tear for interesting edges) and apply with wallpaper paste for unpasted paper.

• Seal and protect papered furniture with two or more coats of a polyurethane finish.

Paper Off the Wall

Barb Niccum is always looking for something new to do with paper, and this wearable art project shows just how much you can do with different papers.

Barb and her staff created a wedding dress entirely of paper, with a papier mache bodice (figure D) and a full skirt made out of a heavy paper that handles much like plastic (figure E).

Figure D

Figure E

You wouldn't want to wear it for long (the paper and papier mache have to be stiff to hold their shape), and you sure wouldn't want to get caught in the rain with it. But the paper wedding dress is a fine inspiration for anyone who wants to push the possibilities with paper crafting.

GUESTS :

Barb Niccum
Pure Paper
Website: www.pure-paper.com
E-mail: barb@pure-paper.com