Basic Paper Casting

using Rycraft Stamps

Use linter paper to make paper castings with Rycraft cookie stamps

to create beautiful gifts and keepsakes for family and friends!

ABOVE (clockwise from top): Pulp in blender, oven-dried castings on

cookie stamps (with handles) and on craft stamps (flat), on a cookie

sheet for drying; castings removed from stamps and ready to varnish,

craft and cookie stamps, bowl with pulp and fork to spread it on stamps,

and a blue sponge to blot excess water from casting before drying.

What you'll need to make paper castings:

Rycraft’s 100% cotton linter paper* – our linter paper is a very pure white in color
and is made of natural 100% cotton fiber. No wood products are used.
1 or more Rycraft cookie stamps or craft stamps
Blender (optional)
Cooking oil & toothbrush for oiling stamps
Absorbent towels (cloth or paper)
Water
Sponge for blotting excess moisture
Cookie sheet
Oven preheated to 275 degrees F
Optional: Scissors to trim around design, varnish, paints and brushes, and other craft supplies

of your choice to enhance your papercast creations.

* NOTE: You may use any paper you have on hand to make paper castings

Five Easy Steps

1. Prepare the pulp:

Tear a sheet of linter paper into small squares (it is perforated to make this easy) and put in blender.* Add 2-4 cups of water and allow to soak 1 minute. Blend at low speed for 1 minute to make a soft, mushy pulp. Do not over-blend. Pour pulp into a bowl for easy handling. You may also want to drain excess water using a sieve.

*NOTE: If you don’t have a blender, just mix the linter and water by hand.

2. Oil the stamp:

With a toothbrush or pastry brush, apply a thin coat of oil to the surface of your stamp. Be sure to work oil into all the indentations of the design. This will help the casting release from the stamp, especially if you are going to remove the wet casting before drying. You may want to re-0il the stamp before you do each casting.

3. Fill the stamp and remove excess water:

For small castings, hold the stamp with the design face up over the bowl of pulp. Using your fingers or a fork, take about one Tbsp.of pulp at a time and apply to the face of the stamp. Press the watery pulp gently into place until the stamp is evenly covered, to about 1/8″ to 1/4″ thick — a lot of water will drain out as you do this.. Allow the pulp to go over the edge of the stamp a bit. Gently press down with your fingers to blot out most of the water and spread the pulp evenly over the stamp.

Using a sponge, press the surface of the stamp filled with pulp down onto the surface of a sponge, and press hard to blot out the rest of the water; squeeze out the sponge and repeat. Then use your fingertips to work the pulp down into the design. The harder you press, the smoother and more detailed the casting’s design will be.

For large castings, follow the instructions for small castings (above) to the point where you have blotted the casting on a sponge and worked the pulp deep into the design crevices.

Then place a layer of paper toweling flat on the counter and turn your stamp (filled with pulp) face down. Then build up a thin layer of pulp about 1/8″ wide around the edges of the stamp. Use your fingers to apply pressure to the stamp and the pulp around the stamp to remove excess water.

4. Oven dry the pulp:

For small castings, you may use 2 methods to dry the casting:

(1) Gently work the pulp edges so the pulp no longer clings over the sides of the stamp; then gently lift up on all the edges of the casting and lift it off of the stamp. Then place the casting(s) on a wire rack on a cookie sheet (not shown) for even drying.

(2) Place the stamp with the pulp still on the stamp (as shown) face up on the cookie sheet for drying. Don’t worry if stamps roll around on the cookie sheet.

For large castings, carefully pick up the stamp and casting to remove it from the paper toweling, and place the stamp and pulp face down on the cookie sheet (as shown).

Put the cookie sheet in a 275° F. oven until the pulp is dry — 20 to 70 minutes, depending on the thickness of the pulp. Castings may also be dried in the sun on a warm day. For faster drying, place stamps in a microwave on medium for 2 to 3 minutes; drying time depends on the individual microwave and the thickness of the pulp. Be careful the paper does not get too hot and catch on fire.

5. Remove the paper casting:

For castings that were dried while still on the stamps, when the casting is completely dry and the stamp has cooled enough to touch, carefully lift the casting from the stamp.

Techniques for Special Effects

Special effects:

Experiment with adding food coloring and/or colored paper and/or ultrafine glitter to small amounts of the wet pulp for special effects.

Molding hints:

If your casting sticks to the stamp, it needs more drying time, or you need to oil the stamp again as in Step 2.

Trimming and cutting:

If you plan to cut out the design of your casting, use a small, sharp-pointed pair of scissors, and make the layer of pulp very thin for easier trimming. For crisp, clean edges, coat the medallion with decoupage finish or acrylic varnish, let dry, and then cut to the desired shape.

Recycle leftover pulp and scraps:

Save your scraps and trimmings of linter paper, and add them to your next batch of pulp. Remember not to mix scraps that have color or glitter with white pulp unless you intend to create a special effect.

Painting with texture:

If you want a grainy texture on your project, mix a little sand or tiny grain (such as ground oatmeal or sawdust) with a little paint or glue.

Painted and cut-out medallions:

Choose the stamp designs you like best. Use the crisp, white medallions as they come off the stamp, or trim them into cut-outs with scissors. Use paint and glitter to decorate them (we recommend adult supervision when children use glitter). You can also glue a magnet on the back of castings for a charming gift.

How to stiffen doilies:

If your doily is unstarched, saturate it with spray starch or a commercial fabric stiffener, and block as follows: (1) put wax paper on top of a board (styrofoam, corrugated cardboard, or cork), and tape it down; (2) use pins to shape the wet doilies and secure them on the board. Optional: After they are dry and stiff, make them permanently stiff by applying a coat of varnish and let dry.

How to apply glitter:

There are two methods for applying glitter:*

Method 1:

Add fine glitter to your paint (using an acrylic gel medium if you like), or add it to varnish and brush it on. Let dry.

Method 2:

Coat the casting with varnish and/or paint. Let it dry. Then apply a coat of varnish or paint (only to the areas of the casting where you want glitter), and sprinkle the glitter onto the wet varnish. Let dry.
In both methods, you may want to add a sealer coat of varnish to hold the glitter on the surface.

*Ultra-fine and fine glitters are not recommended for children.

Creative Paper Casting Project Ideas

CREATE GIFTS & KEEPSAKES that your family and friends
will treasure: greeting cards, bookmarks, picture frames, barrettes,

earrings, gift bags, napkin rings, decorative boxes, and much more!

Gift Bags, Gift Tags & Decorations

To make unique holiday gift wrap, ornaments, and decorations, try placing the casting on a background piece such as a paper doily, a crocheted doily treated with fabric stiffener, a contrasting piece of paper, or a piece of fabric. Add a touch of paint and some ribbon here and there. To hang your Christmas tree ornaments, use a decorative thread, ribbon or clear fishing line.

#420 Holly Sprig Gift Bag

#271 Jolly Santa Bow Decoration

Christmas Ornaments

#220 Rocking Horse

Doily Ornament

#023 Snowflake Ornament

Papercast Gift Cards

Greeting Cards

To create beautiful and unusual stationery, glue a paper casting onto a piece of writing paper or note card. You can add a favorite phrase, poem or birthday greeting to the paper prior to gluing on the casting.

#326 Birthday Cake

#031 Noel Stocking

#080 Wedding Bells

Jewelry

#201 Lacy Heart Necklace

#089 Seashell Earrings

Projects for Kids

Spend a pleasant afternoon with your children baking cookies and making beautiful papercast creations. Both preschool and school age children find paper casting fun and easy. Give them some paint, glitter and ribbon to create gifts they will be proud to give to family and friends.

Glossary of Terms with Helpful Hints

These terms may appear in our instructions above or in the various paper casting projects we feature each month. The items mentioned below are generally available at your local craft shop, fabric stores, or floral supply.

Clear Acrylic Varnish

This varnish preserves paper castings by making them stiffer and stronger. Used mostly by crafters, it is similar to but not the same as the acrylic gel used in painting. It comes in matter (dull), semi-gloss, or gloss (shiny) finishes: choose the one you prefer. You can use either a spray or a liquid varnish which you brush on. If you use a brush, be sure to use a delicate stroke so the surface remains smooth. And don’t apply too many coats, especially before you do your trimming. Drying time depends on the thickness of your casting and how much varnish you use.

Craft Box

These are lightweight wood or stiff cardboard boxes found in most craft stores. Unique shapes are available.

Crochet Doily, Stiffened

There are several patterns out now for crocheted snowflakes and doilies. You can crochet them yourself or buy them, starched or unstarched. If the doily is not already starched, follow the instructions above on how to stiffen doilies.

Decorator Spray Paint

You can use spray paint from the paint store but you may find that the craft store has a better selection of the more muted colors.

Decoupage Finish

Decoupage finish can be substituted for acrylic varnish. This product preserves paper castings by making them stiffer and stronger.

Fabric Stiffener

Use either spray starch or the fabric stiffener sold at craft stores to give more body to the doilies used in projects found on this website.

Flowers, Leaves and Pearls

You may use any type (silk, ribbon, satin, dried, etc.) that you prefer. Some craft and floral supply stores offer pre-packaged “clusters’ of flowers, leaves, and strings of pearls.

Food Coloring

We don’t recommend adding food coloring to the pulp. It is extremely messy, and the colors tend to fade out of the castings when exposed to the sun.

Glitter

We used an ultra-fine glitter for many of our projects; however, we recommend a larger size glitter for children since the fine glitter is difficult to see and to wash off; children tend to get it in their eyes and mouths. You can mix fine glitter with your paint (using an acrylic gel medium if needed) or add it to your varnish. Another method is to coat the casting with varnish and/or paint and let it dry. Then apply a coat of varnish just to the areas of the casting where you want glitter; then sprinkle the glitter onto the wet varnish and lt dry. Then add a sealer coat of varnish to hold the glitter onto the surface.

Glue

You can use hot glue or white glue, whichever you prefer. However, white glue does tend to be absorbed into the paper casiting, distorting its shape. You may want to varnish your casting first, especially the area where glue will be applied, before using white glue. We prefer to use hot glue because it dries instantly and does not distort the design; we recommend clear glue because it is almost invisible.

Jewelry Findings

“Findings” are the small metal pieces (ie, pin backs, clasps, etc.) used in making jewelry. You can usually find them in your local craft store.

Paint

Acrylic paint can be used straight out of a bottle or tube. To keep it from being absorbed by the paper casting, which distorts the surface, first coat the casting with varnish to seal it. A 2nd coat may be necessary if you’re going to use a heavy layer of paint. Let varnish dry well between each coat before painting.

Watercolor paints won’t stick to acrylic varnish, but you can buy an acrylic gel medium and add it to your watercolors so that they become almost like acrylic paints. Children like watercolor markers, but if they hold them on the casting too long, the paper will puff up, and the color looks rather spotty.

You can use spray paint also, and then use a brush to add highlights of color and give the casting an antique look. When brushing on paint, be sure to use a light stroke; don’t rub back and forth or the surface will become rough.

Plastic Hanger

We refer to a plastic hanger with a hole cut out of it to allow for the nail it rests on. These are commonly used to hang posters; however, there are other hangers available in the picture framing section of the craft store or frame shop.

Scissors

Any scissors that have a good point and are sharp would be fine to use for trimming paper castings. We used Joyce Chen’s kitchen shears for the paper casting projects featured on this website.