Cockled Onionskin - A Slow Method

[Czanne]

I have had a love of cockled onionskin paper since I was tiny and my grandparents gave me typing paper on which to draw. I love the crinkle, the feel, the way it takes ink and how it overlays. A great paper, and I am guarding my last boxes carefully.

 

I know it's a lost paper, but it can be somewhat reproduced using thepapermillstore.com's smooth onionskin. You will need a small spray bottle that produces a very fine mist, some water, a flat surface and time.

 

Cockling is produced by air-drying paper, and modern production means it's faster and more reliable to just heat-press dry everything. However, all paper can cockle if exposed to a little bit of water.

 

This is a slow method, and is probably not good for making books, but if you need that vintage feel, papermillstore's onionskin can be cockled a sheet at a time. Simply lightly spray the sheet before writing on it and let it dry flat. I used two light pumps from a distance of about 12 inches.

 

The corners did curl. The attached photo shows the cockled sheet on top of an unsewn signature of the same paper. The finer the droplets and the lower the ambient humidity, the finer the texture of the cockle. This might be a better project for midwinter, when ambient humidity trends lower.

 

I have no association with any pen, paper, or ink company, except as a consumer.

Edited August 1, 2014 by Czanne