FMP (12/4/16) paper making at home

I decided to have a go at making my own paper at home today. I had already tried it at college on earlier projects but I wanted to try and be more independent and try it myself. I wanted to create this paper so I could draw and cut bits of it out to collage, I love the texture you get from the handmade paper and I love the process I have to go through to achieve it. Here are the steps I took ;

STEP 1/ I started by ripping up bits of scrap paper and old photographs in which I don't need anymore. I ripped these pieces up very small meaning it could blend easier.

STEP 2/ I then put all the paper into a blended with double the amount of water to paper. I blended this up until it turned into a mushy paste.

STEP 3/ I then used the sive to drain out the excess water from a chunk of the paste. 

STEP 4/ I then gathered the bits of paste and pressed them into the thin paper shape I needed. I will leave this to dry and post the results in the morning.

The paper making could have gone better, I feel that the mixture I made for it could have been blended more however it was too lumpy to blend. Making the paper thin was also a task because of the lumpiness of the mixture. I also didn't like the colour that the paper was. I think it's because the scrap paper I had was full with lots of writing and picture and the ink has made the mixture darker.