Thread: Distressing paper?

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Hi guys. I was wondering what would me a good idea on how to distress paper to make it looks old. I'm open to any suggestions.

Here are some random suggestions. Tea and coffee to stain it. Clamp a ream in a vice, use a grinder on the edges. Drop hot metal on it to toast it. Liquid rust. Stiffen the paper with dilute wood glue. Lay it on a rough surface and drive over it with a car. Dampen it and sprinkle with cement powder. Bake it, carefully, or wave over an open flame to brown it. Use a meat tenderizer hammer on it, soft/pliable surface underneath it. Leave it out doors and wet it now and again. Start with 100% cotton writing paper or use parchment instead of copy/printer paper. Oil and grease spots. Dampen the paper and drip/flick water colors on it (mold spots). Well, that's what I've got for you.

Yesterday, I made a bunch of labels for the candy bags this year, using the tea/coffee method. I brewed some strong tea, and added a pinch of instant coffee. Then printed the labels, cut them out, and dipped them in the mix for a few seconds. Pop 'em in the oven on low heat until dry and crinkly, and voila...instant age.

I did this for my witch bottles. Take plain ol' printer paper and tear away the cut edges to make it rough. Empty a tea bag onto a plate and wet them. Put the paper onto the wetted grounds pressing around here and especially push grounds up againt the edges to soak into the torn paper fibers. Sprinkle a few grounds on top. Let it soak a while then let it dry. Remember it should be damp with some water pooled around but not so much as to submerge it!

If your trying to do this with printed material first spray the printing with wood lacquer. Most home printing inks are water based and this will seal it. You may still get some bleeding from the ink but I liked the effect on mine.

http://www.halloweenforum.com/member...s-scrolls.html

I experimented with the tea method (I brewed some tea and brushed the tea bags on the paper) and it gives it a convincing look, but I'll try using a bit of coffee with it to make it a bit more aged. I was going to use these for old letters and for party invites.

Check out Dave Lowe's Blog. He used Coffee for a book used on a kids TV show.

After you soacked it in the tea and it is dry singe the edges a little with a lighter

never tried it and might be more work then the dying method.

Heat Gun???? kinda burn very hot drying this might work

-PB

Don't forget using open flame and possibly an iron.

Hi... I haven't been around the forum much, but your question caught my eye so I thought I'd offer this:

when we were kids (a few hundred years ago or so) we use to create faux Declarations of Independence and Constitutions. First we'd write out the document on various papers (more or less standard paper, but you could experiment with various art papers, i.e. tracing, heavy bond, etc.) using india ink and caligrapher pens. (India ink 'cause it's permanent.)

Once the ink dries (only takes a couple minutes) we'd IRON the paper carefully! You have to be cautious of the heat setting (don't use steam!!) and keep the iron moving around the paper. Eventually--oh heck, I don't know--a few minutes (+ or -) later then paper would start to brown (burn?). A cool variation is to crumple up the paper before ironing--that creates knarly lookin' age lines and cracks and stuff.

You can go as far as you want doing this. But all in all, it's simple and fairly quick. And no mussing and fussing with stains and/or drying wet papers (although you can experiment a little with combinations of these techniques.)

Good luck.