Students for Sustainability will be selling Valentine’s Day cards from handmade recycled paper Wednesday February 11th from 11:00-1:30p.m in the Ragsdale Lobby. Please come stop by!
Here’s a word from Caitlin Coghlan, Students for Sustainability Events Coordinator and Expert in recycled paper making:
Making recycled paper is a labor of love. It takes a nice pile of paper varying from computer paper, newspapers, to maybe a recycled chipotle bowl; a large amount of water and a strong blender. Unfortunately for us, one blender did not make it past our recycled paper test. In order to make homemade recycled paper, one gathers paper together, tears them in tiny pieces and blends it with water to make pulp. A screen is then used to gather the pulp. The pulpy mixture is then pressed between two screens to remove the water and then compressed in order to make a solid mass. The final step before a great handmade paper product is created is drying.
The process is simple but quite a messy one in our experience. It takes some innovation in order to color the paper, whether it is dye (which we tried to avoid), construction paper, tissue paper, hibiscus tea or even beet juice. We tried all sorts of combinations to get our paper to resemble something a person would want to receive on Valentines Day (Unfortunately some of the paper turned out looking more like meat that anything)
Some of our fearless volunteers gathered around paper supplies from recycling bins on campus. I think we forget about repurposing items instead of immediately throwing them out. Think about the beauty of spending little money on materials and putting a new spin on something we have deemed as trash! (or recyclables) And man does this school use a ton of paper!
Valentines Day can turn into a quick spend on new paper cards and little gifts. This year I challenge you to think about putting your purchasing power towards a good cause, whether it is for Students for Sustainability or a different organization. Another important consideration is how many resources you personally use, as well as what went into the process of making an item and where it will end up after you’re done with it such as post Valentines Day. We only have a finite amount of resources here on Earth and we’ve got to make them last. Show the Earth you love it this holiday by reducing, reusing and recycling.
All in pursuit of sustainability!
-Caitlin Coghlan
SFS Events Coordinator and Expert in recycled paper making