I discovered the joys of paste paper at the Summer Book Arts Studio offered by the Museum of Printing History. You should have seen that little group of teachers happily creating beautiful messes!
The paste is made from powdered wallpaper paste (the big box hardware stores don't seem to carry this--check Ace Hardware or Sherwin Williams). Mix the powder with warm water (I failed to do this the first time I mixed my own paste and was rewarded with many lumps). Shake the powder and the water in a large glass or plastic jar with a lid (an old honey bottle with a squirt top works well) until it resembles a clear gel (think Aloe Vera gel). 
Mix small amounts with a drop or two of acrylic paints of your choice, and you’re ready to add paste pizazz to your papers! Use a popsicle stick, a sponge brush, or a paint brush to spread colored paste on a piece of paper (choose thick art paper or cardstock—paper that tolerates being wet). 
Gather a few combs and anything else that might make patterns in the paste and experiment!
Look at some of the lovely papers the children created!
After our papers had been dried and pressed, we set about the task of making bookmarks to honor and celebrate the special women in our lives. We cut the papers into strips and selected just the right color construction paper to back them.
A few children got creative with the scraps. The one below was created especially for our principal. "I chose green because it will remind Mrs. P of recycling." (In addition to becoming a Montessori Magnet, our campus has an emphasis on Environmental Science.)
This one was created for our volunteer who listens to children read.
This summer, the Museum of Printing History is offering family sessions (along children's sessions and adult sessions) for the Summer Book Arts Studio! What fun to spend part of the summer learning and creating together!
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