How to Make Antique Paper Stationary

I have always loved the worn and antique look that old books and letters have. The darkened paper with it’s ragged edges are very romantic and beautiful to look at. While buying this paper pre-made is an option at many specialty stores, it is expensive. Especially if you are someone who writes  often.  I kept trying to think of a way of making my own stationary. Then I heard a friend of mine say that she used tea to dye her hair. I thought if tea is strong enough to color a person’s hair then it should also be able to dye paper as well! After a bit of trial and error this method was born! and “Viola!” cheap homemade antique paper

This is how the paper will look like when you are done!

                                                 
                                                     Gathering Supplies:  

All you need is :  plain white printer paper, 2 tea bags, a painting brush of some sort (I used a kitchen brush for sauces but you  can use a regular paint brush. Just make sure it is a flat brush with a straight edge so the tea will go on the paper smoothly), a clear tea cup ( so you can see the color of the tea), something you can boil water in (I have an electric teapot, but you can also just boil it on the stove), a large flat clean surface, and a hairdryer.

                                                   Preparing the dye:  

To make your tea-dye is the same process as making a cup of tea. The more tea  bags you use the darker your dye will be. You really don’t need that much water. The more water that you use the longer it will take your paper to dry.    This 8 ounce cup with two regular tea bags is enough to dye 9 sheets of printer paper. I did 18 sheets this time so I just made two “cups” of dye.  Leave the tea bag in the cup until the tea is very dark. Do NOT let the tea cool. It needs to be hot when you pour it on the paper so the color will absorbed by the paper. I usually dye my paper in batches because the process takes a while so it is better to do a lot at once. Once it is done it is just like regular paper and you do not have to worry about the tea rubbing off onto other surfaces.

Dyeing the paper: 

The next step now is to dye the paper. Find a large, flat,waterproof surface that is easily cleanable. I chose the granite counter top in my kitchen. Clean the surface before you start because you want to lay your paper directly on it so that way it will not wrinkle.

Start by just getting the edges of the paper wet with your brush. This is done so the paper will not warp and become   wrinkled. Once you start applying the tea go in one direction (for me it was left to right) and slightly overlap each stroke on the bottom so that way there will be no white space left over.


Keep overlapping the layers until you reach the bottom of the page.  Once you reach the bottom you can either stop there, or you can go back and add another layer of tea on top in order to get a darker page. Do not worry too much about the air/water bubbles that you see trapped underneath the page (the light spots). Once the paper drys you will not see them at all.

After the first layer of tea has air dried a bit, about 10 minutes later, feel free to go back and add another layer of tea. Just be sure not to dump too much water on your paper or it could rip while you are spreading out the dye. Something else that tends to happen is that the water “bubbles” underneath the page will begin to leak out of the sides. It is okay don’t worry! Just dry it up by gently patting a paper towel on top of the spot to help “push” it out from underneath the page, then drying it up. The loss of “tea” will not effect your color.

To speed up the drying process I used a blow dryer on high heat. Just move the blow-dryer across the page back and forth until the page drys up to the touch. Do NOT completely dry it out. You want it to remain a bit damp so it  will still be flexible enough to “press” flat between two books.

                         

                         

       

Another thing that you can do to get a darker color it is rip open the tea bag and spread out the tea directly onto the paper.  This allows the “tea” to soak directly onto the page. Once again this is best done while the tea is hot. It is best just to give the paper a layer or two the traditional way first, then spread the grounds on top of the paper for layer three.

Once the paper has completely dried you can just use a dry paper towel to wipe the grounds off. It comes off fairly easily once it is wiped.  There is no need to press hard if the paper is dry enough the grounds will come right off.

After I had allowed my paper to air dry for about two hours after I had removed the tea grinds I placed them in the middle of a stack of large heavy books overnight in order to completely flatten my pages.

When I removed the paper from between the books the next day I had a pristine stack of antiqued paper that is ready to use for crafting!  The variations in tone are based on how many layers of tea I put on and whether or not I used the tea grinds. The darker pages are the ones that had the tea grinds on top of them.

So that is all of the steps it takes to create antique paper! Stay tuned until next time and I will show you how to make a card out of this paper! Thanks everyone! Let me know in the comments below if you have any questions!

– Mariam

Pan Roasted Salmon atop Udon Noodle Pesto and Salmon Caviar

Ingredients: seasalt, 4 tablespoons of butter, a fresh piece of skinless salmon filet, 1 package of Japanese Udon Noodles, premade pesto sauce,Italian seasoning, teriyaki sauce

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Directions:

1. Take your fresh or thawed piece of salmon and pat it dry. Get out a frying pan and put in the butter. Set the stove to high and sear all the sides of the salmon filet. Make sure to sear one of the large sides of the salmon more heavily than the rest of the edges.
2. Flip the salmon over on the side that is opposite of the most seared side ( the side that is seared less. Cover the pan and turn off the heat. The reason for flipping the fish is because the side that is seared the least will then cook and you will have an evenly cooked piece of salmon. In this span of four minutes do not uncover the pan to check on the fish. The purpose of covering it is so that the steam in the pan will circulate and cook the rest of the fish. This way you will get a nice, tender, and moist fish.
3. While the fish is cooking in the steam it is time to prepare the noodles. Bring water and salt to the pasta water to help flavor it. Bring the water to a boil in a pot on high heat and toss the udon noodles in. The noodles will cook vey quickly- in about 3 minutes. Do not over cook the noodles. Once 3 minutes have passed turn off the heat and drain the water immediately.
4. The next step is to prepare the pesto sauce. There is one golden rule of pesto: DO NOT put it on heat because it will melt and turn into a greasy mess. Just take it out of the jar and stir it around to make sure that the oils in it are evenly distributed.
5. Mix the drained slightly cooled udon noodles with the pesto sauce. Toss in a bit of Italian seasoning and sea salt to taste. Stir it into the pasta, and put it to the side for now.
6. At this point you can go back to the salmon and uncover it. At this point the steam from the pan should have cooked it. Check and make sure that it is cooked, but still soft to the touch. You can add in some teriyaki sauce and the salmon just coat the salmon with it in the pan and make sure that the sauce gets heated up.
7. To plate first place the pasta in the plate and spin it with a fork. Place the salmon on top of the pasta in the center for classic plating. You may add a dark colored sprout as a garnish to create a dark contrast. You may also add salmon caviar on top as well.

Introduction to Cooking : Who is Morimoto

Food has always been a love of mine. When I was young I had this book about Japan and in this book there were many pictures of beautiful Japanese dishes. I have always wanted to not only taste these dishes, but I wanted to know how to create them.

I began cooking my senior year of high school, which was about five years ago.I had finished most of my graduation requirements early so the majority of my classes were electives. I was accidentally put into a Food and Nutrition course. In this course we not only learned about how different parts of a food interacted with the body but we also learned how to cook and experiment with several “healthy” dishes. I really loved the fact that in comparison to writing a paper or painting a picture the cooking process was much shorter.And that I would end up with a tangible item that I could feel, see, and taste.

I find cooking to be an almost therapeutic process. I like that it is both flexible and governed. Cooking, like art has rules and measurements, but it isn’t too rigid that I don’t have some leeway to play around with a recipe if I want to.

This semester in college I once again found myself with a spare elective course. I opted to take a culinary class about “Modern Japanese Cuisine” at Kennesaw State University. The school is currently trying to establish and promote a new Bachelor of Science in Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality program so they opened the classes to people of all majors without any prerequisites ( Woo Hoo!).

My class is instructed by Chef Jack C. Fang. (Who is as an exceptional as a professor as he is a chef). My class is composed of seven non-culinary major food enthusiasts. Every Monday we have our class and we learn how to cook. The texts that we are using as our guideline to this class are :

Morimoto: The New Art of Japanese Cooking by Chef Masaharu Morimoto

and “Japanese Food and Cooking: A timeless cuisine: the traditions, techniques, ingredients and recipes” by Yasuko Fukuoka

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

The description of the course on the syllabus reads:
“This course takes a closer look into Japanese cuisine and how it’s adapted in the Modern world. Students develop comprehensive skills to apply cooking techniques and fusions of ingredients to create modern Japanese dishes. This course demonstrates the richness of Japanese cuisine and characteristics that are part of Japanese food and culture. Traditional versus the influences of Western culture, dining styles and overall food experience will also be explored.”

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

By the end of the semester, every student who performs the necessary preparatory work, attends class, and successfully completes the course assessments will be able to:

1. Describe the traditions and cultural influences on the country’s culinary heritage. (How Japanese food is being accepted and recreate)
2. Integrate flavors, ingredients, seasonings, and cooking techniques of the country’s cuisines to create a variety of dishes relevant to both traditional and current trends.
3. Identify traditional flavors, stocks and mother sauces and further development into the modern approach
4. Explain the development of regional cuisines based on available food supplies and agriculture resources.
5. Discuss the sustainable practices within the region’s food system, from farm to fork and the local and global impact.
6. Identify how the traditional foods, ingredients and cooking techniques have influenced similar cuisines prepared in the United States.
7. Evaluate traditional foods prepared for flavor profiles, quality and authenticity.

I am extremely excited to take this course! I already had to buy a professional chef uniform consisting of black trousers, a toque, black closed shoes, a white button up shirt, and a black apron. Luckily Chef Fang understands that his class is composed entirely of beginners and he has adapted the course to fit our needs. I am excited to share with you all what I learn this semester!

Bon appetit!