Handmade lokta paper drying on muslin screens
in the sunshine in Nepal.
The paper for the ranges of giftwrap, notebooks & albums is made from the inner bark of the Daphne bush, known in Nepal as Lokta. This bush only grows at an altitude above 2000 m and has the unique characteristic of regenerating after harvesting, thus preserving the fragile forest ecology of Nepal.
The traditional paper-making techniques used have been handed down through generations of artisans. This particular project is run by two brothers and their cousin, themselves second-generation Tibetan refugees, seeking to improve the lives of fellow refugees trying to build a new life in Nepal. It currently employs 160 people from under-privileged backgrounds.
Every sheet of paper is handmade individually on a muslin screen, making each one unique & giving a natural, uncut edge to the paper. After drying in the sunshine the paper is dyed using a variety of vegetable & chemical dyes, including Tibetan tea, walnut shells and pomegranate. Traditional hand screen printing techniques are used for the decorated giftwrap.
The project runs from a workshop in Kathmandu and from a village in the north of Nepal near the Tibetan border. As well as providing much needed employment, it supports newly arrived refugees, a school for Tibetan refugee children and is reintroducing the lost tradition of paper-making to Tibet.
