Making process of hanji
Collecting paper mulberry,
1 year old Paper mulberry is usually collected during December to next March from Yecheon, Euiseong, Pungsan in Gyeongbuk,
Steaming paper mulberry & making black skin.
Paper mulberry is put into iron pot, pour water and steamed for 10 hours, skinned and the bark of paper mulberry is dried.
Making baekdak
After soaking skinned pidak, remove skin(black skin) with knife to make baekdak.
Making lye and boiling
Lye is made by making ash from burnt buckwheat straw, spreading cloth on steamer, pouring water to ash. This lye is put to beakdak which is boiled for 6~7 hours over wood fire.
Rinsing and sun bleaching
Boiled baekdak is washed with clean water for 3~4 days, and then bleached under sunlight.
Sorting out foreign substances
In this step, dust and foreign substances in baekdak that is rinsed and bleached are removed.
Beating dak
Baekpi that is finished with rinsing and sun bleaching is put onto dak stone, and beaten with dak bat for 40~60 minutes to pound on dak fiber.
Making paper
Types and quality of hanji differ by technique. After strongly mix the dakjuk with clean water, filter the hibiscus root sap to mix it with juice of dakpul. Then, scoop the front water with strainer to back and side water to opposite side and repeat the process several times.
Draining water
Paper scooped out with strainer is called Batang. After building batang and putting board with heavy rock, water from batang slowly drain out. Then, it is put on to compressor and completely drain.
Drying
Drained paper is separated to each sheet which is stuck to heat plate for drying.
Smoothing by beating on a block
Once the paper surface is dense, the paper is stacked and beaten to improve quality and gloss the paper. (Dochim : Beat leather and paper on beating stone to smooth it.)