Two Rivers Paper Mill

Two Rivers was formed in 1976 and has been run and located at Pitt Mill, Somerset, UK since 1990. It's one of a handful of commercial handmills still operating in Europe. The owner/manager is Jim Patterson, a fourth generation paper maker who has spent his entire working life in the paper industry, in larger mills both in England and abroad, including Wansborough Paper Company in Watchet. The mill is over 400 years old and still retains much of the ancient wooden milling machinery. It's been restored over the last 15 years to a working water-powered traditional paper mill, using a 100 year old metal wheel from Wales and an 1841 Hollander Rag-Breaker. The wheel itself is a 10 ft overshot wheel weighing two and a half tons and standing eleven foot high. In combination with the rag breaker, Two Rivers will be the only place in the UK where water power is used to make paper from old rags. The mill is usually open for visitors during normal working hours but please call us at the mill on 01984 641028 if you are making a special trip to see us. The business at Pitt Mill is dedicated to maintaining the English tradition of making the finest handmade watercolour paper for artists.

All the papers are produced to archival standards using pure Exmoor water from the mill's own well and speciality fibres. These are principally cotton and linen flax but other materials such as hemp, esparto, seeds, flower petals and recycled rag are used to impart special characteristics. These fibres are beaten in water for up to four hours to develop the strength of the fibre and internally sized using ph neutral 'Aquapel'. For coloured paper, lightfast and permanent pigments are added at this stage. The sheets are formed individually by craftsmen using traditional English hand moulds and deckles giving each sheet characteristic ragged edges and a strength that is a hallmark of European handmade paper. Each sheet is laid onto cloth felts unique to the mill and pressed four times to impart the gorgeous knot texture for which the mill is noted.Surface sizing with gelatin and slow airdrying high in the rafters of the mill loft complete the process. The largest output at Two Rivers is of the famous TR and DeNimes handmade artists paper. This is the paper of choice for many of the country's finest artists. Two Rivers has a unique random surface texture unlike the mechanically even weave of most other branded papers. This also means that there is not a right or wrong side as both sides are identical.

It is incredibly hard sized, allowing the painter the luxury of pushing paint around for much longer than with more absorbant artists papers. Because the paint is not drawn into the paper the pigment dries to a sharp and brilliant finish. The inclusion of linen in its make-up results in an unusually tough surface which will resist much lifting out, scrubbing and re-working. As well as watercolour, our papers are used for other media including pastels, oils, printmaking, photographic processes and many types of mixed media

www.tworiverspaper.co.uk

Contributed by:  Josh Loude