I ordered some beautiful Legion Stonehenge Paper size 22×30 from Dick Blick Art Store. The paper was delivered via Fed Ex. The first delivery was left outside in my driveway and was subjected to the elements. I could not believe that a package that was clearly marked Fragile was left in a driveway and not placed at my front door on my covered porch which would have protected the package from the rain. I complained and Dick Blick sent me another package of paper free of charge. It was the fault of Fed Ex not the art store and yet out of kindness Dick Blick sent me a replacement. I complained to Fed Ex too and they promised it would not happen again. When the replacement package was sent it too was left out in the driveway. Same thing and boy was I mad! Luckily it did not rain that day. I guess the moral of the story is support your art stores and beware of deliveries from Fed Ex. There are independent drivers working for them now and they do not hold up to the same careful standards full-time employees of Fed Ex do. So now, I am trying to salvage the damaged paper by ironing out the wrinkles. Just couldn’t bear to throw it all away. Thanks to the internet there were many ways to do this. This is what worked for me

Next take a damp, not wet, sponge and lightly wet the paper. The object is not to soak but to dampen. Cover with a clean cloth and proceed to iron . Set the iron temperature at a low level. You do not want to scorch the paper, just warm it up to take out the wrinkles. After ironing place on a level surface and apply a heavy weight to keep the paper flat. Leave overnight. That’s it!

This process is a tad tedious but I actually enjoyed the ironing out part. The slow methodical motion is satisfying. Too bad we can’t iron out our own bodily wrinkles. Ironing also brought back memories of my my mother and grandmother endlessly ironing work shirts, tablecloths and my dresses. Aren’t we lucky to have permanent press?

The paper looks great. IT was worth all of the effort. It would be a shame to throw away such beautiful paper because of water damage. Even though Dick Blick so generously gave me another package of paper I just couldn’t bear to throw away the damaged paper. Glad this technique saved it. Note the little tin travel cases. Great for small stuff see https://theartistlife.com/. Next I will make a portfolio to hold the paper…… that will be another blog.