Making Japanese hinges is one of the preferred and time proven methods used by conservators and preparators to attach fine art works on paper to a backing board. See our framing advice pages on making wheat paste and methyl cellulose to learn how to make the paste to adhere the Japanese hinges.
FRAMER'S TIP: The hinge is very strong along along the direction of the grain and tears more easily if it is torn against the grain.
FRAMER'S TIP: The reason it is so important to determine the direction of the grain is that you want the fibers of the hinge running perpendicular or vertically to the artwork. This will ensure the hinge is stronger and will last longer.
Step 1
Wet the paper. Taking a clean water color paint brush, dip it in water and make a stroke against the straight edge. Make sure you use sufficient water to soak the paper.
Step 2
Tear the paper. Tearing hinges this way is creating ‘feathers’ on the long fiber of the paper which will make the edges of the hinge less noticeable behind the artwork. Now take your hand and gently tear the paper along the straight edge.
Step 3
Cross cut the hinges. Use the same technique to tear the hinges the size you need. Make as many hinges as you need to adhere your artwork. See Attaching hinges to artwork , attaching T-hinges, and attaching V-hinges will demonstrate the different applications for using Japanese paper hinges.
