Nepali crafts people have been producing handmade lokta paper for more than a thousand years in the Himalayas.
  What is Lokta paper? Lokta paper is prized for its attractive texture, the durability and strength of its fibre and its resistance to insects.
The people of Nepal continue to use handmade lokta paper and, until the Chinese occupation in 1959, traded it with Tibet where it was used in the monasteries for sacred texts.
Nepalese still use lokta paper today for official government documents, due to its durability, and for wrapping paper to retain the potency of incense, spices and medicine.
  The paper is made from the bark of one of several species of the shrub Daphne, mainly Daphne papyracea, that grow in forests at an altitude of 6500 to 9500 feet (2000 to 3000 metres) in the Mount Everest region of Nepal.
Lokta plants thrive in the under storey of both coniferous and broad leaved forests.
They reach a mature height of 10 to 15 feet with a basal diameter ranging from 2 to 3 inches.
Lokta leaves grow 2 to 4 inches long and 0.
5 to 1 inch wide and the flowers are white with a sweet smelling scent.
Nepali handmade paper is made from the inner fibrous bark of this plant.
  How Lokta paper is made Nepali handmade lokta paper is an environmentally friendly and sustainable resource that is harvested and produced naturally.
The bark of lokta is harvested by hand without destroying the plant and the Lokta bush naturally regenerates, reaching full maturity again in six to seven years.
  The making of Nepali handmade lokta paper is an ancient skill passed down through generations, and starts with villagers gathering the lokta inner bark in the forest.
They carry the bark back to the village, where local paper makers wash it in a stream.
The fibre is then put into large oil drums and the inner bark is boiled.
  The softened bark is washed and cut into small pieces and cooked again.
The soft, cooked bark is placed on a flat stone and beaten to a fine pulp with wooden mallets.
Water is then mixed with the pulp to form a homogeneous emulsion.
 The whole process is done by hand, as there is no electricity in the villages.
  When the pulp is ready, it is sent to a village close to Kathmandu.
This pulp mixture is then diluted and poured over a fine cotton mesh screen that floats on a pool of water.
The frame is gently shaken to spread the pulp evenly and then set to dry in the sun.
Once the mixture has dried, the sheet of paper is peeled off the frame.
  History of Lokta Handmade Paper in Nepal Lokta handmade paper has been crafted in Nepal for at least 800 years and probably for over 1000 years.
The sacred Buddhist text 'Karanya Buha Sutra' in the National Archives in Kathmandu, is written on Nepali handmade paper in the Lichchhavi script.
Since the book was written in this form of script we can guess that it was written sometime between the first and ninth century A.
D.
This shows the strength and life of Nepali hand made paper.
Lokta paper has excellent durability and continues to be used in legal documents in Nepal.
  An Eco-friendly paper supporting rural communities This paper is free from any chemical treatments and no bleach or chlorine is used in its making.
It is totally natural.
Lokta paper is wood free and can be recycled.
Lokta paper is not made from recycled or waste paper materials.
And it gives work to many mountain villages who prepare the fibre for papermaking.