If you really want to know about paper and papermaking, you've got to get to know trees.
Trees are all around you. But have you ever really thought about how they're put together? They're pretty cool.
Just look at a tree trunk. The bark protects the inner wood from weather, insects and other dangers. Just inside the bark is a thin layer called the cambium, whose cells become both bark and inner wood. Next is sapwood, which carries nourishing sap throughout the tree the same way our blood flows through our bodies to nourish us. Heartwood is the innermost part of the trunk, and even though it isn't alive, it provides the tree with strength and structure.
All that wood material is formed of fibers, tiny cellulose strands stuck together with a natural adhesive material called lignin. It's by separating and reorganizing those fibers that we make paper.
Consider the source
Some paper is made brand-new from trees - either small trees harvested just for that purpose, or from sawmill scraps left over when larger trees are made into lumber. A second source of papermaking material is recycled fiber. Each year, more and more paper is recycled - its fibers used a second, third or fourth time. Every year, about 50% of the paper Americans use is recovered for recycling and other uses.
Almost all of the paper you use today is made of wood fibers. Some specialty papers, like stationery and money, are made from linen, cotton, or other plants. Other papers contain a combination of cellulose fibers and synthetics such as latex. Still others are made completely from synthetic materials such as polyolefine. You might find latex in a waterproof mariner's chart, or polyolefine in a rugged courier envelope. But you'll find natural fiber paper almost everywhere!