The short answer
Tissue paper is made by breaking wood or recycled paper into fibers in water, spreading that mixture very thinly onto a moving screen, pressing and drying it on a large heated cylinder, and scraping it off the cylinder with a blade. That scraping step, called creping, wrinkles the sheet and gives it softness and stretch. The paper is then wound into big rolls and converted into finished products such as toilet paper, facial tissue, napkins or sheets of gift tissue.
What counts as tissue paper?
“Tissue” covers two broad groups of product:
- Hygiene and household tissue, such as toilet paper, facial tissue, napkins and kitchen towels, which are designed to be soft and absorbent.
- Gift and craft tissue, the thin sheets used for wrapping, pom-poms and paper flowers. These can be made with different finishing steps, and are often lightweight and sometimes dyed or printed.
Tissue is among the thinnest and lightest paper grades. Industry sources describe the weight of tissue in the range of a few tens of grams per square meter at most. If you work with it in crafts, you can read about it alongside other sheets in our guide to craft paper types.
Raw materials
Tissue can be made from:
- Virgin wood pulp. Mills often blend long-fibered softwood, which adds strength, with short-fibered hardwood such as eucalyptus, which adds softness.
- Recycled paper fiber. Waste paper is pulped, cleaned and deinked. Recycled fiber can be used on its own or blended, and the result may differ in softness or brightness depending on the process.
- Other fibers. Some producers use non-wood fibers such as bamboo or agricultural residues, depending on region and product.
Step by step: how tissue paper is made
1. Pulping
Wood chips or recycled paper are mixed with water and broken apart into individual fibers. Wood is separated into fibers using chemical cooking or mechanical grinding. Recycled paper is mixed with water in a large pulper, and ink and other materials are removed in a deinking step.
2. Cleaning and screening
The watery pulp passes through screens and cleaners that remove dirt, plastics, staples and other unwanted bits. This is especially important for thin paper, where contamination would be obvious.
3. Bleaching and refining
Pulp is often bleached to reach a target brightness. Refining then lightly works the fibers so they bond enough to form a sheet. Tissue generally gets less refining than writing paper, because too much would reduce bulk and softness. To see why bleaching affects color, read why paper is white.
4. Forming the sheet
The pulp is diluted until it is almost entirely water, then sprayed evenly from a headbox onto a fast-moving fabric or between fabrics. Water drains away, and the fibers settle into a delicate, continuous wet sheet.
5. Pressing
Rollers and felts squeeze out more water, and the sheet is moved onto a large, steam-heated cylinder known as a Yankee dryer.
6. Drying and creping
The sheet clings to the hot cylinder and dries quickly, often with hot air blown over it. A sharp blade, called a doctor blade, then scrapes the dried sheet off. This causes the paper to bunch into tiny folds, which gives it its soft, stretchy, crinkled texture. This step is what makes tissue different from ordinary flat paper.
7. Reeling and converting
The creped sheet is wound onto giant parent rolls. In converting, machines unwind these rolls and may:
- combine sheets into two or three plies,
- emboss patterns,
- add perforations,
- cut and fold the sheet or wind it onto cardboard tubes (which is a different material; see the process of making cardboard),
- and package the product.
What chemicals are used to make tissue paper?
The exact recipe varies by mill and product, and there is a lot of variation. In general terms:
- Chemicals may be used in pulping and bleaching to separate fibers and control brightness.
- Additives can help control strength, especially for products that must hold together when wet, like kitchen towels.
- Creping aids, such as adhesives and release agents, help the sheet stick to and release from the dryer cylinder.
- Some products include softeners, colorants or fragrances.
Most of these are used in industrial settings and are not meant for home experiments. Hygiene products are regulated, and you can check a product’s label or the maker’s website for information about what is in it.
What are the stages of papermaking?
People often summarize papermaking in about five broad stages, though sources divide it differently:
- Preparing the fiber (pulping).
- Cleaning and refining the pulp.
- Forming the sheet on a screen.
- Pressing out water.
- Drying and finishing.
Tissue follows the same logic, with special drying and creping steps. For how thicker materials differ, see cardboard compared with paper.
Is the tissue paper business profitable?
It is hard to give a general answer. Tissue is a consumer staple, so demand tends to be steady, but making it at scale requires large machines, a lot of energy and water, and significant investment, and results depend on costs, competition and local conditions. Anyone considering it as a business should seek detailed professional and financial advice rather than rely on a general article.
Can I make my own tissue paper?
You can make thin homemade paper from scrap paper, though it will not be the same as factory tissue. A simple approach is to soak torn paper scraps, blend them with water into pulp, spread a thin layer over a screen, press out water with a towel, and let the sheet dry flat. Notes:
- Only use a blender or tool that you will not use for food again, and keep cords and blades away from children.
- Supervise children, and avoid using inks or dyes unless they are labeled safe for the purpose.
- Handmade sheets are thicker and rougher than commercial tissue, but can look lovely for cards and collage.
Environmental notes
Tissue production uses fibers, water and energy, and the footprint varies by mill, fiber source and technology. Recycled fiber and certified wood can reduce some impacts, but results differ, so look for credible labels if this is important to you, and keep claims modest.
FAQ
Is tissue paper the same as toilet paper? Toilet paper is one kind of tissue. Gift tissue is another.
Why is tissue paper crinkly? Creping with a doctor blade folds the fibers, which adds texture, stretch and softness.
Is tissue paper recyclable? Clean, plain tissue paper is often accepted in paper recycling, but used hygiene tissue is usually not, and rules vary by location.