Liquid Paper facts for kids
Liquid Paper is a well-known American brand. It sells products like correction fluid, correction pens, and correction tape. These products help you fix mistakes when you are writing. In the past, people used them mostly for typewriting. Today, they are often used to correct handwriting errors. The company Newell Brands owns Liquid Paper.
Contents
The Story Behind Liquid Paper
Liquid Paper was invented by a woman named Bette Nesmith Graham. She was the mother of Michael Nesmith, a guitarist from the band The Monkees. Bette invented correction fluid in her kitchen in 1956.
How Bette Invented It
Bette worked as a typist. She often made mistakes and wanted a way to fix them neatly. She got the idea from artists who painted over their mistakes. Bette started mixing tempera paint with a kitchen blender. She put her new fluid into small bottles. She called her invention "Mistake Out." She shared it with her co-workers.
Building the Business
By 1958, Bette had started the Mistake Out Company. She worked from her kitchen and later her garage. She made small batches of correction bottles at night and on weekends. She was fired from her typist job because she accidentally used her own company's name on a work document. After that, she decided to focus all her time on her company.
Growing the Brand
Bette offered her correction fluid to IBM, a big computer company. IBM did not accept her offer. By 1968, her product was very successful. It was renamed Liquid Paper. In 1979, Bette sold her company to the Gillette Corporation. She sold it for a large amount of money, $47.5 million, plus future payments.
Who Owns Liquid Paper Now?
In 2000, the Liquid Paper brand was bought by Newell Rubbermaid. This company is now called Newell Brands. In some parts of the world, Liquid Paper is now sold alongside Papermate products. Papermate is another well-known brand that makes writing tools. Newell Brands also owns Papermate.
What's Inside Liquid Paper?
As of 2009, the main ingredients in Liquid Paper include titanium dioxide. This is a white pigment that makes the fluid opaque. It also contains other things like solvent naphtha, mineral spirits, and resins. These help the fluid spread and dry.
Safety Changes
In the 1980s, people became concerned about some ingredients in correction fluids. One ingredient, 1,1,1-trichloroethane (TCA), was used as a thinner. In 1989, Gillette changed the formula for Liquid Paper. They removed TCA to make the product safer. This change was made because of a law in California called California Proposition 65.
See also
- Correction fluid
- Correction tape
- Pentel
- Wite-Out
- Tipp-Ex
