The Shoji portable room divider is the most popular style of all room dividers, and also the original. It is the one made from a wooden lattice surrounding white rice paper, and the one you typically associate with Japanese training Dojos. They are very cool because they are completely opaque, but light can shine through the rice paper. If you want to build your own Shoji room divider, follow these simple steps.
The first thing you want to do is build two identical lattice screens. You can make them whatever size you want, but the traditional size of the lattices within is 8″ by 3″, so be sure to make the total size something that would fit those lattices in proportionately. The standard size of the screen is 8′ by 5′ (but of course, that is just a preference call too). Both frames must be built identically because they will later on be attached with the rice paper in between them. The wood on the outside should be a nice thick frame, but for the lattices thin strips will suffice. You can either attach all the horizontal ones first and then the vertical ones over, or you can do a criss cross pattern across the whole thing.
The next step is to attach the rice paper over one of the frames. First wet the rice paper and then blow dry it completely dry. This is in accordance with the traditional Japanese way of doing it, and it also makes the rice paper stretchier and easier to work with. Stretch the rice paper over one of the frames and stick it on the wood using rice glue.
Once the rice paper is attached, attach the other frame directly over the rice paper, also sticking it on with rice glue. Once the glue is dry on both sides, attach the two frames using nails on the borders. At this point you will have completed one full Shoji frame. Depending on your project, repeat the process as many times as needed. At this point you will have a very nice Shoji room divider, as well as a conversation piece because your made the divider yourself!