Invisible paper?
 

http://www.coleparmer.com/catalog/pr...u=8825902&pfx=

Have fun.

That's all fine and dandy, but it'd be nice if he went into the details of aquiring said chemicals...

I'm pretty sure that isn't "invisible" but rather "translucent."

That's what the link is for.

http://www.destructoid.com/elephant/...ainobvious.jpg

In other news, hexane is also really good at dissolving paraffin wax. It also has a bad smell, IMO. I work with it somewhat regularly.

also in other news: reading somebody else mail that isn't labeled with your name is illegal.

also, if you really want to read the mail without "opening" it you could just steam the envelope open to read the contents inside. This same processes of 'removing a stamp' can be used for the glue that mends together.

I think the main thing that gives hexane an advantage over steam would be that it has less noticeable after-effects, if any. Paper will look at the very least slightly different after using steam on it.

This would be true. The hexane doesn't leave any lasting spots or better yet, how does it dry? How fast at that? It's still a pretty cool substance and just reading a slight bit of it on Wikipedia there actually seems to be a ton of uses for it.

Hexane would dry extremely faster than water. Most solvents do. And before someone points it out, yes I know water is a solvent, but I'm referring to things like ethanol, 2-propanol, hexane, acetone, etc. They almost all evaporate extremely fast, and hexane is one of the fastest that I know of.