Back when wood was cheap and plaster expensive poor homes were often lined with wood. If the family became prosperous they would plaster the walls. Until that happened they would make the interior more secure by gluing paper, virtually any paper, to the interior. In older houses you can sometimes find pages from catalogs, discarded books, receipts, and quite frequently newspapers, glued to the walls to help stop drafts.

Remembering this and with temperatures expected in the teens, no money and a house you could hear the wind blow through we got to work. Mixing up some glue by combining flour and water we set to work sealing the building up. We glued newsprint over the the frames of the double-hung windows. Thick glue on all four sides and place the sheet/s pulling them tight so there was about 1/2" between the paper and the glass. Repeat the process inside. Instant 'triple-paned' windows. We did the same thing inside and out with more glue brushed on and strips of newspaper ripped about 3" wide to cover the gaps around the window frames.

We covered holes in the walls, around door frames, twisted up newsprint like rope and wet with glue we filled holes around pipes and stuffed a couple of long gaps where the floor met the wall.

If you wait for the glue to dry on a window and then moisten the paper with vegetable oil the paper becomes much more transparent. Translucent really. And it will let in more light and allow you to see shapes outside.

The methods work and last several months as long as rain doesn't get to it. Generally the colder it is the longer it lasts. If the paper is lightly oiled it will withstand a fair bit of misting rain and fog without sagging or rapidly deteriorating. In time insects may eat the flour glue. If you want the assembly to last longer and resist insects you can add boric acid or borax washing powder to the flour water mix. I have been told you can add lime and or alum to get a sturdier glue.

When the weather changes and the newsprint starts to fail you rip them down and compost them. Then go back and scrub the glue off. Note that if you use borax or other amendments to the glue mix the glue can be more difficult to scrub off.

Flour, water and newsprint, and a couple of sticks and you can build a kite. Fun, a potentially useful signaling device, and entertainment for the kids.

Sealing a structure using flour glue and newsprint to keep the heat in works. The same method could be used to help keep chemical contaminates out. Used to be plastic sheeting and good duct tape were dirt cheap. They aren't chap any more. Newsprint snapped up from the recycling bin and flour are much cheaper.