In the last couple of months, I have found myself drawn to using abaca and cotton fibers for a majority of my paper making projects and experiments. The other day I used a linter of jute fiber and blended it for about fifteen minutes total. Beating the fibers would have been ideal, but I use what I can! 

After pulling several plain sheets of jute I realize how different the papers looked in the vat and as a freshly pulled sheet. The fiber clumping pattern reminded me of snowflakes falling in the air and when I dipped my hand in, they felt short compared to what generally use. The confetti-like inclusions were the cutout pieces from a laser-cut project.  I gently sprinkled in the pieces, like a chef adding a magic ingredient. 

The first few sheets had a bit too many bits and pieces, but as the vat began to thin the inclusions were able to spread out. After a while, I noticed the sheets were harder to pull and became uneven. I decided to couch some of the sheets two and sometimes three times. This resulted in a thicker sheet, with the cut pieces more deeply embedded. I really enjoyed the look of the multi-couched sheets; the cut bits are more subtle, and the texture of the jute fiber is more apparent. 

After working with jute fibers for the first time, I am very excited to continue using this fiber in other projects and combined with additional materials. 

Fiber vat with floating inclusions.

Double couched jute paper.