A New Field
Generate a lesson →
← Back to shortlist

Recipe

Plant fibre paper

Paper made from retted plant stems. Stronger and more textured than recycled paper.

Every A New Field recipe has been run in a domestic kitchen or community hall. Read the safety notes before you start and adapt for your venue.

What you’ll make

Pale straw to deep brown depending on plant and mordant. Tough, distinctive texture.

Flexible slots (flex around your material)

  • Long fibre

    Cellulose-rich fibre500g retted fibre

    Long plant fibres. Gives tensile strength to papers, pulps and composites.

    Examples Nettle, bramble, banana stem, grass

Fixed ingredients

  • Water · 10L

Equipment

  • Bucket
  • blender
  • sieve
  • deckle.

Refinements and variations

  • Retting takes a week or two in water
  • Substitute cotton or flax for a quicker build.

Source notes

Traditional Japanese washi and European flax paper craft.