From love letters to birth announcements to the news headlines that define us, paper has been a part of our lives since the birth of papyrus in 3000 BC. Now, designers and yarn-makers are turning paper into wool, and, with it, weaving a greener, kinder future beyond sheep.
In one form or another, paper wool, usually made from palm trees, is a fairly common craft item, often appearing as raffia, a thick fibre used to weave accessories like ‘straw’ hats and beach totes. But increasingly, designers are taking paper wool to the loom for home furnishings and garments.
Finnish designer and founder of Woodnotes, Ritva Puotila, has created rugs and carpets from wet-strength kraft paper made from coniferous trees, mechanically shredded into yarn, and then woven. The outcome is a surprisingly water-resistant and strong material. Woodnotes calculates the average carbon footprint of their paper yarn carpet to be between 13.44 CO2e and 19.92 CO2e per square metre, compared to a tufted wool carpet’s CO2e emissions of 41 to 64.2 kilos per square metre.
Woodnotes paper yarn differs from treated plant wools like viscose because it’s mechanically, not chemically, rendered, and is more durable for high traffic use.
Washi is another paper yarn, originating in Japan, where paper fabric is an ancient art form. Brands like Washi Jeans use a paper-and-ECO-cotton wool blend to craft their denim, which is then washed 20 times in recycled water to avoid chemical use.
Meanwhile, COS Atelier’s 2026 Autumn line debuted a paper-wool-and-cotton cardigan, while Momotaro Jeans launched a paper-wool-and-cotton washi knit sweater.
