Why Handmade Paper Gets Small Holes and Lines on the Interfacing Side

Examine a dry sample first with light falling across its surface, then with light behind it. Use a magnifier if available. Look for fibers crossing each bright spot rather than assuming every translucent mark is a hole. Mould marks can also become visible in transmitted light, while felt contact leaves surface texture. Folger Shakespeare Library: The mystery of gridded paper

What you observe	Working explanation	First check
Shallow dots or grooves with fibers still covering them	Contact texture	Compare the pattern with the interfacing
Bright patches containing a sparse fiber network	Local thinning	Inspect sheet formation and screen cleanliness
Open gaps without bridging fibers	Missing or displaced fibers	Check the sheet before and after couching
A long crease matching a fold in the cloth	Wrinkled couching surface	Lay the next cloth completely flat
Missing patches appearing during separation	Release damage	Inspect the corresponding area of cloth

Treat these as diagnostic clues rather than final identifications. A sheet can contain both contact texture and genuine holes. Record them separately so that an improvement in one does not hide a remaining problem in the other.

Interfacing is a contact surface, so its texture matters. A material that looks smooth from a distance may have a visible pattern close up. Arnold Grummer’s equipment guidance explicitly explains that replacement cloth, including interfacing, transmits its texture to the sheet. Arnold Grummer’s Paper Making: FAQ’s

Wrinkles deserve a separate inspection. Before couching, examine the cloth across the entire sheet area, including the layers underneath it. Dryad Education’s papermaking guide recommends smooth couching cloths and specifically instructs makers to avoid wrinkles when laying down the felts. A line that matches a fold is therefore a useful reason to test a flatter cloth arrangement. Dryad Education: Make Your Own Paper

Pressure can strengthen the impression of a textured surface. If the paper is intact but the pattern is too prominent, compare couching materials before simply increasing pressing pressure. Hand Papermaking notes that greater pressure makes the characteristics of couching materials more noticeable in the paper. Couching and Drying Surfaces

Yes. The side where you notice a defect does not establish where it began. Inspect the wet fiber layer while it is still on the mould. If the same thin patches already exist, changing the receiving interfacing will leave the underlying formation problem unresolved.

A blocked screen is one documented cause. Fibers caught in mesh openings can accumulate and obstruct drainage, producing a thin spot or hole. Arnold Grummer recommends rinsing the screen between sheets and checking for plugs. Inspect repeated defects against the same locations on the mould before changing the pulp recipe. Arnold Grummer’s Paper Making: FAQ’s

Also check whether the pulp is evenly dispersed. Dryad’s guide describes testing a small pulp sample in a jar to reveal remaining lumps, gently stirring the vat, and giving the newly lifted mould a slight shake in both directions. For troubleshooting, observe whether sparse areas sit beside dense clumps; that is a reason to investigate formation before blaming the cloth. Make Your Own Paper

Couching transfers a fragile wet fiber layer from the mould to a receiving surface. Hand Papermaking explains that the drained sheet still has little wet strength and that successful transfer depends on formation, drainage, a uniformly wet receiving felt, and continuous contact during the rocking motion. Hand Papermaking: Couching

For your next trial, prepare the receiving surface before lifting the mould. Drain enough water for the fiber layer to stay in place when inverted, then couch with one continuous rocking movement while maintaining contact. Move the lifted mould away so that droplets do not fall onto the transferred sheet. These are the operating principles described in Ted Snider’s couching instructions. Couching

After transfer, inspect both surfaces. Did the sheet release completely? Are fibers still attached to the mould where a gap appeared? Does a line follow the point where your rocking motion stopped? These observations help distinguish incomplete release from an existing thin area. Avoid repeatedly adjusting an already disturbed sample; use a fresh sheet to evaluate the next change.

Use non-fusible interfacing as your starting category. Papermaker Helen Hiebert identifies it as a suitable felt substitute and describes a preference for extra-heavy weight. She also recommends cutting receiving materials approximately two inches larger than the paper sheets. These recommendations provide a practical starting point, though the material’s actual surface still needs testing. Hand Papermaking: Couching and Felts

Compare a clean piece of your current interfacing with a fresh, visibly smoother sample. Keep the supporting layers unchanged. Inspect used cloth for retained pulp and creases before reusing it; Dryad’s guide calls for occasional washing of couching felts and cleaning equipment between batches. Make Your Own Paper

Choose the sample according to the finish you want. A slight textile impression may suit decorative paper, while a writing surface may call for less pronounced texture. Changing to wool felt is not automatically a route to smoothness: Hand Papermaking describes wool-felt surfaces as rougher than interfacing surfaces. Couching and Drying Surfaces

Use the following comparison as a proposed troubleshooting experiment, not as a reported result. Make small sheets from one pulp batch and keep their intended thickness, mould, support, pressing, and drying arrangement as consistent as practical.

1. Establish a baseline. Make two sheets with your current interfacing. Note defects while each sheet is on the mould, immediately after couching, and after separation.
2. Change only the cloth. Make two more sheets using the smoother comparison material.
3. Track orientation. Sketch the mould and cloth orientation in your notes. Compare the position and direction of recurring marks.
4. Compare like defects. Count open gaps separately from shallow impressions and translucent patches.
5. Repeat the useful change. If one sample improves, make another sheet under the same conditions before changing anything else.

Interpret the comparison cautiously. Marks present before couching direct attention toward the mould and formation. A pattern that changes with the cloth points toward contact texture. Gaps that first appear during separation direct attention toward release. If the results vary unpredictably, repeat the baseline rather than treating one better sheet as proof.

Check drying separately if the sheet looks satisfactory after couching. The drying surface also affects the finished texture; stack drying between absorbent materials requires replacing those materials periodically with dry ones. Hold this stage constant during the cloth comparison so it does not become a second variable. Hand Papermaking: Couching and Drying Surfaces

The most useful next step is to find the earliest visible defect. Inspect the fiber layer on the mould, check its condition after transfer, and examine what remains on the cloth after separation. That record will tell you whether to clean the screen, improve formation, flatten or replace the interfacing, or adjust the transfer—while preserving the handmade texture you enjoy.

• FAQ’s — Arnold Grummer’s Paper Making
• Couching — Hand Papermaking, by Ted Snider
• Couching and Felts — Hand Papermaking, by Helen Hiebert
• Couching and Drying Surfaces — Hand Papermaking, by Mary Tasillo
• Make Your Own Paper — Dryad Education
• The mystery of gridded paper — Folger Shakespeare Library