[Nfb-krafters-korner] what is jute? here is the answer.

[Cathy]

Hi all,

 

You know how inquisitive I can be. Sometimes I am so eager to learn about
something I  rush on out on the net to find out.

 

So I asked about Jute and now I know. I don't believe I would want it for
jewelry after what I have read! Too scratchy!

 

e

Jute is a long, soft, shiny vegetable fiber
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetable_fiber>  that can be spun into
coarse, strong threads. It is produced from plants in the genus Corchorus
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corchorus> , which was once classified with
the family Tiliaceae <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiliaceae> , more
recently with Malvaceae <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malvaceae> , and has
now been reclassified as belonging to the family Sparrmanniaceae
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sparrmanniaceae> . "Jute" is the name of the
plant or fiber that is used to make burlap, Hessian or gunny
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hessian_(cloth)>  cloth.

Jute is one of the most affordable natural fibers
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_fiber>  and is second only to cotton
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton>  in amount produced and variety of
uses of vegetable fibers. Jute fibers are composed primarily of the plant
materials cellulose <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulose>  and lignin
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lignin> . It falls into the bast fiber
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bast_fiber>  category (fiber collected from
bast or skin of the plant) along with kenaf
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenaf> , industrial hemp
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemp> , flax
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flax>  (linen
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linen> ), ramie
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramie> , etc. The industrial term for jute
fiber is raw jute. The fibers are off-white to brown, and 1-4 metres (3-12
feet) long.

Cathy