Book Arts Tuesday-Paper Connection International

I first met Lauren Pearlman Sugita, the owner of Paper Connection International when she was working for a Japanese paper company in Boston back in the late 80s, early 90s. I was thrilled when she started her own company in 1995. Located in Providence, RI, it's less convenient for me to go and see the paper but shipping is easy. I go for earth tones and texture but she has an amazing collection of patterned papers. Lauren is continually seeking new papers to offer and her knowledge of hand papermaking is both deep and wide. Here's a bit about the history from the website:

Lauren Pearlman Sugita founded Paper Connection International in 1995 with the commitment of ensuring the art of handmade, traditional Japanese paper (washi) and handmade paper in general was preserved into the future. Through import, distribution, and education, Paper Connection has not only been an essential source of washi(Japanese paper), but over the years, Paper Connection has become known for its comprehensive collection of handmade papers from all over the world.
Paper Connection International has been the exclusive US supplier of papers from Japan’s Kochi Prefecture Handmade Paper Co-op Union. The union is made up of approximately 45 paper mills producing hundreds of different styles, colors and materials of beautifully crafted paper. In 1997, Paper Connection expanded its product line to include, washi from many other prefectures in Japan, and even more exotic papers from India, Nepal, Latin America, China and, as of 2013, Korea. 

Lauren shares her papermaking travels on her blog, Where is paperwoman?. A recent post was about Kapa cloth from Hawaii which is made from kozo fiber. She also profiles artist who use Paper Connection papers.

Paper Connection International papers have been used in many of the Spirit Books.