Kaat'i is the art of stenciling intricate designs into leather or paper. For the last 700 years, Ottomans have used it to decorate the bindings of religious and philosophical texts. A nevregen, or a small, sharp knife was used to carve into the paper and the leather. The process of pasting was done with a mixture called cirisli muhallebi. This was a mixture of milk, rice flour and book binder's paste. The surfaces on which the cut-outs were pasted was called male. Those surfaces on which the cut-outs were directly carved were called female.