#bast fiber

oh nice ! I have never tried raspberry but I harvested a bunch of blackberry bast fiber a few years ago. I may have been harvesting too late in the season or maybe I needed better tools than what I had, but what i found was that I couldnt spin the fiber or make cordage out of it. it did make lovely fiber for basketry though. Raspberry may be a little better suited (ive noticed raspberry canes are usually thinner and bendier than the blackberry we have here)...not sure.

I would definitely recommend starting to harvest some canes early in the season to find the sweet spot of when the bast fiber is strong enough to use but not so strong it becomes woody. I would also recommend having some good tools ! Flax processing tools such as a hackle would be good. Processing plants for bast fiber is a lot more work than processing wool for spinning !

You always seem to have really good resources, so I hope you don't mind me asking.

I want to grow, then spin my own flax/linen. Do you have any advice or resources?

Thank you

Hello! Happy to build a reputation for resources, 😁✊

First: the modern linen "bible"...this book is well-written/sourced, and contains basiclly everything you ever wanted to know about the plant and the process:

Next, here's Cindy Connor running the whole process. She took a workshop and then jumped in all at once. 🥳

Cindy Connor is someone who walks the walk, a book author, and contributor to homesteading zines like mother earth news. I like her blog because it's great at getting into the nitty gritty of process and a bit of history, but also she improvises and doesn't let anything be too precious to hack.

Finally, here's Fiadnata's blog on the whole process, included specifically for their bibliography (she's soooooo good about this, do please click around the site for a treasury of practical and historical research on everything from bast fibers to building looms)

But maybe I'll do the other very retted stalks first.

Crossed by my milkweed patch on the way to the pie shop and grabbed a rotting stalk and quickly pulled it apart by hand. And then twisted into 2 ply cordage. Not the prettiest but I like it.

Credit to purples shoe. Also to taking the picture for me 💜

Gauze Rosette Embellished Robe a la Française, ca. 1770-75