Make twine - PEP BB textile.sand.twine

Inge,  How long were your pieces of bark? Were you going for thin long strips?  I can not even see where you joined the strands.  The thinner fine strands are what I want to use when I make the basket. Your twine looks great.

dawn west wrote:Inge,  How long were your pieces of bark? Were you going for thin long strips?  I can not even see where you joined the strands.  The thinner fine strands are what I want to use when I make the basket. Your twine looks great.

Hi Dawn. My strips of inner bark varied very much in length. From less than 1 foot to over 2 feet. You can't see where I joined them because I twist the new strand inside the end part of the old strand.

Here is my submission for the Textile - Sand - Make Twine BB.

To document the completion of the BB, I have provided the following:
 -  Post a picture of your raw materials
 -  Post a picture of your process of making twine
 -  Post a picture of your completed twine

I made this page to describe the process in more detail.

I gathered Yucca leaves from a local patch and used wooden spoons to remove the leaf covering.  Once I had fibers ready, I got out my drop spindle to spun and ply about 9 feet using the Andean Plying method.  Then I tried the 'twist and flip' or rope braid method described in this video at time stamp 11:30 for an additional 12 feet of cordage.

I transitioned from spin/ply to twist/flip making one piece of cordage that is 21 feet long.

Opalyn, would you be able to splice the two lengths together? I wasn't sure when I saw your BB if it was okay to have two separate lengths that equaled 20, or if it had to be a 20-foot length. Thankfully, I found this answer at the beginning of the thread:

r ranson wrote:Would two 12 foot lengths qualify or does it need to be one, 20 foot length?

Nicole Alderman wrote:You're the fibre expert, I say you decide. Are they the same difficulty?

r ranson wrote:The difficulty was how many nettles I had on hand at one time.  I think I'll splice the two lengths together and make one 24 foot length.  That would fit the wording of this BB.

So, if you can splice those two lengths together, I can happily certify it! Thanks!

Nicole Alderman wrote:Opalyn, would you be able to splice the two lengths together? I wasn't sure when I saw your BB if it was okay to have two separate lengths that equaled 20, or if it had to be a 20-foot length.

I did make one piece of cordage using two styles of plying. It might be hard to see because I left a pink marker where they styles change.  In the last two photos, there is a loop on the right-side showing the connection between the two sections.  

It is easier to see in the one titled “Plied cord - 14 lengths times 18 inches equals 21 feet...”

I edited the post and added a photo without the pink marker showing only two ends.

And, Mike Haasl know that there was not a BB Submission Button when I initially submitted this post.

Today , I learned how to make cordage.

I used kudzu vine because it grows so abundantly in our woods.

To prepare the vine for usage, it is lightly pounded between two rocks.

Then the fiber strands pull apart easily.

My pile of kudzu fibers.

I used the 2-ply reverse wrap method.

A little further along.

My finished length of cordage

Final length measured 21 feet 4 inches.

Once I got the hang of it, it went pretty fast. A very useful skill to know.

Calla lily is pretty invasive in parts of the North Island, so I did my bit to stop the seed from being spread by picking flowers before they got the chance to form berries (birds do love to spread the seed around!). I remember reading earlier this year, somwhere, that you could make cordage out of this plant, but I have not been able to find the source of this information. I tried to find it again on numerous occasions, and was beginning to wonder if I'd imagined/dreamt it. However, I can happily report that it appears to be true! The lily's fibres peel cleanly off the watery, pithy centre (easiest if you split the ground-end in half lengthwise for a couple cm, and then crack and peel). These fibres start out with a LOT of water in them, which makes sense, as they are a swampy plant, and must be dried prior to making into twine. They are more easily worked when the fibres are dampened slightly. The cord is relatively strong--a surprise given the fine, delicate nature of the stem peelings. It is able to take on a lot of water--not sure what context this would be useful in, but interesting! It is stronger wet than dry.

I made over 20ft by my reckoning. Photographed wrapped 9.2x around a metre stick, which, if my maths is correct, is around 30ft total.

I found out on Primitive Ways that maple can be twined, so I thought I'd try it using the unwanted trees growing near fences and buildings in my yard. The plant identifier app I've been using (Picture This) identified them as Box Elder, a member of the maple family. Even though I cut them in December instead of spring, I was able to spin something. Got quite loose as it dried though. This video was my reference for the process.

I shared the photo of my twine (in progress) at my facebook. One of my friends commented that the real name of that 'inner bark' is 'cambium'. I'll tell you here, so you know: the 'cambium' of linden trees (also called 'lime trees' in some regions, but they have nothing to do with the fruit named lime). That's the material to use for twine.

I have bundles of this bear grass stuff everywhere. I don't see a link to upload the pic???  I am just having fun here, no biggie.

As a novice spinner (I have an official spinning wheel now- does that mean I'm still a novice? Lol) and many years of being both crafty and broke at the same time... I'm always looking for ways to reuse old materials or use what's in nature.  So I have spun plastic bags and braided it into rope, old fabric...you name it.  We have this bear grass everywhere here in Western Washington because we have springs everywhere. Don't have any pics of the bear grass because it's winter and the goats ate it all down.  Same for my nettle patch.

But on warm Sundays, I deliberately goof off that day after church and set down on a stump somewhere and do all the crafty things I don't have enough time to do anymore because I have a small farm.  Hubs will bang on fence or his cabin he's building, and I will plunk down somewhere and braid bear grass.  I tried basket weaving in earnest.  It's hard with this tiny stuff.  I also had thoughts, stolen from Laura Ingalls'  "Little House On The Prairie" of sewing the braided lengths into a straw hat, like they did with wheat stalks. These things take a lot of patience, and a lot of extra, willing little children (slave labor lol) running around to help. I haveade baskets with branches, but failed miserably with bear grass. I can only successfully make a little square before it unweaves itself. It's interesting to try, though, and is relaxing and feeds that too often dormant creative spirit, which is the whole point.

So I sit on Sundays in the sun, praying for hubs to take his shirt off while he does sweaty man work (he never does...sad face) so I can ogle him further...and I braid bear grass.  Is it strong?  Not at this point.  But I have wrapped presents with it and my family and friends said it was cool and that I was "born in the wrong generation".