Laurie Schlitter
The process of taking flax plants from the field to fibers suitable for spinning and ultimately being used to make linen fabric is an interesting one; it has its own terminology, set of tools, and sequence of unique steps. The process of retting involves bacteria and curious smells. A wicked-looking tool such as a hackle is necessary, as is other simple equipment for carrying out other steps such as rippling, breaking, and skutching. We will be talking about and examining the flax plant before and after retting, the preparation process itself, and the tools involved in preparing the stricks of flax into the ready-to-spin line flax. We’ll also talk about tow flax.