Im about to make (elm) bast fibre as mentioned in http://homepage.mac.com/laddie/basswood_twining.html. It works fine but here are some questions I have.
1. The bark that comes out of the water after watering is extremely slimily. And that slime is mucus from the bark/bast. It does not or only very difficult wash off in plain water. The mucus stays on the bast even after soaking it in potash lye for three days. How can I get rid of that mucus?
2. Once the bast layers stripped off and dried out they wrinkle up (pucker?). How can I avoid that they wrinkle up? Please see the following explanations:
Left: Thin bast layer after watering and drying. The bast is wrinkled up and not smooth at all.
Middle: Same as to the left but ironed. It is now smooth and the wrinkles are gone but you can still see them.
Right: This is a bast layer of the same thickness as the two others. This layer however was directly stripped off the bark without watering. It is smooth right of the bark and stays smooth even after drying out. (This right bast strip came off the bark when pulling the bark off the tree.)
So, the main question is: how can I get my watered and dried bast layers as perfect as the right one?
Thanks a lot for your help!
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1. The bark that comes out of the water after watering is extremely slimily. And that slime is mucus from the bark/bast. It does not or only very difficult wash off in plain water. The mucus stays on the bast even after soaking it in potash lye for three days. How can I get rid of that mucus?
2. Once the bast layers stripped off and dried out they wrinkle up (pucker?). How can I avoid that they wrinkle up? Please see the following explanations:
Left: Thin bast layer after watering and drying. The bast is wrinkled up and not smooth at all.
Middle: Same as to the left but ironed. It is now smooth and the wrinkles are gone but you can still see them.
Right: This is a bast layer of the same thickness as the two others. This layer however was directly stripped off the bark without watering. It is smooth right of the bark and stays smooth even after drying out. (This right bast strip came off the bark when pulling the bark off the tree.)
So, the main question is: how can I get my watered and dried bast layers as perfect as the right one?
Thanks a lot for your help!
