Linden bast weaving to order: bast shoes, mats and bags

I work with linden bast, and every order starts with the raw material rather than with the pattern. The bast is stripped in its short season, only from trees already marked for sanitary felling, and only under the permit issued for that plot: no living tree is ringed or spoiled for my work. The rolled bark then soaks in still water for two to three weeks, until the layers part on their own, after which I rinse it, dry it in the shade and keep it in the dark so the colour does not bleach out. Before weaving I split the bast into ribbons, and this is where most of the quality is decided. I cut them to one width, ten to fourteen millimetres for footwear and twenty to thirty for floor mats, and then draw every ribbon over a blunt blade to even the edge and lay the fibre down. A ribbon that varies in width gives a loose, hungry weave that runs crooked by the second row, and no amount of beating down will straighten it later.

Bast shoes are woven on a wooden last. Send me the length of the foot in centimetres and a tracing of it on paper, and the instep height as well if the pair is meant to be worn rather than displayed; I choose or cut a last to that size. Straight weave gives a quiet, dense surface and suits stage and museum pieces, while oblique weave is stronger underfoot and is what I use for shoes that will really walk. The sole is doubled, and on request run through a third time. I say the honest thing about wear before the order and not after it: on asphalt bast goes through in a season, while on a wooden floor, dry grass or a stage the same pair serves for years.

A floor mat is woven from wide ribbons on a frame, and its density is set by how hard the rows are beaten down; a tight mat holds its rectangle and does not curl at the corners, a looser one is softer to stand on. A household bag gets a hand-sewn linen lining, reinforced corners and handles either braided flat or twisted round, to your preference. I also make props for folk ensembles and museum displays, where the look of the period matters more than wear. For anyone who wants to try the craft I give a short lesson of three to four hours: soaking, splitting ribbons, and a small mat or a pair of child-sized shoes that you take home finished. Care is simple — a dry dark place, an airing now and then, never a sealed plastic bag, and a light dampening before reshaping.

What is included:

— consultation on size, weave and purpose of the piece;
— legally harvested, soaked and graded bast, ribbons cut to one width;
— weaving on a last to your foot tracing, or on a frame for mats;
— doubled sole, lining, handles and finishing of the edges;
— care and storage notes with the piece;
— a short beginner lesson on request, with all material provided.