What is flax weaving?

When Maori first arrived from warmer Polynesia it was very important for their survival, flax was used in countless forms (clothes, housing, ropes, traps, nets, storage, medicine, toys etc.) and was also later traded in huge quantities. Over the centuries, its everyday use has evolved into a wonderfully complex art form. Weaving was an expert's task, performed under a spiritual tapu - an ancient set of rules which myself and other weavers still adhere to today (e.g. no harvesting during rain, no food during weaving and many other ways to show respect to the plant).

There is so much to learn, to start with you can try making putiputi and two corner kete, or flax toys and small mats.

Flax needs to be prepared well by the weaver to avoid shrinking, shrivelling and changes of colour.

Furthermore you can learn about the many dying techniques, both traditional and contemporary, with traditional or modern colours, also enhancing the many possible weaving patterns.

Once you have more or less mastered basic weaving there are countless beautiful whakairo (patterns) to proceed with.

Apart from weaving the green flax blades, the white fibre (muka) can be extracted and after a while you can start to delve into beautiful muka creations. Most people would recognise a korowai, always a massive project with incorporated feathers.

Keep your flax items out of direct sunshine as it could fade colours. Avoid humidity, it is a natural fibre so if you do see signs of mould then you can treat it with boiling water and drying well afterwards. My products are made for everyday use and are tougher than they look, a bag (kete) should be usable for many years.