What Retting Has Already Done for You

By the time your flax comes in from the field, the hard work of nature is largely finished. Retting — whether dew-retted on the stubble or water-retted in a tank — has allowed bacteria and moisture to dissolve the pectins that glue the fibre bundles to the woody core inside the stem. What you are left with is a bundle of dry straw in which three materials sit stubbornly together: the long bast fibre you want, the brittle woody shives at the centre, and a papery outer skin.

Breaking and scutching are the two steps that separate them. Breaking cracks the woody core into short lengths without cutting the fibre. Scutching then scrapes the broken shives away from the fibre. Neither process is violent, and neither should be rushed. Work with rhythm rather than force and you will be rewarded with long, silky ribbons of line fibre instead of a pile of broken tow.

The Tools You Actually Need

Traditional flax processing uses a small kit of simple wooden tools, and they have barely changed in centuries because they work.

• A flax break — two hinged wooden jaws fitted with blunt slats. Many antique breaks have two sets of slats: a coarser set for the first pass and a finer set for the second.
• A scutching board — an upright board, roughly a metre tall, set in a stand or braced against a wall. Some have a canvas drape below to catch the falling shives.
• A scutching knife — a wide wooden paddle, deliberately blunt. It should never be sharpened; a keen edge will slice your fibre.
• Practical extras — a low stool, a dust mask, an apron, and an old sheet on the floor to make tidying up worthwhile.

Breaking: Coarse First, Then Finer

Take a handful of retted stems about the thickness of your wrist — roughly two to three centimetres across. Lay the bundle across the open jaws of the break, close them firmly, and let the slats crack the stems along their length. Do not force the handles together; if you have to strain, you are taking too much at once.

Give the bundle a quarter turn and repeat. Work steadily from one end to the other, then turn the bundle end for end and go back along it. Two or three passes is usually enough, and if your break has a finer set of slats, save those for the last pass. You are listening for a dry crackle as the woody core shatters, not a tearing sound as the fibre gives way.

The results tell you a great deal about your retting. Stems that are under-retted will feel tough and the fibre will tear. Stems that are over-retted or still damp will leave the core rubbery and whole. Ideally the shives break into short chunks while the fibre hangs together as a soft, straw-coloured fan.

Scutching Away the Shives

Set your scutching board upright at a comfortable height — somewhere around chest level suits most people, though a stool lets you sit and work for longer sessions. Hold the broken bundle in your left hand, draped over the top edge of the board so that a section hangs down the face.

With the wooden knife in your right hand, draw it downwards in a firm, flat stroke, pressing the fibre gently against the board. The blunt edge scuffs the brittle shives away and they fall to the sheet below. Work from the middle of the bundle outwards towards each end, turning the bundle as you go so that every side gets attention. Flip it over and start again.

Do not expect perfection in one go. Scutching is a matter of repeated light strokes rather than a few heavy ones; a minute or two per handful is typical. As you work, short tangled fibres — the tow — will fall out along with the shives. Save the tow in a separate bag. It spins into a coarser yarn, makes excellent firelighters, and can be used for paper making.

Dust, Hands and Sensible Precautions

Flax processing is dusty work, and the fine particulate from shives is not something you want to inhale in quantity. Work outdoors on a dry day, or in a well-ventilated shed with the door open.

• Wear a dust mask for breaking, when the bulk of the debris is released.
• Gloves help during the coarse first break, but scutch by hand where you can — you need to feel how the fibre is responding.
• Mind your knuckles against the top edge of the scutching board; most injuries in this craft are scrapes, not cuts.
• Flax dries and roughens the skin badly. A barrier cream before you start makes a real difference.
• Store finished fibre somewhere dry and rodent-proof. Mice appreciate a good flax strick as much as any spinner.

Sorting, Judging and the Next Step

Once scutching is finished, sort your fibre into three piles: long line fibre for spinning, medium lengths for blending, and tow for everything else. Good line fibre should be pale, silky, strong, and should hold together when you pull a small tuft between your fingers. It should feel cool and slightly waxy, not dry and brittle.

Resist the urge to fiddle endlessly with a single bundle. It is far better to scutch everything once, assess the whole harvest, and then go back over the best fibres with a lighter touch. The next stage is hackling, drawing the fibre through a bed of iron spikes to comb out the last of the short fibres and align the long ones into a smooth strick ready for spinning. Even a modest first harvest will give you spinnable fibre, and the rejects will keep you in garden twine and handmade paper for a year.