Custom Work 2007
Karen's Ropework
Made from cotton, *manila, *sisal & polypropylene, my rope crafts are an unusual use of rope. I shall be selling all these items and more when Mark & I are at the Gravenhurst & Rosseau Farmers' Market's during the summer with his boats - www.gravenhurstfarmersmarket.com and www.rosseaumarket.com. If you wish to find out more about my ropework or to place an order please don't hesitate to contact me at admin@harwoodwatercraft.com .You can place an order by credit card or paypal at http://KarensRopeWork.etsy.com.
(Please note that as everything is handmade I cannot guarantee that an item will be in stock. However, I would be happy to make an item to order. Check out what is available on http://KarensRopeWork.etsy.com)
Karen Harwood
Baskets $25-$50
Coasters $5 each
Cotton Boat Mats/Bathroom Mats $120
Doormats $50-70
Key Rings $8
Placemats $10-$20 each
Table Mats $30-$40
Here are samples of baskets made in 3/8' sisal. These are all my own designs and each is different. As they are all one off designs I am always creating new ones, so please go to http://KarensRopeWork.etsy.com to see what is available today!
Salad Bowl - $50
Flared Bowl - $40 - Sold
Small Swirl Bowl - $30 -Sold
A Pair of Lids - $40 Large - Sold $30 Small -
Pure Cotton Boat /Bathroom Mats - $120
These are made of 1/2 inch pure cotton rope They look fantastic in the classic wooden boats of Muskoka with the original Ocean Mat design. Alternatively, why not use them to give that nautical theme to your bathroom, they are so soft under foot. They are 24 inches wide, but can be custom made.
*These have to be hand washed carefully.
To clean use warm wet/soapy cloth.
*Due the nature of the rope these may scratch highly polished tables.
Made in 1/4' Manila. $5 each
Made in 3/8' Sisal $5 each
Made in 1/4' Manila $20 each - made to order
Made in 3/8' Sisal $10 each - made to order
Doormats - $60
Made of 1/2' Manila. These are Ocean Mat's weaved and then sealed on the underside to give added strength and which helps prevents slippage. Excellent for the cottage. Different sizes available.
Made from 3/8' floating polypropylene rope these key rings float. They will hold two keys. Made from the Monkey Fist knot.
Pencil Holders - $5 each (Any style!)
These are an excellent way to recycle old tin cans. The rope is wound around the tin cans glued to the cans, and then finished by sewing the rope around the top.
Table Mats - $40 - sold
The 1/4' manila is heat resistant, I have therefore made table mat's which can be used to place pans on. To clean use warm wet/soapy cloth. Due the nature of the rope these may scratch highly polished tables.
Manila
hemp is
a hard natural fiber
which is spun into yarn to be used for the manufacture of ropes and coarse cloth
for sacking. These ropes are frequently used as ships' rigging and other marine
cables.
and has been used for centuries. It is especially
resistant to sunlight. It is very popular because it will not melt on contact
with heat like synthetics do. It will burn, however, if the temperature is very
high or if the rope is in contact with heat source for an extended period of
time. Manila holds knots firmly and stretches very little. It must be stored dry
to avoid mildew. Chemicals will cause it to deteriorate.
What is Manila hemp?
Manila hemp is the fibre extracted from the leaves of abaca, (Musa textilis) a plant related to the banana. It is widely distributed in the hot humid tropics of the western hemisphere.
The fibres, which are extracted from the surface layers of the leaf sheaths, of the plant. The fibre strands, which can be up to 3 m in length, are composed of many single fibre cells bound together. These long flexible pale-coloured bundles are used in rope and textile manufacture whilst individual fibre cells can be teased out from these bundles for paper-making.
How is abaca processed?
The larger pseudostems are harvested before the flowers are due to appear to ensure a good yield of fibre. The pseudostem of rolled leaves is cut down and the palm-like fronds of leaves at the tope of the plant are cut off and discarded. The leaves are 2-4 m long, and heavy and unwieldy to handle, so most of the processing is done in the field. It takes 100 kg of fresh leaves to produce 13 kg of fibre.
The surface layer of the sheath is stripped within twenty-four hours of harvesting to prevent deterioration. Strips from the inner and outer leaf sheaths in the pseudostem are kept separate because they contain fibres of different qualities. Fibre from the outer sheaths is coarser and stronger and can be graded for use as rope-making fibre; that from the inner sheaths is paler and finer, more suitable for paper-making.
The leaf strips are decorticated to separate the fibres from the surrounding tissues. This is frequently done by hand using sharp knives to scrape the 'tuxies' along their length to reveal the fibres. Decorticating can also be performed mechanically using a battery-driven 'hagotan' with a whirling set of eight knives or by using a large decorticating machine to clean the fibres. After stripping and decorticating, the fibre strands are hung across drying poles in the open. Drying may take from a few hours to a couple of days.
Why is abaca important?
Abaca is an important crop in the Philippines and Ecuador, where its cultivation, harvesting and processing are major sources of employment. Before European textiles arrived in the Philippines, woven Manila hemp fibre was the chief source of clothing. In 1980 the Philippines and Ecuador exported 87% (75,000 tonnes) and 12% (10,100 tonnes) respectively of the total world production of the fibre to a world-wide market, with 60% of the fibre being converted to pulp for specialised paper-making.
Sisal
Sisal, like manila, is a hard natural fiber, but its strength is about 20% less than manila. It too has excellent resistance to sunlight, little stretch, and good knot-holding ability. Sisal must be stored dry to avoid mildew, and chemicals will cause it to deteriorate. Common uses include gardening, bundling, shipping, and tiedowns where strength is not a critical requirement.
The Sisal Plant.
Originating in Central america and Mexico, the sisal plant (A. sisalana) is a major source of cordage fibre. The fibre is named after the port in Yucatan through which it was first exported. It was introduced to East Africa in the 1890s as a crop suitable for the hot dry conditions of the coastal plains. The bulk of world sisal production now occurs in Tanzania. Sisal is a hardy plant that can withstand very dry conditions with rainfall as low as 250Ð375 mm rainfall per year and it is able to grow on dry rocky soils.
What does the sisal plant look like?
Shoots consisting of a short thick stem with a rosette of leaves arise from an underground rhizome. The dark bluish-green leaves have a waxy surface to reduce water loss. They are long, narrow and pointed and have a sharp terminal spine. Once a certain number of leaves have been produced, a flowering shoot, known as the pole, develops. This can be up to 9 m in height and, near the top, bears branches carrying the greenish-white flowers. Although seeds are rarely produced, bulbils, each a viable small plant, arise in the axils of the individual flower stems and these are used for propagation. After flowering the plant dies.
Processing and use
Sisal leaves are cut by hand, leaving enough leaves on the plant for it to continue growing. The leaves are decorticated as quickly as possible to reduce fibre deterioration, the fibres being extracted by a crushing and scraping process. The pulp is washed away, a process requiring up to 45,000 litres of water per hour, and returned to the fields as fertiliser, supplying nutrients and improving the soil structure.
The coarse cream-coloured fibres are made into agricultural/nautical twines (1 kg sisal produces 440 m of binder twine or 150 m of baler twine) and coarse fabrics, such as sacks and nets.
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