Homegrown Flax and Cotton: DIY Guide to Growing, Processing, Spinning & Weaving Fiber to Cloth

by Cindy Conner

Grow your own sustainable clothes! From seed to shirt, Cindy Conner shows you how to plant, grow, harvest, process, spin, and weave cotton and flax into cloth from which you can sew your own clothes. And since cotton and flax are made from plants, when your clothes' usefulness has passed they can also return to the environment without causing harm--a truly renewable and sustainable option for clothing. Whether you live in colder climates where flax can thrive, or warmer climates where cotton does best, there is a sustainable option (or two, if you live in the temperate zone) for you. And it takes much less space than you would think; a backyard garden will do! This complete guide includes in-depth instructions on growing and harvesting, preparing the fiber for spinning, the spinning process for each fiber; the basics of weaving cloth; and suggestions on patterns and how to weave the pieces you need for clothing, and how to sew your woven pieces together. Cindy has been growing her own clothes for years and teaches the process in classes, so she includes all of her knowledge on potential pitfalls and how to avoid them in her thorough instructions on each phase. You can grow your own flax and cotton and make clothes to your own style preferences. It's time to take the next step in sustainable living and make your own clothes in breathable and comfortable natural cotton and flax grown in your own backyard!

152 pages, Paperback

Published July 1, 2023

About the author

Cindy Conner researches how to sustainably grow a complete diet in a small space at her home near Ashland, VA, and has produced the videos Develop a Sustainable Vegetable Garden Plan and Cover Crops and Compost Crops IN Your Garden. Cindy, a former market gardener, was instrumental in establishing the sustainable agriculture program at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Goochland, VA and taught there from 1999-2010. She is the author of Grow a Sustainable Diet: planning and growing to feed ourselves and the earth (2014) and Seed Libraries: and other means of keeping seeds in the hands of the people (2015). Now she is exploring how to clothe herself from her garden growing cotton and flax for linen. Her book Homegrown Flax and Cotton: DIY Guide to Growing, Processing, Spinning & Weaving Fiber to Cloth will be available July 1, 2023. Follow Cindy’s blog at www.HomeplaceEarth.wordpress.com.

Reviews

[Kora Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just the right amount of information about growing and processing flax. LOVELY PHOTOTS. The flax brake pattern at the back of the book was a wonderful surprise!

[Humbledaisy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thorough exploration of growing and using flax. I’ve been reading up on the subject after following Eve Ogden Schuab’s Growing A Dress in a Year.