spinning

	A long strand of plant material such as split palm leaf is folded creating two strands joined at one end. Spinning of the fibre using a hand motion to roll the fibres on the thigh towards the knee creates twist. In a reverse motion the two strands are plied together. This two-fold action is continued indefinitely until the length needed is reached. Continuously strands are added as needed.
Stringybark is used to create string which is very strong but coarse. It is much harder on the knee than the smooth, fine palm frond. It is obtained from the bark of various trees such as Brachychiton diversifolius, Brachychiton paradoxum and Ficus virens.

These Pandanus Dillybags, made by the students, are open allowing air to circulate freely around the contents. Others by the teachers are made so tightly that the containers are leakproof.

This string bag by Shirley Minyingarla is made with stringybark two ply string using a netting technique. The weaver begins by winding several thicknesses of string around her legs to create the right width for the top. She creates tension with her legs to control the dimensions of the bag and loops string in a spiral around and around till reaching the base. Then the bottom is joined with a simple interlocking technique.