This is the most fabulous thread! Low wax, low hackle, compared to other sinews. This is the thread that i prefer to use in my artwork, it is so strong and easy to use and durable. It was manufactured in the US, and is the same nylon fiber used by many surgeons. But this is waxed, and made especially for craft use. It is very often used in fly tying, basketry, and Native people's crafts.

Called artificial sinew because it resembles real sinew. Real sinew, however, soft attachment tissues (tendons or ligaments) from deer, etc, is stinky, difficult to obtain, and very time consuming to process. (and comes in only one color...) It also has limited length and is subject to being chewed on by critters. I am happy to report artificial sinew has none of these negative features, and looks almost just like real sinew, with the added bonus of being super easy to work with, readily available, and relatively cheap.

Unfortunately, this company has once again gone out of business. So what i have is all there is left by this US manufacturer (Gudebrod)...perhaps in the world!

Choice of size and color, here are all the stats (sorry, not all sizes available in all colors!)
Second photo shows comparision of large, medium and small bolts.

Large = 1/2 pound bolt... approx. 300 yards of fiber.
70 pound weight (will hold to 70 pounds)
can be split easily with your fingers, splits naturally into 5 strands
waxing makes for easy threading and stitching

Medium= 1\/4 pound bolt...approx. 150 yards of fiber
70 pound weight (will hold to 70 pounds)
can be split easily with your fingers, splits naturally into 5 strands
waxing makes for easy threading and stitching
(Please note the Marine Blue bolts are a little larger than all the other medium bolts - your bonus!!!!)

Small = 1 ounce bobbin... 90 yards of fiber
17 pound weight, the same as what you get if you split the 70 pound weight (the large bolts i sell.) Why would anyone choose the tiny one, you ask? Because it is much smoother than the same size threads split out from the original 5 strand bolt.

Another word about colors: This is an extruded thread, which means it is a vat of liquid, forced through a press, and the thread comes out solid (like a spider silk.) The color is put in the vat when the thread is liquid. So it is colorfast...with the exception of the natural tan color. That is white thread, with a tan colored wax on the outside of it. The wax does wear with time. So if you are using this for something that presses up against something else white, the tan wax may discolor the white thing next to it. I do not recommend the natural (tan) thread for use in wearable items that are light colored!

Also, the color called "Oyster" was previously called "white." It is better described, when freshly made, as "colorless," but given the time that has passed since this thread was made, and the fact that it has wax on the surface, it has become sort of a neutral gray/white/beige that fluxuates as one goes through the bolt. There often is a section of tan color on the outside of the bolt, where it came into contact with the natural tan, which means it will have picked up some beeswax. It is NOT a homogenous color throughout the bolt, and will not necessarily lighten up as it gets to the center of the bolt. My students loved to use it when they were making oyster baskets, started on oyster shells, when i was teaching, because it mimiced the various colors in the oyster, which led to us calling this color "oyster."

The last photo shows the same thread, split and used to bind horsehair baskets

For wonderful coiling fibers, including dyed pine needles, check out Midnightcoiler.etsy.com

More basket making supplies at MakeABasket.etsy.com