The birch bark breadbox is a popular item in the kitchen. Indeed, thanks to its naturalness, the bread in it does not stale, does not become moldy and remains soft for a long time. The very same bread box does not absorb foreign odors, does not dry out and retains its original appearance for a long time. In addition, it is not difficult to make it yourself.
How to prepare birch bark for work
Birch bark is the uppermost elastic layer of birch or lime bark used for weaving various products.
Now you can buy ready-to-use birch bark in creative stores. If untreated birch bark is used, after removal it must be stratified. The layers should be of different thicknesses. After that, ribbons are cut from them, the so-called stripes. To cut them, use scissors or a tape cutter. However, you can do with an ordinary knife and a ruler.
Immediately before work, the stripes are soaked in warm water for several hours or steamed in boiling water to make them flexible.
Breadbasket making
In weaving breadbaskets, as a rule, a type of weaving is used, called a "rug". To form it, it is necessary to collect, fold in half and stagger an even number of strips in a checkerboard pattern.
Most often, 24 birch bark ribbons are taken to make a bread bin for several loaves. Of these, twelve are laid horizontally, and the other twelve - vertically. Their width should be no more than 20 mm. A rug is woven from these ribbons, carefully observing the distance between the corners of the rug. It should be the same. Thus, the main, deep, part of the bread bin is formed.
The lid for the breadbasket is woven so that its height reaches 1, 5-2 diagonals from the bast. The strips themselves should be about 0.5 mm wider than those used for the base of the bread bin. Subsequently, the lid of the bread bin can be used as a dish for serving sliced bread on the table.
All edges of the bread bin must be reinforced so that they are not damaged during operation. For this purpose, a thin willow branch is laid in the fold of the bast. But you can also do this with stainless steel wire. This procedure will give the edges of the product hardness and straightness.
Some craftsmen recommend greasing the finished bread bin with oil to give it a glossy shine and aroma. But this can have a detrimental effect on the product - later in such a bread bin, mold can develop, which will surely go on to bread.
It is better to lay the bread in a birchbark bread box on a pillow of heather twigs - they have excellent bactericidal properties. Combined with birch bark, they provide powerful protection against fungus.
And as a care, it is enough to wipe the bread bin with a damp cloth. Birch bark is absolutely not afraid of water.
