Visitors and demonstrators braved the chill Oct. 13 for Swiss Historical Village’s annual Harvest Fest. 

Chuck Howenstine and Holin Kennen demonstrated two parts of the multi-step process that readies flax to be spun. Howenstine used a scutching board, which helps remove the woody part of the flax so soft fibers remain. Kennen did the hackling, sometimes known as heckling, which is dragging strands of fibers through increasingly finer combs called hackles. The longer lines that pass through all the hackles are then ready for spinning; the shorter, rougher fiber left behind is called tow.