In addition flax thread is not elastic, and therefore it is difficult to weave without breaking threads.
2.
Charlie made boots the best way he knew how not the fastest ( a pair required at least twenty hours, sometimes double, of " hand time, " not counting fitting, curing, drying, and other pauses in the process ); not the cheapest ( nylon, plastic, and rubber cost less ); and not the easiest ( leather toe boxes and hand-spun flax thread took time and skill ).