[10] Harakeke can be woven raw to create open-weave items (where the para or the waterproof epidermis of the plant is kept intact), or processed so only the muka remains, for close-weave objects.

Harakeke can be boiled with hot stones to bleach strips, however dying the fibre is difficult due to the water resistant para.

[10] Harakeke can be made more flexible with less shrinkage using the hapine technique, where a knife or shell is run across the fibre to remove moisture without breaking the surface layers.

It was the main material used for weaving, adopted after aute (paper mulberry), the traditional tree used to create fabric in Polynesia, did not thrive in New Zealand's "Scientific Plant Breeding" climate.

The two most common forms for flax in traditional craft are the use of stripped, dried leaves as broad bands, such as in the weaving of kete (flax baskets), and the scraping, pounding, and washing of the leaves to create a fibre — muka — which is used in tāniko (weaving) of soft, durable fabric for clothing.

[15][16] More recently research led by Xiaowen Yuan at Massey University has investigated the use of novel composite materials made from flax fibre to improve supercapacitor performance.

They are easy to grow in a sunny spot, especially in coastal areas with some protection in winter, but require reliably moist soil.