The strainer

The strainer (to tau 'ava) and wringer is made of strips of fau bast and hence also called fau tau 'ava where fau refers to the material, whereas to denotes the actual article, and tau, to wring. A strip of fau, bast to serve as a connecting cord is tied by one end to the big toe. Strips of fau ranging from 3 to 4 feet are doubled and the loop passed under the fixed strip, doubled over it, and the finger passed down through the opened-out loop to pick up the ends which are pulled up through the loop, and drawn taut. In this way, strips are attached close together along the fixed strip in exactly the same way as in making one form of bast kilt. When a number of strips have been so added for about a foot along the fixed strip, it is unfastened from the big toe and the two ends tied together. (See Plate VIII C, 1.) The process is called fifi fau.

To render the new strainer fit for use, the woody particles from a kava brew instead of being flicked off outside are collected on a mat. After the prepared kava is drunk, the woody refuse is put back in the kava bowl, mixed with water and the new strainer soaked in it. The damp strainer is then wrapped up in a green banana leaf or put into the kava cup and left there until needed. The process termed fa'amata takes the newness out of the strainer and prevents it from tainting the taste of the kava. Even with a used strainer, the kava is better if the strainer, instead of being hung up to dry, is put damp into the cup and left there until needed. In the course of time the used strainer gets a tangled appearance. (See Plate VIII C, 2.)