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Pure mycelium leather



To make mycelium liquid fermentation, breathable lid jars were used. The jars were filled with liquid malt medium.and sterilized. Each jar was inoculated with 1cm² of Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum) mycelium grown on agar. Reishi mycelium was used as it is the most widely used strain for mycelium leather production for its resistance and thickness.

Mycelium first started growing submerged and fluffy and then colonized the entiere top of the liquid where the oxygen was more abundant, leading to a liquid state surface fermentation.



On day 34, mycelium had grown 2cm thick and was ready to be harvested Considering the post processing protocol developed for the composite flexible material had worked out well, same technique was applied to the pure mycelium sample.



The harvested mycelium leather was heat pressed trice at 150°C for 20 seconds between two baking paper sheets. Excess water was wiped off with tissue paper. Heat pressed mycelium leather was put to soak in a 30% glycerol bath overnight for plasticizing purposes and then dried at 35°C for 8 hours, keeping its flexibility. Melted beeswax was applied to the surface of the leather managing a brush. 3 more cycles of heat press (150°C, 20 sec) were applied to uniformize the beeswax on the sample