After wrestling with thick Dogwood last week, I decided to craft a small basket this week. New to my wire baskets is the braided border I learned in my oval basket week. I used only the green and blue wires this time because I wanted it to match the rug you see here that my mother wove for my office. You can see the scale compared to my notebook.
Green & blue basket on rug woven by my mother.
I began this basket following Jon Ridgeon’s Log Basket chapter but had to modify along the way due to the challenging Dogwood.
Marie curled up in the willow oval basket.
This week I had a basket partner because my Mom and I made these together. She is a tapestry artist but her first weaving dates back to making reed baskets as a child back in Germany! Now you can see from where my emerging love of basket weaving has come.
Mom soaked the willow in her bathtub for days before I came down. We chose some colour variation using Americana (greenish) and Belgian Red (reddish brown). We followed Jon Ridgeon’s chapter for an oval basket in his book Willow Basketry: A How-To Guide.
Magnus thinks he’s in a basket boat.
It was my first oval basket other than the Catalan base I made last year. The oval base did flatten out as per the suggestion in Jon’s book to reverse the chase weave pattern halfway through. We however made the mistake of choosing side stakes that were too thick, so we had a couple of problems. I also dropped stakes along the way so lost my braided pattern. Editor’s Note: See my second attempt in Week 9 where I made up a rhyme to remember the steps!
Trouble at the border: the side stakes were too thick, so they cracked in spite of pricking with a knife blade and then made the braiding very difficult.
Solution to the broken stake at the border: I clipped the broken stake off and inserted a fresh on down the same channel.
This week I upcycled cut offs of Ethernet cable from my son’s IT business. I had admired the twisty colourful wires and wondered if I could follow the same techniques of weaving to create a miniature basket. It does work but with a few modifications.
Ethernet wire basket using only blue/white & orange/white twisted wires
Willow & Rush Donington basket
What an delightful treat! I took a workshop in the historical basketmaking hub of Castle Donington in Leistershire, England taught by Maggie Cooper. Maggie is not only an experienced and excellent basket instructor— she has also a wealth of knowledge about the Donington basketmaking history and technique. This braided (plaited) rush is a distinct feature of the Donington style. You can read about the history of Donington baskets in this publication written by Maggie. I have never used rush before but it grows naturally on our land. Now I know how to experiment with it. I didn’t have enough time in the area to do the tour of significant basket locations in the town that Maggie organized for a special event last fall. Next visit I will plan for extra time. There is something lovely about connecting with the basket community worldwide and the centuries of basketmakers before us. It was a special occasion for me too as my daughter attended too, so we could spend the day together! I look forward to catching more workshops with Maggie in the future as I visit my Father-in-law nearby twice a year.
Interior view of Donington basket
Willow frame basket
I returned to Lakeshore Willows for two days of crafting my first frame basket and enjoying the company of fellow Willow basket enthusiasts. Lene Rasmussen is a knowledgeable and creative instructor and basket artist. You can follow Lene’s blog too.
Look at the nice colour variety we were able to use in the baskets. Lakeshore Willows has a good variety of dried Willow available, so I bought enough to keep my passion going for awhile. I have to be patient while my first harvest is a year away and will then need drying time. In the meantime I eagerly await the opportunity to help Lene with her harvest.
I look forward to keeping in touch with the lovely ladies from the workshop and reading and seeing photos of their work and progress!
Dogwood shopping basket
Transplanted natural and nursery willows line the snowy boardwalk in winter
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