#basketry

Behold the beautiful timbers:

Now the thing is, that while I was removing the bark, I started trying to see how long a piece I could remove in one go*, as is my habit. I was really impressed by how flexible the bark was, and how easy it was to make long strips:

And then I thought I remembered** reading about how people are able to take the inner bark of ash trees and peel it away from the outer bark, so I decided try on my break, and:

Look at that! So flexible! So smooth! So staying in one piece!

I did some quick googling and found a few examples of people using black locust bark this way, so I'm pretty excited to try it out. The first thing to do apparently is to dry it out, before rehydrating it to work with.

If you've done this or similar and have any tips, I'd love to hear them!

*Yes, I am the kind of person who habitually removes the orange skin in one piece.

Nicholas Makalik, Barrow, Alaska, 1963

Coiled Baleen Basket by Abe Simmonds Barrow, Alaska, 1954

some pine straw I harvested today before the storm. gonna make plans- I want to try my hand at basket weaving one more time!! the small one I made last year has held up beautifully and holds all my desk goodies, might try to remake it a lil larger.

A Yemenite Jewish woman engaged in the art of traditional basket weaving in Herzliyah, northern Tel Aviv District, Israel, ca. 1961. The style of basketry resembles that of the Tihamah region of western Yemen. Not only in Yemen but throughout the region, basketry has been a craft and an art form primarily practiced and passed down by women - with exceptions of course.

Cherokee Rivercane purse - Artist unknown

This purse or "shopper" basket was made from rivercane. Although its maker is not known, the form, material, technique, and pattern are typical of Cherokee basketry made between the 1920s and the present.

It's small, compact, fibercraft intensity was somehow soul healing. I went in, mentally chanting "i need nothing. Just here to evaluate trends. I need nothing. Just here to see where small festivals focus energy into the craft. I need nothing."

Yeah. Well. Then Naturea Baskets was there. And there was all this:

And a bunch of vendors with this

And my talented friend whose Mission is to expand the Fiberhood.

by teaching, answering questions, & encouraging everyone to "Try it."

Women's History Month

Basketmaking is a time-honored tradition among American Indian women in the Pacific Northwest. Anna Squally, grandmother of Leonard and Caroline Squally, was a highly skilled basket weaver. She wove some of her baskets tight enough to hold water. It took Anna about three months to complete a watertight basket.

Baskets in this region use a decorative technique called imbrication. They weave fibers of different colors into a basket’s surface, creating distinctive patterns. Women journey to mountain slopes in search of bear grass (Xerophyllum tanax). Bear grass fibers add white to a basket maker’s color palette.