For thousands of years, people have been weaving baskets using natural materials available to them, such as willow slats, rattan, and reed grass. Basket weaving has now become a practical skill and an art form to be reckoned with. If you follow the steps described below to make a wicker basket, the result will be a basket that is both useful to use in your home and beautiful enough to serve as a display. See step 1 to get started.
Step
Part 1 of 4: Preparing the Blades
Step 1. Take a bunch of willow slats
Your basket can be made using any type of material such as pliable reed, grass, twigs or branches, but willows are a common choice because they produce a strong basket once it dries. You can cut your willow yourself or buy the blades at a craft store.
- You will need a large bunch of thick, medium and thin blades to form the basket sections. Make sure you have plenty of long, thin blades – the longer the better, so you don't have to thread the blades too often.
- If you cut your willow blade yourself, you will need to dry it before use. The willow blades will shrivel when they dry for the first time. Leave it to dry for a few weeks before using it.
Step 2. Re-wet your willow blades
In order to use your willow slats for weaving, you must wet them to make them pliable. Soak your blades in water for a few days, so they can bend easily without damaging them.
Step 3. Cut the base blades
Choose some thick slats to base the basket on. Use small branch shears to cut 8 willow blades of equal length. The size of these base slats will determine the bottom diameter of your basket.
- Lucky to make a small basket, cut it 30 cm long.
- Lucky to make a medium basket, cut into lengths of 60 cm.
- Lucky to make a large basket, cut into 90 cm long.
Step 4. Slice the center of the 4 pieces
Start by placing a bar in front of you on your work mat. Use a very sharp knife to make a 5 cm vertical cut in the center of the willow cut. Do the same for the other three base cuts, until you have 4 slices with a wedge in the middle.
Step 5. Make a slath
This section is the foundation of the basket base. Line up the 4 sliced slices so that the slices are parallel. Insert the other 4 pieces into the four blade wedges so that they can be laid flat and perpendicular to the piece that has the wedge. Now you have a cross shape consisting of 4 pieces with wedges and has been inserted in the other 4 basic pieces. This chunk is called a slath. Each bar of the slath is called a grate.
Part 2 of 4: Basic Weaving
Step 1. Insert two woven blades
Now it's time to really weave your basket! Find two long and thin blades that are almost the same length. Insert the ends of the blade into the left edge of the horizontal wedge in your slath, until the small blade pops out from next to one of the bars. These two thinner blades are called "weaving blades". The wicker slats will be weaved around the bars to make a basket shape.
Step 2. Weave in pairs to secure the slath
“Pair” is a type of weave that uses two wicker blades, creating a solid base for your basket. Separate the wicker blades and bend them to the right just above the adjacent bars. Place one wicker blade above the grate and the other under the grate and then meet on the right side of the grate. Now bring the bottom wicker blade to the “top” of the next lattice and the top woven blade to the “bottom” of the lattice. Turn the slath and continue to weave, placing the current weave blade under the top of the next grate, and the top weave blade under the grate. Continue weaving in pairs around the 4 bars until you have made 2 rows of webbing.
- Make sure each twist in the webbing is facing the same direction.
- Weave tightly so that each row stacks tightly against one another.
Step 3. Separate the bars
Now that the three rows have formed, it's time to separate the bars to form the circle of your basket. Now, instead of threading around the grouped bars, separate the bars and weave the pairs between each grate using the same weaving technique.
- It is helpful to bend each spoke first to separate them so that they form like the spokes of a bicycle. Make sure that each spoke is separated by an equal distance before you start weaving.
- Continue weaving in pairs around the bars until the bottom of the basket reaches the diameter you want.
Step 4. Add wicker blades if needed
When your slats have shortened and you need to add slats, add them as close to the side of the old slats as possible. Use the knife to make a sharp tip on the new blade. Insert it between the previous two rows of webbing and bend to continue the old weave path. Make sure it is firmly attached, then use the branch shears to trim the end of the old wicker blade. Continue weaving with the new blade.
Do not replace more than one slats at the same time. Replacing two or more wicker slats in the same place can create a weak spot for your basket
Part 3 of 4: Weaving the Sides of the Basket
Step 1. Place a milestone on the basket
Choose 8 medium length blades to serve as basket "bollards". These are the vertical pieces that make up the sides of the basket. Use your knife to sharpen the posts. Insert the posts next to each grate, pushing each blade as deep as possible towards the center. Bend the posts up. Use branch shears to flatten the bars to the edge of the webbing, then tie the posts at the ends to keep them in position.
Step 2. Weave two rows with the three rod wale weaving technique
This weave requires three weave blades, which are weaved between the posts to secure their position. Find three long, thin blades. Sharpen the ends. Insert the slats into the bottom of the basket on the left side of the three adjacent bollards. Now do two rows with webbing as follows:
- Bend the leftmost bar to the right right in front of the two posts. Pass behind the third bollard and return to the front.
- Take the next wicker blade on the far left and bend it to the right just in front of the two bollards. Pass behind the third bollard and return to the front.
- Continue weaving in this manner, always starting with the weave blade on the far left, until you have two rows of this weave.
- Untie the bollards.
Step 3. Add the slats to the sides of the basket
Take 8 thin and long blades. Use a knife to sharpen the ends. Insert one slat of wicker into the back of the basket bollard. Bend “over” the next bollard on the left, pass to “back” the next bollard to the left of the previous bollard, and pass back forward. Now insert the second wicker blade behind the bollard to the right of the first slat's starting point and do the same – pass over the left bollard, then under the left bollard of the previous bollard, and back to the front. Continue adding wicker blades in this way until there is one wicker blade next to each bollard.
- As you insert the last two wicker blades, you will have to lift the first woven blade slightly to make room to add the last woven blade underneath. Use a long nail or awl.
- This type of webbing is also known as French Randing. This is a popular type of webbing that produces straight, even sides.
Step 4. Weave the sides
Take a piece of wicker and pass it in front of the bollard then to the left, and over the back of the bollard to the left, and bring it back to the front. Take the next weave blade that is to the right of the initial weave blade and pass it to the front of the bollard then to the left, then over the back of the bollard to the left and bring the end back to the front. Continue weaving in this way around the basket, always starting with the slats to the right of the previous one.
- When you return to your starting point, you will notice that there are two woven blades behind the last two bollards. These two wicker blades must be woven on the posts. Do it on the slats at the bottom first. Then the woven blade on top. For the final bollard, do it on the bottom slats first, then move on to the slats above.
- Continue this webbing until you have built the sides of the basket as high as you want, then cut and trim the ends of the slats.
Step 5. Secure the webbing with a row of three rod wale webbing
Take three long, thin blades. Sharpen the ends. Insert these blades into the left side of three successive bollards. Now do one row of webbing like this:
- Bend the leftmost bar to the right right in front of the two posts. Pass behind the third bollard and return to the front.
- Take the next wicker blade on the far left and bend it to the right just in front of the two bollards. Pass behind the third bollard and return to the front.
- Continue weaving in this manner, always starting with the weave blade on the far left, until you have a row with this weave.
Step 6. Finish the edges of the basket
Bend one of the bollards to the right and cross the back of the first two bollards. Pass forward the third and fourth milestones. Pass behind the fifth bollard, then bring it back to the front. Repeat on the next milestone that is to the right of your initial milestone.
- The last two bollards will not get any posts to weave in, because the rest have already been woven into the hem. Instead of you weaving on the posts, weave the ends of the posts against the edges following the pattern you created.
- Trim the ends of the pole webbing so that they are flush with the sides of the basket.
Part 4 of 4: Making Basket Handles
Step 1. Make the base
Take a thick blade as a base. Bend across the basket, holding the ends, to determine the height of the handle you want to make. Cut to size, leaving a few cm at the end of each side. Sharpen the ends and place them in the basket next to two poles that are directly opposite each other.
Step 2. Insert the five thin blades into the webbing next to the handle
Sharpen the ends and thread them deep into the webbing so that they lie next to each other.
Step 3. Wrap the handles with these blades
Gather the blades and wrap them around the handle like using a ribbon until you reach the other end of the handle. Make sure each blade is next to each other. Insert the ends under the edge webbing.
Step 4. Insert five thin blades on the other side of the handle
Working in the opposite direction, wrap the blades around the handles to fill in the gaps that the blades haven't covered before. Continue winding until you reach the end of the handle, then thread the ends of the blade into the edge webbing.
Step 5. Tighten both sides of the handle
Insert a thin blade into the webbing along one side of the handle. Bend toward the handle and wind the base of the handle a few times to make sure the blade loop is firmly attached. Continue winding until the base of the handle is tight, then insert the end of the blade under the last loop and pull it tight, then trim the ends. Tighten the other side of the handle in the same way.
