My talented friend, Pam, held a basket-making class this past Saturday in her studio. I was the only person in class who hasn’t made a basket before! We made an Algonquin shelf basket. It’s a rectangular basket that has handles built into the sides. It’s a great basket for holding magazines or for carrying a bunch of junk around the house that needs to be put away (like what I did right when I finished mine). Well, let’s just say it’s pretty versatile.
It’s hard to believe that we took a pile of reed like this:
to turn it into this:
The class was fun and Pam is an excellent teacher. I’ve learned a lot of things about baskets that day. One of the more interesting facts I’ve learned is that all baskets are made by hand – there’s no machine that can produce it. It’s definitely something to think about next time you’re purchasing a basket!
I had to leave class before I completed my basket. So I finished the rim at home (which is why you’ll see a change in lighting for my photos). Here’s the finished product:
My shape is slightly different than the sample at the top of this post. The shape is dependent on how tight you weave. I wanted the top of mine to be as close to the width of the bottom of the basket. Now I just need to stain it and it will be complete!
You can see more pics in the gallery below.
