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Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Pine Needle Baskets
I have been in Chapel Hill North Carolina for the past week visiting family. In this region pine trees reach up to the sky. I decided to make a pine needle basket. I have gone outside multiple times within the day to harvest a handful of fresh pine needles from the tree at once. I would only harvest a handful at a time because then i knew i would only harvest as many as i would use. And I enjoy the breath of fresh winter air.
When harvesting from the wild it is important to give thanks to the tree or plant we take from. To create balance. Friends of mine have carried a medicine bag from which they sprinkle special herbs. Others burn sage or tobacco. I thank the tree through the song i sing, aloud or in my head while I harvest.
All one needs to make a pine needle basket are pine needles, a needle and thread. The baskets I made this week were with fresh needles. Materials for basketry are generally dried, then soaked before used. They shrink during the drying process. And barely enlarge, but become flexible during the soaking process. I tried using fresh needles because they are so small and therefor may barely shrink. I'll tell you if the material becomes loose during the drying process.
Here's a website explaining the basic steps to creating a basket.
http://www.nativetech.org/basketry/coilinstr.html
It took a few hours to create the basket. I sped up the process by adding 2 or 3 needles instead of 1 at a time. Which gave the basket more strength.
They ended up looking like little bird nests.
When harvesting from the wild it is important to give thanks to the tree or plant we take from. To create balance. Friends of mine have carried a medicine bag from which they sprinkle special herbs. Others burn sage or tobacco. I thank the tree through the song i sing, aloud or in my head while I harvest.
All one needs to make a pine needle basket are pine needles, a needle and thread. The baskets I made this week were with fresh needles. Materials for basketry are generally dried, then soaked before used. They shrink during the drying process. And barely enlarge, but become flexible during the soaking process. I tried using fresh needles because they are so small and therefor may barely shrink. I'll tell you if the material becomes loose during the drying process.
Here's a website explaining the basic steps to creating a basket.
http://www.nativetech.org/basketry/coilinstr.html
It took a few hours to create the basket. I sped up the process by adding 2 or 3 needles instead of 1 at a time. Which gave the basket more strength.
They ended up looking like little bird nests.
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