Basket Lessons by Skylily

Skylily and one of her beautiful baskets

Hi everyone out there,

I would like to tell you about the wonderful world of baskets and the magic that keeps me engaged. Up until now I made baskets out of hazelnut and spruce root. I quickly learned that the quality of the material has a major impact on how well the basket turns out. It can be very frustrating when we have a new idea for a basket, but the weavers break constantly. I learned that beautiful, long, straight hazelnut switches work best for weaving. But for carrying baskets – I prefer spruce root.

I got the idea for my first basket when I saw two different baskets over by the Moon Lodge. I took a look and thought, yes, that’s simple, I can do that. When I made the bottom, I noticed quickly that it was not as simple as I thought. It was quite frustrating, to  be honest, and I would have loved to just burn it. Yet somehow, I was quite compelled and thought that maybe, just like with painting, that there may be a phase where it looks stupid, and that is true. When I continued and moved out of my frustration, a beautiful basket turned out.

Now there are three baskets and the fourth is in the making. I’m having a lot of fun experimenting with that, making as many mistakes as possible, because from those I learn the most. And one wonderful thing that I’ve learned is that everything is a basket*.

~ Skylily

 

* Lodges are big baskets. Woven clothing, blankets, bowls, anything that holds something or is woven is a basket. 🙂

 

 

 

2 thoughts on “Basket Lessons by Skylily

  1. That basket looks beautiful, right there!
    What will it life look like? Will it hold fresh fish? Will it take the nutshells and keep the hearth tidy? Will it mature into a snow bucket in the White Season? Will it survive until next Turn of the Seasons, maybe longer? Or will it find an honorable end in a purging pyre by the end of the program? 🙂

    • Hi you people out there in the wilderness!
      Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.
      Wishing you a great time, greetings from Germany!

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