Hints in working with Reed

1. When the pattern calls for soaking your Flat Reed, 1 or 2 minutes in warm water is usually long enoughtomakereedflexible.SoaktheRoundReedabout10minutesinhotwater.Asneeded,re- wetreedwhenweaving.Keepthebasesasdryaspossibleatalltimes. 2. Soakdyedreedseparately,rinsewellandwipewithtowelbeforeusing. 3. Donotoversoakyourreed,itwillbecomemushy. 4. FlatReedhasasmoothsideandaroughside.Youcandeterminetheroughsidebysharplybendinga wet piece of reed. The rough side will usually fray or splinter more than the smooth side. Create the basketwiththeroughsideoftheFlatReedtotheinsideofthebasket. 5. Asyouweaveyou'llwanttomaintainanequalspacebetweenspokesbygentlyadjustingthespokes tokeepthemvertical.Ifspokesdryout,spraythemwithwaterbeforecontinuingtoweave. 6. Onthesidesofyourbasket,asyouweave,keeptheworkingrowpusheddowntouchingtheprevious row. 7. When a piece of 1/4” Flat Reed ends, overlap the ends of the ‘old’ and ‘new weavers across 4 spokes. 8. Reedshouldbecompletelydrybeforebeingstored. 9. Recommendedtools:Scissors,awl,measuringtape,afewpapertowels,spraybottleforwaterand bucket/tubforwater.

Enjoy!

Item# 8980 PATTERNSHEET—Drilled Base Basket

Drilled Base Basket byBethHester

While working on your basket, be sure to keep the wooden base dry. You’ll need to initially wet the reed material with water and re-wet it (by spraying or by soaking) while you’re working to keep it flexible.

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Materials 1 6”diameterwoodendrilledbase 35 ft. #4 Round Reed 25ft. 1/4”NaturalFlatReed 15 ft. 1/4” Dyed Flat Reed

Note:Seeavarietyofshapesandsizesofwoodendrilledbasesatwww.basketmakerscatalog.com

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Cut12pieces30”longfrom#4RoundReed.Cutonepiece16”longfrom#4RoundReed;these

aretheSpokesofyourbasket.

2Soak the center section of the 30”

long#4RoundReedSpokes,keep-

ingtheendsdry.Soakabout1/2the

lengthoftheshorterSpoke.

Note:When the ends aredry, they

are easier to insert into the drilled

holesinthenextstep.

3Insert the ends of each piece of 30” long

soaked #4 RoundReed into adjacent holes

and pull the ends until they are the same

length and the piece loops fairly tightly

against the underside of the base. After

inserting the 12 longer pieces, you will have

one empty hole remaining.

Workingfromtheundersidesideofthebase,securethewetendoftheshortSpoke

(16” long) underneath one of the loops and then insert it through the remaining

hole.AlltheendsoftheSpokeswillbeapproximatelythesamelength.SPRAY

THE SPOKESWITHWATER (OR SOAKTHE SPOKES INABUCKETOF

WATER)ASTHEYNEEDTOBEWETBEFOREYOUSTARTWEAVING.DO

NOTSOAKORWETTHEWOODENBASE.

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Soakapieceof1/4”dyedflatreedinwaterforacoupleofminutes.

Thispiececanbefrom4feetto6feetlong,orabitlonger.

I use a separate container for the dyed and the natural materials.

Usingscissors,taperoneendofthedyedreedforadistance

ofabout3inches.

IFTHESPOKESOFYOURBASKETAREDRY,SPRAYTHESPOKES

WITHWATER(ORSOAKTHESPOKESINABUCKETOFWATER)

ASTHEYNEEDTOBEWETBEFOREYOUSTARTWEAVING.DO

NOT WET THE WOODEN BASE. Place the tapered end of the reed

behindoneSpoke. Weave thereed infrontof thenextSpoke to theright.

WeavebehindthethirdSpoke.

6Using a paper towel or

rag, wipe the wet dyed

reed to remove some of

theextradye.

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Continue weaving around, alternating the weave: in front

ofoneSpoke,behindoneSpoke,infront,behind,etc.;keep

the material pushed downward so that the dyed reed touches

thebaseasyouweave.Thefirstrowwillrestonthebase

and, as you continue weaving, you will slide the working

weaver to touch the previous row so that all the rows will

touch each other.

WeavearowortwoandthencheckyourSpokes.Iftheyare

dryingout,simplysoakthemforaminuteorspraytheSpokes

withwater. TheSpokes need to bewet as you continue to

weavethebasket.Note:IfaSpokeweretodryoutandbreak,

you can simply cut a new piece of #4 Round Reed and run it

alongside the brokenSpoke, continuing toweave over and

underthenewSpoke.

Weavearoundyourbasket several times, say, 5 rowsor so,

with the dyed reed.

Whenthedyedreedhasbeenwovenaroundseveralrows,you

willaddonalongpieceof1/4”FlatReedintheNaturalColor.

Soakapieceof1/4”FlatReed(natural).

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Note: As you weave, keep the Spokes of #4 Round Reed wet

and hold the Spokes straight upward. If the spokes have a

tendency to lean inward, you can weave a bit looser and also

you can keep the basket heading straight upward by bending the

Spokes outward several times, as shown in Photo 17 on page 6.

Overlap the natural reed on top of the dyed

reed across fourSpokes and simply continue

weaving with the natural reed.

Continue with the natural reed, always soaking

each new piece. Whenever a piece comes to its

Findtheplaceinyourbasketwherethedyedreed

ended and cut the dyed reed to lay on the outside

Asyoucontinueweaving,addingnewweavers,adjustingtheSpokesandkeepingthereedwet,thebasketsideswillcomestraightupwardandthebasketwillmeasurearound6”indiameter.Ifthesidesofyourbasketflareoutabitor lean inwardabit, it isok. Doyourbesttokeepthesidesstraightinorderforthetoptofinishoffmoresmoothly and easily.

ofaSpokeasinthephotobelow.IdentifythelastfourSpokes

that were woven.

end you will overlap the new piece as shown in Photos 12 &

13.Re-wetSpokesasneeded.

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1819

Re-wetSpokesasneeded. IftheSpokeshaveatendencytoleaninward,youcan

weave abit looser and alsoyou cankeep thebasket

heading straight upward by coaxing the Spokes

outward several times, after every few rows if needed,

asshownbelow.

Whenyourbasketis4”to5”tall(afterweaving12orsorowsof1/4”NaturalFlatReed)weavemorerowsofdyedreed.Finishthefinalrowofdyedreedbytaperingthelast3inchesofreedthenweavingitintothebasketasyoudidattheverybeginning.

Next, determine the length to cut each Spoke soallendsare thesamelengthabovethe toprowof

weaving. Measure the distance between two Spokes andmultiply that distance times 3. In this example, the distancebetweenSpokesisalmost1”;thelengthIcuteachSpokeis3”(distanceof1”x3=3”)abovethelastrowofweaving.Youcancut your ends longer if you wish and leave a longer loop when tucking (see Photos 21 and 22).

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22

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After cutting the ends of your Spokes as

describedinPhoto19,soaktheendsofthe

Spokesbysettingthebasketupsidedownin

apanofwaterorbysprayingwell.

Once the spokes at the top of your basket

havebeensoakedinwater,youarereadyto

finish.Tocompleteyourbasket,you’llweaveeachSpoke,

inturn,behindtheneighboringSpoketotherightandtuck

itintotheweavingpatternalongsidethenextSpoketothe

TheSpokesmaybendabiteasierifyou“work”themabitwithyourthumbbeforeweavingbehindtheneighboringSpoketotherightandalongsidethenextSpoketotheright--intotheweavingpattern.SeePhotos21,22and23.Keepspokeswetasyouwork.AnawlcanassistyouinopeningthespacealongsidetheSpokebeforetucking.

Using an awl to helpyoutuckSpokes.

Tuck each Spoke, inturn, around the top of yourbasket.Enjoy!

right.

Drilled Base Basket byBethHester

Materials for this basket are a 6” wooden base, #4 Round Reed and 1/4” Flat Reed.

Wetting/Soaking the material: You’ll need to initially wet the reed material with water and re-wet it (by spraying or by soaking) while you’re working to keep it flexible. While working on your basket, do not wet the wooden base.

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