Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman
Cane and Willow Nest Shaped Basket
- 8 April 2015
- click to send Christine a smile
You will need 8 short cane strands and one long one to weave with.
Stain a few strands of cane with strong coffee.
See the Tutorial below for more detailed instructions on staining with natural dyes
Weave the strands together in pairs. Follow the basic over and under pattern.
For more detailed instructions on weaving see the Tutorial below.
I also used this weaving pattern to create an Autumn hat. See the Tutorial below.
Weave in the long strand. Over the first pair and under the next.
Bend the long strand down
Bend the long strand over the first pair, then weave it under the next strand and over the one next to that
Continue the over and under weaving pattern weaving the strand in circles spiralling out
Twirl thin willow stems around the cane to carefully weave into the basket
Continue to weave the stem spiralling out
Leave a slight gap to create a open weave
Randomly add willow stems to the other cane strands and continue to weave.
Continue the weaving pattern to create the base of the nest.
Adding more willow stems as you go along
Fold the strands pointing out up
Gathering the pairs from each side
To meet at the top
Carefully wiggle the strands at the base to seprate it and spread it around the sides of the nest
Continue the over and under weaving pattern up the sides of the nest
To end the weave, fold the long strand up and gather with the rest of the side strands
Secure the strands with a pliable willow stem
See the Tutorial below for more detailed instructions on manipulating stems
Tie a knot in the stem
Slip a chocolate egg into the nest basket...
... or better yet, slip three chocolate eggs into the basket
And glue in a few test tubes as a water source for the fresh flowers... and the basket is ready to design with
See the Tutorial below for detailed instructions for making your own test tubes from drinking straws
Design note: For my display I set the basket on an upturned wine glass
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Tutorials
For this tutorial I focus on a simple weave pattern that does not require you to soften or prepare the leaves to be more durable or flexible. This is the starting point in...
Most stems, twigs and even sturdier branches can be bend into shapes. It takes practice and more than a bit of patience. The main idea is to slowly manipulate the branch without...
When you need to keep a tiny stem hydrated this is just what you need.
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