Instructions

Weaving the Base

1. Arrange all the horizontal stakes, holding them down with a weight, then weave in the vertical pieces. Start in the center and work out from that point (see photo). Be sure that every stake is centered and all the wrong sides face up.
    
   
2. Start by marking the center of each stake on its wrong (rough) side. Soak the stakes briefly. Use all 14 pieces, seven in each direction, to weave the bottom in a simple plain weave. Match the center points, making sure the wrong sides of the stakes face up (see photo).
    
   

Sizing & Squaring the Base

3. Adjust the woven pieces to create a 6-1/2” x 6-1/2” (16.5 cm x 16.5 cm) square with the stakes evenly spaced.
4. Check that the pieces are centered, the weave pattern has no mistakes, and the rough side of the reed faces up. Finally, to ensure a square base rather than a parallelogram, check that the corner-to-corner, diagonal measurements are equal. Mark the corners (see photo) so you can correct the placement if something slips.
    
   
5. At this point, you’ll twine two rows around the base. Use round-nose pliers to fold a weaver not quite in half, leaving one end a little longer than the other. That way, if you have to add more weavers, the joining won’t be in exactly the same place.
6. Crush the fold point of the reed (see photo) so it folds without cracking.
    
   
7. Slip the loop formed by the fold around any stake that’s underneath another stake (see photo).
    
   
8. You now have two weavers with which to work. Start with the left weaver. Weave it over the stake to the right, under the next stake, and out to the surface of the basket (see photo).
    
   
9. Pick up the other weaver (now on the left). Repeat the same weave: over one/under one/out. Make sure you always work on top of (over) the leading weaver (see photo). Put down that piece and weave with the other piece (which is again on the left).
    
   
10. Continue this alternation, weaving around the basket, packing the twining tightly against the sides of the base. Keep the stakes flat and straight as you work. The weavers should curve around the stakes, spacing them out and holding them in place. There will be a twist, which is characteristic of the weave called twining, between the stakes.

Making the Corners

11. Weaving around corners can be a bit confusing at first. Continue alternating the weavers around the corner stakes; don’t let the stakes slip as you work around them. Always work the left weaver over (on top of, to the outside of) the leading one (see photo).
     
    
12. Snug the twining against the edge of the base and square the corner.
13. When you’ve completed two rounds of twining, slip the ends down between the layers of the stakes (see photo). Clip off the ends to hide them.
     
    
14. In this part of the process, called upsetting (or upstaking), you turn up the stakes from the base to form the sides and lock them in place with the first few rows of weaving.
15. Dampen the base to help the stakes fold without cracking too badly. Gently fold each stake over the side edge of the base (see photo).
     
    
16. Turning up can be accomplished with many different weaving techniques.

Upsetting the Stakes (Turning up the Sides)

17. Many baskets are turned up with start-and-stop weave. Since it takes two to three rows to make the stakes stay upright, you can use clips to hold the first weaver in place.
18. Your first row of start-and stop weave should alternate with the base weave, regardless of any twining. You need a four-stake overlap to lock that row in place, so start two or three stakes in from the left-hand corner. That way, you won’t have a double layer of reed around the corners. Whether you start at the second or third stake depends on the base weave; remember to alternate.
19. Start on the outside of a stake to make it easier to end the row. Locate the appropriate stake. Place the end of the weaver flush with the left side of that stake. The right side of the reed should face the outside of the basket. Work over and under the stakes along that side of the basket (see photo).
     
    
20. To hold the stakes in place, add the brake (a piece of reed inserted into the stakes to hold the stake’s spacing as you weave) above the weaver in the alternate pattern. Don’t jam the brake tightly against the first weaver; use just enough pressure to hold things in place (see photo).
     
    
21. Weave the first weaver around the corner and along the second side. Now start the second weaver just above the first but in the alternate over-under pattern. Pack it down tightly against the first weaver (see photo). Continue weaving around the basket, using the bottom weaver first, then the second.
     
    
22. When you reach the side where you started, remove the brake and slip the end of the bottom weaver over (outside) its beginning point. Add clips as needed to hold everything together. Trim off the weaver to a length that overlaps four stakes, ending on the right side of the fourth stake (see photo). When the overlap is done correctly, the weaver’s ends will be hidden on the inside and outside of the basket.
     
    
23. Weave the second weaver over that joining, ending it with a four-stake overlap on the side where it began (see photo). Pack both of these pieces tightly against the bottom of the basket.
     
    
24. Start each successive row on a different side of the basket to maintain an even wall thickness. Cut all the weavers to a specific length that’s a little longer than needed. This helps control shaping. If you cut off more and more of the weavers as you work up the sides of the basket, you’ll pull each row a little tighter, causing the sides of the basket to slope in. If a little less is cut from each weaver, the basket will flare out.
25. From this point onward, you can weave in one piece at a time, adding them in the order shown in the photo below or be creative and change the order around.
     
    

Adding the Hidden Weaver

26. Before adding the rim pieces, you must weave in the top rim row, often referred to as the hidden weaver because it’s hidden by the outer rim pieces. It’s usually woven in a start-and-stop weave woven with flat reed that’s a little narrower than the flat-oval rim pieces (top row of weaving shown in the photo in step 25).
27. Tightly pack down all of the weavers, making sure the basket’s top edge is level.

Folding and Tucking the Stakes

28. To hold the rim in place, you must fold some of the stakes over the hidden weaver and tuck them down into the inside wall of the basket. If you simply clipped off all of the stakes at the top edge, the rim could be pulled off. Fold all the stakes. The ones ending on the inside of the hidden weaver fold to the outside while the others fold to the inside.
29. Start by clipping off the stakes that end on the inside of the hidden weaver (see photo). It’s not necessary to clip them off with great precision at this point. In fact, it’s easier to even them up with the top edge after the others are turned and out of the way.
     
    
30. Wet the outside stakes and fold them over the hidden weaver (see photo). It doesn’t matter if they crack and splinter a bit. The rim filler will go on top, covering them.
     
    
31. Clip off the stakes at an angle so they’re just long enough to catch under two or three weavers. Slip the end of each stake down into the inside wall of the basket between the stake and the weavers, using your awl or fid to open a space for the insertion (see photo).
     
    
32. First, fold and tuck one stake on each side of the basket to hold the top edge level. Once those four are set, continue folding and tucking in any order until all the stakes are done.
33. Now that the tucked stakes are out of the way, clip the others flush with the rim.

Scarfing the Rim Pieces

34. The rim is formed from two pieces of 3/8” (9.5 mm) flat-oval reed. One piece goes on the inside of the hidden weaver and one piece on the outside, flat sides against the hidden weaver. Position the seagrass rim filler along the top edge between the two flat-oval pieces. All of these pieces should overlap with themselves about the length of two stakes. Measure the length of the rim pieces and use a knife to thin down one end, removing some of the bulk (see photo). This shaving process is called scarfing.
     
    
35. Position all three overlaps (filler, inner flat-oval, and outer flat-oval) in different places on the same side of the basket (see photo). It’s easier to adjust them if they’re adjacent but not in exactly the same place or things will get too bulky. Use cable ties or clips to attach the pieces to the basket.
     
    

Lashing the Rim

36. Secure the rim pieces using lashing. Start the lashing at the center point of the side of the basket across from the overlaps, working around to the left with half of the lashing piece and to the right with the other half, so the two ends meet just past the overlapping rim pieces. Before starting, clip off each end of the lashing at an angle, creating a point to thread with.
37. To begin, pull the lashing through the space formed by the rim pieces and two adjacent stakes, just under the rim (see photo), while using the fid or awl to open up the space to avoid shredding the lashing. Pull one end inside the basket so it’s about 24” (61 cm) longer than the end outside. The flat (or rough) side of the lashing should end up against the rim pieces.
     
    
38. Wrap the inside section of lashing around the rim pieces, then diagonally across and into the next hole to the right (see photo). Use the awl or fid to open up the hole. Make sure the lashing isn’t twisted, then pull it tight, wrap it around the rim, and feed it through the next hole. Continue lashing until you reach the overlaps, then stop.
     
    
39. Start lashing with the other end in the other direction. When you work in one direction, the lashing passes from outside to inside. When you work in the other direction, it goes from the inside to the outside. Stop when you again reach the overlapped section.
40. Scarf and round off the other ends of the rim pieces (see photo).
     
    
41. Splice the seagrass filler into a tidy circle by cutting off a portion of the ply and twisting the longer fibers over each other (see photo).
     
    
42. Work the longer end of the lashing across the overlaps until the two ends of lashing pass through the same space, one on the inside and one on the outside (see photo). As you work over the ends of the seagrass, poke them down in between the walls of the rim.
     
    

Finishing the Basket

43. Go back and make sure the lashing is tight. Finish off the ends of lashing by locking them in place under the rim pieces. The outside piece goes up on the outside of the hidden weaver, then back down on the inside (see following two photos), under all of the rim pieces.
     
    
     
    
44. Clip off the end of the lashing you’ve just hidden at the base of the inside rim.
45. The inside piece of lashing follows a similar path but goes up on the inside and down on the outside (see the following two photos). Clip the tail off the second piece at the bottom of the rim.