Baskets !!!

I love baskets... I buy way too many of them... always have... I guess because it gives me the right to put something in it... something that is fun, useful and unique to hold something that is the same!!!! Funny but that is what a basket is to me!!!!

Anyway... to those of you who REALLY know me, you know that paper is only one of the mediums I love... I also love to do Natures Carfts too... naturally made items... that we alter a little bit and create something useful out of... oh no... another way to gather baskets!!!!! YES... I love to make baskets...

When we moved from  the North East to the South ... we were in a travel trailer... moving to the South west... we were headed to NM... and never made it there... we fell in love with these mountains... and I refused to go any further west!!!!  Anyway.. we were in Eastern NC... and the trailer park where we were staying had these lovely long needle pine trees... well I filled up three shopping bags of needles prior to leaving that camp ground... it was a glory hole of needles... (not much else I must say... but a great place to stay for a LITTLE while...)  I was sitting one night by the camp fire and Glenn and were talking as we do all the time... and I said that I thought I could make a basket out of these needles... I truly wasn't aware that the craft had been done for YEARS ... but thought it would be a fun thing to try... so the next day I got out some heavy duty thread and a needle and started to wind the needles and sew as I went along... and these are some of the baskets that I created...

Small Hat shaped basket about 4 inches at the widest part 

This is one of the first I made... it is only about 4 inches wide... and it took me the longest to make... I work very fast with my hands... and have very good eye hand movement... but this little bugger took me over 22 hours to make.!!!! Yikes... that is a long time for something so small..

Well I will get better... or so I thought...

Largest of the baskets shown here.. and it is about 4 inches in width... 

 This basket is one of the next series that I made... These pine needles are about 10 inches long... and I would soak them in water and then start to sew them into place... it is a very time consuming process...

But the baskets are very lovely... these are very plain ones... but I have seen some made by Native Americans that are truly outstandingly created...

Some of the people who create these, bleach the needles so that they are different colors, and they weave designs into the baskets.. .they are truly outstanding.

This basket is about 4 inches wide... and about 1.5 inches in depth... it took me over 30 hours to make... !!!!  

  This basket, is my favorite one... I love the little knobby ends of the needle clusters and had to incorporate that into a basket... so much fun... love these rought textures on things...

This basket is about 3.5 inches in width and about 2 inches in depth... and it is my favorite I have made...

I also made one for each of our children and also for my Mom... I wanted them all to have one...

I just hope that they all realize how much of me is one of those baskets!!!!

Okay... so I had three bags filled with pine needles... and we decided to move onto the mountain area of the state... and low and be hold... more things to weave.... the mountains are filled with so many different kinds of people who all do so many different kinds of art... it is mind blowing to me at times... I love it.. the energy at times in Asheville will really give me a mountain high... I love it... weaving of all kinds, fibers, textures, everything... pottery, painting, even grafitti that is fit for a canvas vs. being on the highways... absoultely wonderful feelings...

Up on top of Chimney Rock looking at Lake Lure!!!

Well one day we were up at Chimney Rock... which is a site in itself to behold...   The picture above really doesn't do it justice.. but you will certainly get an idea... this is looking eastward .... Anyway... here was a gal that was giving lessons on Kudzu basket making... she is known nationally I guess... her name is Nancy Basket... she is Native American... and she also had her daughter there that made PINE NEEDLE baskets... Oh I really enjoyed talking with these two wonderfully talented women... it was a delight... Nancy also made Kudzu paper, and all kinds of things from the vines... Do you know what Kudzu is??? It is the vine that ate Dixie... it grows all over the place down here... people can use it to feed livestock, bake and build a home with it... or like Nancy... build a business and life from it... she teaches all the time how to make paper and baskets from the vines...

So when we got home... I started to play with some Kudzu... and so now every fall I have to make at least a couple of Kudzu Baskets... One year we even went to a fair up in Hendersonville and I sold quite a few... I have made some of these baskets as large as 18 inches wide... and the depth of at least 8 inches... I love making them...

Smallest ever made... 3 inches across 

I also love to teach people how to make them... they are a fun project for a nice fall day with the fall breeze blowing and the kudzu vines ready to made into lovely baskets at your feet...

Of course someone has to harvest these vines... but we won't go into that now!!!!

The basket on the left is the smallest I have ever made... it is about 3 inches in width... and about 2 inches deep... so cute... I have about 6 of them hanging over my kitchen sink... just because I love them so very much... they are so rustic looking... and also FREE to me...


Now I don't stop at small..

This one is a little bit larger... it is about 8 inches in width... and about 5 inches deep... and I have woven fibers into the handle and around the top edge of the basket... just for some different textures to be felt...

I have some baskets that I use for holding soaps, and towels in the guest bathroom... and also one in my small bathroom downstairs that holds all kinds of things... as I don't have a cabinet in that bathroom... it is really large and floppy so it does work perfectly for this application...

I had one basket that I never finished... and my husband couldn't throw if away... so he put it up on the top of the cabinet in our garage... and every spring we have a bird build a nest in it... how can we throw that out now???  The bird would miss  it...

So these are some of the baksets that are to be found in my collection of baskets... I love all kinds of baskets... but have to say that I do love my Kudzu baskets the best...

Thanks for stopping into see me today... I always love the visits... please come back again really soon... as I am always into something... and you never know what will pop up on these pages...

Oh... I almost forgot to tell you...

There is a new Digital Magazine coming out... you can sign up for it FREE .... to do so...

go here....  It is called Paper and Pixels and will have a lot of very interesting things on it... One will be an article on ME!!!! YIKES... (In the October Issue)   what fun..  Hope you will take advantage of this FREE Offer... . so do it NOW... thanks... and enjoy the rest of the day... 

Have a wonderful day... Love, Light and Peace...Bonnie