Weaving from a vine is probably the oldest of the crafts. It appeared even before pottery and related, to a greater extent, to the everyday needs of a person. Houses, outbuildings, fences, cradles and toys for children, bodies of wagons and sledges, boxes and kitchen utensils. But ideal material, from which you can weave a basket, were willow rods. They are very flexible and great for this kind of creativity.

History of the craft

Willow weaving in Russia was business as usual. There was no peasant who could weave baskets. There were also masters - basket makers who were professionally engaged in weaving. They wove a wide variety of products: round and oval, rectangular and conical, with complex - simple weaving, large and small. In those days, baskets were simply indispensable. Women in them wore linen to rinse on the river, took food on the road, harvested, went for mushrooms and berries.

IN modern world wicker baskets are also popular. It is difficult to imagine a mushroom picker without a basket. Weeping willow branches contain tannins, thanks to which the mushrooms do not deteriorate longer, and the gaps between the rods help to ventilate the air.

If you have even the slightest idea and a little skill, then easy to learn to weave from willow. For beginners step by step study and independent repetition of all stages of weaving products will bring a lot of positive emotions.

The choice of materials for weaving

The main advantage of basket weaving is accessibility. Supplies. Willow is a common unpretentious tree found in many regions of Russia. Usually craftsmen prepare raw materials on their own. Some grow willow on personal plot. And in single stores you can even buy materials ready for weaving.

Best for weaving wicker growing on sandy and loamy soil. Shoots are cut with a pruner or sharp knife, choosing the longest without branches. Cut at a slight angle, while leaving a few buds so as not to harm the plant.

Shoots with a wide and loose core are not suitable for weaving, it should be small size. Usually young shoots are used.

To check whether the plant is suitable for work, it is necessary to cut the branch and bend it 180 degrees in the butt - if it cracked, it does not fit (it means it will break during weaving), if not, then you can safely proceed to further processing.

Season for harvesting and processing rods

Willow weaving rods are being prepared all year round, but preferable in early spring and late autumn. The bark of spring shoots is removed very easily without additional processing. Rods harvested in another season need to be soaked or evaporated.

For soaking, the shoots are lowered into running waters - a river or stream, having previously secured it to the shore with a rope so that it does not carry away with the current. It is possible in a trough or a barrel, but in this case a daily change of water is required. Tied bundles with shoots are immersed to the bottom, and a load is placed on top (stone or any other heavy object, except iron) and leave for 1-2 weeks.

To reduce processing times from weeks to hours instead of soaking rods are evaporated in any of two ways:

1. The shoots are placed in a tank, rolled around the perimeter, filled with water and put on fire. After boiling, cook for 1-2 hours. Then they are taken out, allowed to cool and proceed to the removal of the bark.
2. The vine is no longer flooded cold water, but with boiling water, bring to a boil and cook for 20-30 minutes. Take out, cool and remove the bark.

It is better to clean the rods raw, starting from the butt (root part). During cleaning, so that the material does not dry out, it is better to leave it in water and take it out in small bunches. After the willow is debarked, in order to finish the job, it must be laid out in the sun until it dries completely. For ease of use, the rods are sorted out and folded into bundles of the same size.

Debarked rods are divided into two types - harvested in spring period and obtained by digestion. Boiled during operation, they acquire a bright glossy appearance, are easy to clean, getting better each time. Not boiled, on the contrary, darken over time, acquiring a nondescript look.

Weaving tools

It is more difficult to make a basket from willow than from newspaper tubes but the principle of operation is the same. Natural material is more brittle and less malleable. It is not so difficult to weave willow for beginners. By repeating all the steps step by step and assembling a set of tools, you can achieve good results. The work will need:

• secateurs;
• sharp knife;
• big scissors;
• dishes for soaking or boiling rods;
• pliers;
• clothespins;
• tweezers;
• Ruler and pencil;
• drill;
• jigsaw;
• stain and water-based varnish;
• brushes.

These tools are useful not only in the manufacture of baskets, but also more massive products - such as a rocking chair, table, flowerpot, hedge, and so on.

Basket making method

To understand how to weave a willow basket for beginners, you first need to delve into and study the lessons, patterns and techniques for making them. After the preparation of tools and materials, when the rods are soaked or evaporated, debarked and dried, the most interesting stage- weaving. First of all, weave the bottom, then the sides, and lastly, the handle.

bottom formation

For the correct weaving of the bottom with your own hands, it is necessary to prepare 8 twigs (knitting needles) of medium thickness (Fig. 1). They are divided in half - four are left untouched, and in the other four a gap is made in the middle of each (Fig. 2). Then rods are inserted into the slots in the form of a cross (Fig. 3). Further, two more thin rods are inserted into the same slots and the base is wrapped around in two rows (Fig. 4 and 5). Then the knitting needles are spread apart and wrapped around each individually (Fig. 6).

Each time the rod comes to an end, it must be increased by others. It is not necessary to increase both rods at once, it is better to do it one at a time. To do this, the end of the rod is sharpened and inserted into the hole between the last two rows, it is bent and weaving continues, and the end of the old rod is cut off.

Weaving continues with two more rows (Fig. 7). This is where the twisted weaving method ends and continues with the usual one - bypassing the knitting needle inside and out (Fig. 8). In this case, an odd number of knitting needles is needed; for this, an additional rod must be inserted into the weaving.

Wall manufacturing

Reaching desired diameter bottom, you finish the first stage, the next one comes - the transition to the walls. To do this, you will need willow shoots of medium diameter, which are called racks. Each of them must be pointed at the end and inserted between the knitting needles (Fig. 9). Old rods are cut with a knife at the base. Now they take one rack and wind it up behind the other two, after which they bend it up (Fig. 10). Do the same with all the other racks (Fig. 11). Racks are braided in several rows with a twist, then in the usual way (Fig. 12 and 13).

When the height of the basket has reached the desired size, you need to take one rack and bend it down, placing it behind the other two (Fig. 14). The same must be done with the following racks, removing the ends inward and sticking outward (Fig. 15). Then the protruding ends are cut with scissors at the base (Fig. 16).

Handle weaving

The last step remains - to make a pen. This will require thick shoot of willow which is cut to size. Point the ends and stick into opposite sides products (Fig. 17 and 18). Next, they take 4–5 rods and stick them into the weave at the end of the handle (Fig. 19). They are braided several times and threaded into weaving from the other end. Then they take a few more shoots and do the same (Fig. 20 and 21). Another rod is stuck nearby and braided around the handle at the base, tightening it with a knot (Fig. 22 and 23). The end is cut with a knife (Fig. 24). The basket is ready!

Over time, you can learn to braid pigtails and ropes in two or three rows with more complex weaving, for example, openwork. Sometimes, for the convenience of making wickerwork, wooden templates are made round or square shape which make the job much easier.

Willow wicker products were used by our ancestors in ancient times. Today, not only willow baskets are popular, but also all kinds of chests, candy bowls, trays, decorative elements and even furniture. There are entire wicker factories for the production of wicker products. All items made from natural raw materials are environmentally friendly, which is so important in our time.

Since wicker products are made by hand, their cost is significantly different from non-living ones. plastic products. And since the weaving of wicker products is more manual production, then why not try to make such a product yourself, thereby saving money. Moreover, the technique of weaving willow baskets with their own hands has a centuries-old history, is passed down from generation to generation and anyone can master it.

Features of basket weaving

Weaving has an incredibly long history. However, little has changed in the technique of weaving and the basic principles of work. The most popular material in basket weaving is wicker. The technology is incredibly simple, the prepared rods are intertwined in a certain way, thereby creating the necessary item.

To master this craft, it is important to know the main aspects:

1. What material is best for weaving wicker products and how to prepare it for work?
2. What tools are useful in the process of creating a wicker product?
3. What are the main weaving techniques and which one is best suited to a particular type of product?

In the process of studying this topic, you will find answers to all these questions and make sure that you are able to master this type of craft. It is important to remember that, as in any other craft, practice is important here. Therefore, before starting work, it is worth practicing a little in various weaving techniques, watching lessons on making the elements of the product you need, and learning about the tricks and subtleties used by the craftsmen.

Important! It will not be superfluous to weave several blanks until the creation of a full-fledged product, try to work with willow rods, feel how they lend themselves to weaving, learn to distinguish the flexibility of the vine. Perhaps at this stage you will feel some of the features of working with the material, make certain adjustments to the stage of preparing raw materials.

Preparation of the necessary materials and tools

In order for the whole process to go quickly and without difficulties, you need to prepare in advance. This also applies to the main raw materials and tools.

willow twigs

In order to weave a willow basket with your own hands, you need to familiarize yourself with what material is best used for these purposes. As you may have guessed, wicker is the main raw material for weaving baskets.

There are two options where you can get them:

1. Purchase in a specialized online store.
2. Collect them yourself or prepare them.

If everything is very clear in the first option, then it is worth dwelling on the second one in more detail. It is important to know which rods are most suitable for weaving. Here are the basic requirements they must meet:

• if you are trying to bend a willow rod 180 degrees, it should not crack or break;
• it is best to use those rods that have an orange or red color;
• willow shoots must be cut either before flowering, which occurs in May, or already in August, because fresh branches will noticeably grow by that period;
• the most suitable rods for weaving are best cut from a willow growing on sandy soil;
• rods should have a small core.

When you have collected a sufficient amount of high-quality raw materials, it is worth starting to process it for further successful work:

• Experienced craftsmen advise first removing the bark from the vine, since not all products look good with it.
• If the bark is removed quite difficult, then the masters advise to boil the rods. They must be placed in a container of the desired size and boiled for 2 hours. The container must be large so that the rods are minimally twisted. Next, you should cool them and remove the bark from them. This must be done while the branches are still wet.

Important! In case you have a large number of blanks, it is better to leave them in the water and gradually remove the bark from them. It must be removed, moving from the thick edge.

• After removing the bark, it is worth starting the drying process. It is best to dry the branches outdoors, avoiding direct sun rays. Usually the drying process takes about 5 days. Masters advise already at this stage to sort the branches according to their length and size - this way you will facilitate the process of weaving.

On this, the process of preparing the willow vine can be considered complete.

Tools for the job

For beginners, you should start weaving a willow basket with your own hands by preparing the following tools necessary for work:

• a sharp knife, large scissors or a garden pruner, with which you will cut off the excess length of the rods, make cuts;
• pliers in order to make it more convenient to twist and pull the vine;
• an awl for threading the vine;
• clips or clothespins with which you can fix part of the vine;
• a long convenient ruler - best of all from metal, and a simple pencil;
• large capacity, for pre-steaming rods, before starting work.

As you can see, the preparation process is quite simple, and the weaving itself does not require any special and intricate devices.

Progress in weaving a simple willow basket

If you decide to get started, then you should know that it is best to work with pre-soaked rods. To do this, they need to be placed in a large container and pour hot water. After 15-20 minutes, they will be ready for work, become more flexible and pliable.

Important! One more important point: In the process of weaving, periodically spray the rods with water, preventing them from drying out.

Bottom weaving

The very first thing with which the weaving process begins is the creation of the bottom of the product. For this:

1. Prepare 8 rods of medium thickness - this amount is most optimal for the classic and most popular weaving. Make slits in four of the rods and insert the four remaining ones through all of them.
2. Next, take two thin vines and insert one of them under the four rods in the slot, and stick the other over the four rods in the slot.
3. Then braid them with 4 rods, letting them alternately from below, then from above, towards each other.
4. When you have braided one row, begin to bend one main rod at a time and braid them with a thin vine in such a way that one of them goes on top, the other on the bottom of the rod. Before you should be a wheel of 16 branches, in the form of rays. At this stage, it is worth adding another branch, just insert it between the two protruding rays under the braid, sharpening the end.
5. Continue weaving the bottom in the same technique. Thus, the bottom is braided until it reaches the desired diameter.

Important! If in the process of weaving a willow basket with your own hands you run out of a thin vine, you should take a new one, insert it under the previous row and cut off the unnecessary remaining piece.

Creating a transition to the walls and the formation of the walls themselves

When you have the bottom of the right size ready, it's worth starting to create a transition to the sides of the basket. For this:

1. Take 17 new branches of the vine and insert it under the sheath, close to the already protruding rays.
2. In order for them to fit well under the braid, you sharpen them with a knife and push them inside with an awl.
3. Bend the newly inserted 16 rods up, forming the sides of the basket.
4. Cut off the unnecessary old protruding ends so that they do not stick out, and thread the 17th rod under two new racks and bring them up.
5. You do the same with subsequent new rays until you go around everything in a circle.
6. Next, you are engaged in braiding the sides of the basket in the technique of your choice. You need to weave until you have the desired height of the basket.

Weaving edges and handles

In order to make the edge of the basket, you need to take one edge and go around the second and third, bringing it out in such a way that its edge is hidden inward, between the upper rows. An unnecessary piece should be cut off. Do this with all rays.

Title: "Mushrooms with a basket"

Goals: to introduce students to traditional nature management - the use of natural material - vines for crafts - baskets to go mushroom picking in the fall.

Age of children involved: 5-10 grades.

Required for work: desire, vine, awl, pruner, template.

Good afternoon! Guess what the riddle is about:

She is comfortable and light

Her name is short

In the economy serves us for centuries,

There is in this word the name ZINA.

With it you can walk on mushrooms,

Can you pick berries?

It's not hard to wear

And very easy to break!

From rods, they weave their bast,

Right- basket. We will learn to weave it. Yes, and get acquainted with the Cossack craft - basket weaving.

Step by step process.

1 step- Conduct a briefing on the safety of work when harvesting vines, when working with an awl, secateurs, and about your workplace.

2 step- Prepare the necessary tools.

3 step- Go to the forest, prepare a long vine - a little thicker and thin flexible (150 pieces), even different colors are possible.

4 step- Use raw vine. Let's start by designing the bottom of an oval basket in the future - for this we will make a cross from the intersection of seven rods parallel to each other with three.

5 step- Now braid all 20 twigs with a vine, starting from the thin end, cutting the twigs obliquely into the basket

6 step- Continue weaving for about 20 rows.

7 step- At the end of the work, cut off the rods of the cross - the basis for the bottom.

8 step- Insert the ribs of the walls of the basket into the bottom between the woven rows of vines, later bringing them together at the top through an oval-shaped template.

Now build the walls of the basket to the required height using a multi-colored vine. Now start weaving from the thick end of the vine

step 9- Lead the rods-ribs along the top inside the walls one after the other.

10 step-- Having selected 9 handles, pass them through the upper rows and fasten inward.

11 step- You can weave a variety of baskets to go mushroom picking.

Thank you for participating in the master class.

A full basket of mushrooms for you!!!

In Russia, weaving baskets was quite common. Almost every peasant could, if necessary, weave a good basket. Well, basket-makers wove for every taste: small and large, round and rectangular, oval and conical, with simple and complex weaving, with and without lids. It was difficult to do without baskets on the farm. They wore linen to the river; took on the road, going on a long journey; harvested in them; went mushroom picking with them.

In modern life, baskets also find various uses, and it’s hard to imagine a real mushroom picker without it. And willow is best suited for mushrooms. Willow branches, from which the basket is woven, contain a large amount of tannins. Thanks to them, the mushrooms do not deteriorate for a long time, and the air passing through the rods as if through a filter is cleared of harmful microorganisms. In addition, willow twigs absorb excess moisture and, thanks to their heat-insulating properties, protect mushrooms from overheating.

First of all, you need to prepare good raw materials. More than 170 species of willow grow wild in our country. The rods of many of them, after appropriate processing, are quite suitable for weaving. Willow wood is famous for its flexibility and high plasticity. Only some types of willows, such as brittle willow, are not suitable for weaving because of their fragility. From wild-growing willows, young shoots of three-stamen willow, basket willow and willow are most often harvested for weaving.

Willow three-stamen, popularly called belotal, beloloz or simply vine, is a small shrub that grows along the banks of rivers, lakes and other bodies of water in almost all regions of our country. The leaves of the belotal are oblong, long and shiny. The bark is greenish yellow on the outside and lemon yellow on the inside.

Willow basket, also called broom and white willow, is a shrub or small tree. Annual young branches are yellow or olive brown. The leaves are long, lanceolate-linear, smooth above, and silky-felt below, whitish. The eye vein, which runs along the linden, is yellow, and sometimes slightly brownish.

Along the roads, on the banks of rivers and ponds, or not far from habitation, one can often find a large sprawling tree, sometimes reaching a height of thirty meters. This willow is white, or willow. The willow branches are green-yellow, the bark is covered with silky hairs resembling a whitish coating. You probably have seen more than once how in a matter of seconds, as soon as a gusty wind blows, the crown of the willow turns from green to silver-white.

In the old days, peasants harvested the willow in the so-called topless way. At the willow growing near the house, they sawed off the top, which went to firewood and various crafts. By autumn, the part of the trunk remaining on the vine was densely overgrown with young shoots suitable for weaving. Most of the rods were cut off, and by the next autumn new ones grew in their place. Approximately the same is done in modern basket production, planting willows of cultivated species - twig-shaped, purple and others in special areas.

For weaving, rods are usually used at the age of one to two years. For small graceful weaving, annual shoots are taken, which certain types willows are thin and long like a cord; for weaving large things, as well as for making basket frames - biennial. Willow rods intended for weaving should be long, thin, flexible, viscous, straight-grained and split well along the fibers. It is necessary to harvest only those rods whose surface, after removing the bark from them, looks clean and glossy.

For baskets, try to prepare rods with a length of at least 60-70 cm with a diameter at the butt (at the cut point) of 5-10 mm. Usually, on the same bush, willow shoots have approximately the same physical and mechanical properties. Therefore, before cutting the rods from the bush, first check the quality of one of them. If the willow branch on the cut has a too large core, and even with a brownish-reddish tint, do not take twigs from such a bush - they are usually brittle. For our purposes, we need branches that have a small, barely visible core in the cut. And, of course, you need to choose fairly straight shoots, without growths and knots.

Harvesting a vine for weaving baskets is practically possible all year round.

But most often basket makers harvest it in spring or autumn. In spring rods, the bark is removed easily, without pre-treatment. But if the rods are cut at other times of the year, then in order to remove the bark, they need to be soaked or evaporated. IN summer time and in autumn the rods are soaked in running water rivers or streams; it is also possible in a barrel or a trough, but in this case it is necessary to change the water every day. The harvested vine is tied into a bundle, a load is placed inside - stones and immersed in water. To prevent the rods from being carried away by the current, they are tied with a rope to a peg driven into the shore. The rods are soaked for one to two weeks.

Instead of soaking, they can be steamed. Then the processing time will be reduced from one to two weeks to one to two hours. Put the rods in a tank or trough, fill with water and put on fire. Bring the water to a boil and boil for one to two hours. Then take out the rods, wait until they cool down, and remove the bark with a pinch (Fig. 5).

There are many designs of pinches, but the simplest of them is a metal slingshot driven into a massive bench, table or log. The shemilka can be made from two metal rods. Pointed rods of the same length are hammered simultaneously into wooden base From below, wrap them with thick wire, laying coil to coil, to a height of 5-7 cm. Open the free upper ends - you get a slingshot.

To remove the bark from the rod, insert it with a thickened butt into the pinch and, pressing the bar against the pinch with your left hand, pull it towards you with your right hand. If the bark has peeled off only on one side, pass the rod through the pinch again. Sort the cleaned rods by thickness. If you failed to prepare thin rods, then split the thicker rods into strips - halves and quarters. Remember that too damp wood does not split well, so dry it at room temperature.

Part of the rods intended for artistic weaving, pickle or paint over. Grayish Brown color it turns out if the rods are dipped into the solution for a while iron sulphate; brown color - in a solution of potassium permanganate or in a decoction of alder bark.

If you want to receive bright colours, then take ordinary aniline dyes for fabrics or colored inks. On a bucket hot water you need about four packets of aniline dyes. Add a few tablespoons of acetic acid to the colorful solution. So that the rods are well dyed, soak them in the dye for three hours. Then rinse clean water and dry at room temperature. Immediately before weaving, soak the rods in cold water.

To weave a basket yourself, you first need to master different kinds weaving and ways of sealing the board.

The most common is simple weaving. In some cases, to speed up the process, it is performed in two or three rows at once (Fig. 1). Although simple weaving is quite quick and easy, its strength is not high.

A variation of simple weaving is weaving in oblique rows (Fig. 2). By alternating rows of multi-colored rods, you can achieve great decorative expressiveness.

Weaving with a "rope" (Fig. 3) is used in cases where in some parts of the basket they want to get special strength. For example, in flower girls, intersecting or parallel rods are intertwined with a “rope”.

Weaving "checkerboard" (Fig. 4) is used mainly for decorative purposes. The rods of two contrasting colors are alternately laid as in the usual simple weaving, only not through one riser rod, but through two.

The beauty and strength of the basket largely depend on the correct sealing of the side.

The most simple and fast way- through one rod-riser. The first rod is wound after the second, the second after the third, and so on until the last (Fig. 6).

The board is also closed with two rods, only through two riser rods (Fig. 7)

or with one rod - through two riser rods (Fig. 8). Using these methods, the ends of the rods must be brought inside the basket, and the remaining ones should be carefully cut with a knife.

Sewing the side with a “pigtail” takes more time, but it gives the basket a special beauty and expressiveness. To weave a pigtail, the board is first closed in a simple way through one rod. In this case, all the rods are tied with threads of three together and intertwined in the same way as is done when weaving a regular braid. When braiding a pigtail around the bead, the used rods are cut, closing their ends under the pigtail, successively including more and more new groups of rods in the weaving (Fig. 9).

How to weave a wicker basket. Master Class

Of course, weaving from newspapers is much easier, but if one of you considers weaving newspaper tubes to be a frivolous task, I suggest trying to weave a basket of willow twigs. You can also weave from reeds, birch branches, bast, birch bark, and so on. I consider the topic relevant, since the author collects willow branches, it is in winter months of the year. Note: if you are going to weave from fresh twigs, then do not forget that not all shoots are suitable for weaving. The branch must be bent in half and if it does not straighten, does not return to its original position, then it is not suitable for weaving a basket. A basket of freshly cut branches will dry for a very long time, several weeks, while deforming and changing in size. It is advisable to dry the branches before weaving. Strongly dried twigs can also be made flexible, for this they are soaked in water for a day

For work, we need willow twigs and a minimum of tools: a knife and garden shears. I found a master class on the English site bushcraft.ridgeonnet.com, there are many more publications on the topic of weaving from different natural materials and crafts for the garden, cottages and active rest. If you have any questions, you can find the information yourself, though it is on English language. You can take advantage of the excellent free program to translate text. Dicter is an online translator, free software for Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8 operating systems. The program is very easy to use, it can be used to translate any texts from foreign sites, as well as text files and programs, from any world languages. You can watch a video clip on using the program on the website dicter.ru