CREATIONS

This is a gourd basket I finished earlier this year in celebration of my friend's birthday and our 17 year friendship. It was my first experiment with wood burning.

Here is a sample of the pattern I created to wrap the bowl. It symbolizes the cycle of water and how it always come back around... Like a good friend.


As you can see in the sun, located on the end / point of the gourd, the skin does not burn evenly. It made it a bit challenging during the finer details.

I little ditty I wrote on the bottom. It seems that her and I have always been separated not only by distance but geographical barriers as well. I currently live in the mountains and she by the sea.

This is an overview of the shape. I tried to follow the natural flow of the gourd, wavering in and out. Exaggerated by the pine needles, it give and good feel to the over all finished basket / bowl.

Isn't this just a beautiful loaf of bread?

If only this was a smell-o-site! Fresh from my oven, this didn't last long before it met it's fate with a knife and a stick of butter.

Blast from the Past - Basket Bowls

All four together.

On these two, I rolled the sides slightly in.

Note the cool weather spots on the bottom of these bowls!

Abiding the request of a friend, here are some more basket creations. This was a set of four basket bowls I had made for a lady back in the fall of 2007. She wanted to send them as Christmas presents. They are gourds which I had let weather outside to create beautiful spotted patterns. I used a Dremel to cut them in half, then brushed out the inner webbing and seeds. To create the holes in which I would attach the pine needles, I heated a nail over a candle and burned holes around the rim. I had tried a small drill bit but I didn't care for the "clean" look it left behind. The hot nail burns an uneven hole as it sinks through the wall of the gourd and blends better this the dark weather spots. These bowls were approximately 6" wide and 4-5" tall. I enjoy the blending of gourds and needles, but it is often hard to find the right gourd. I still have two trash bags full of gourds out in the shed awaiting their fate, but as always work gets in the way. Ahhhhhh, if only I could make a living on my basketry.

Be Creative In Your Own Way!!

Harvest Gift Basket

This was a basket I finished shortly after the first of the year for a friend of mine. I had started it prior to Thanksgiving but with the holidays, busy schedules and a houseful of company it took a bit longer than I expected. It was created entirely from pine needles gathered in my yard, beeswax and hemp twine. Durable and beautiful, I hope it goes to good use as a fruit basket and not just a dust collector on a shelf.

I had also made a small tray for Jim, a sort of collection plate for his keys and such. However, when I went to photograph it my camera was acting up. Perhaps another day will bring forth a picture of the second creation of the year.

I have an enormous tub of pine needles waiting for me to work. I am in hopes of creating more baskets and callouses before the winter's snow melt and the gardening calls me to the outdoors again.