At the end of the coiled basket workshop the teacher encouraged us take home some of the leftover cordyline leaves. She also sold us some waxed linen thread.
I decided to try starting a bowl with no plastic disc, and it went okay – a bit untidy but I think I can do better with practise. At first I soaked all the leaves, but I didn’t even use half of them. So I began soaking five at a time, which gave me about an hour’s stitching each evening.
Eventually I ran out of leaves, and this is what I’d made:
Which I’m rather happy about. It’s pretty firm, though there’s a slightly looser band in the base where I must have been a bit wussy about tightening the thread. Not loose enough to compromise the structure, though.
I stopped when I ran out of cordyline, though I couldn’t have made it much larger as I had nearly ran out of the thread. Doing an hour or so gave me a much better idea of how long the method takes – which is much longer than I recall Mum’s cane baskets taking! If I was to make anything bigger I’d have to buy more thread, or use both of the remaining colours I bought on the same basket.
Or try using other materials, like yarn with rags, or wire and old garden hose!
That is beautiful! I don’t grow cordyline, but if you need more Lomandra longifolia – plants or leaves – you know where to come. I also have a dianella so tough that sheep won’t eat it so I’m sure it could be used as a fibre source too.
That’s gorgeous, I love seeing the pattern the weaving of the leaves makes!!
Thank you! I have lomandra longifolia and dianella, but they’re still new and small, so I’ll keep you in mind, Elaine, when I decide to give them a try.