Onion Basket Making

24 Aug 2024, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

The Creative Community Campus, 159 17th Avenue, Tauranga South, Tauranga 3112, New Zealand

About the event
These classic storage baskets from the 1960’s and 70’s were developed by Ruth Castle and practically every home had one. They’re great for gifts and are a good place to start if you've never made a basket and want to give it a go.

We'll whip one of these up using Rattan cane as our material and work it with a twining weave. You’ll leave with a woven form that will style up your home and the joy of having created it yourself.

Onion Basket Making

With Tanya Doty of Heartstone Baskets

Saturday, 24th August

The Creative Community Campus

9.30am - 12.30pm

$145

All tools and materials supplied.

Tanya Doty has been crafting willow baskets from her workshop in Upper Moutere since her first basket making course with Golden Bay basketmaker Peter Greer in 2008. Largely self taught, she is firmly addicted to basket making and spends most of her days bending bundles of willow sticks into baskets. She enjoys experimenting with other natural fibres such as raupo, pine needles, rattan, and foraged fibres, bringing a contemporary feel to the age old craft of basket making.

“I grow a small amount of basketry willow but demand far out strips supply so when that happens I use rattan cane or use other found materials like ivy, hops, virginia creeper... it’s all just a matter of matching the material to the technique or style of basket that’s being made. I cherish the connection to the earth through the materials and knowing that my hands are keeping ancient crafts alive while making useful sustainable pieces that will last for many years.”