What Is Basketry?

A basket is any container that is traditionally made of wicker, usually with a handle made of cloth or other material and is usually made to carry eggs, dried fruit, spices, and other foods. Historically, baskets were used for transporting food but today, a basket may be used for a variety of other purposes. They may be used to store personal belongings, to carry belongings to and from places, for the purpose of transporting things from one location to another, and sometimes, as a means of transportation. A variety of materials may be used to make a basket. Materials that are more common include twine, canvas, straw, and plastic. Each material may have various qualities and can create different basket styles.

The materials that are used to make baskets may be broken down further by their specific characteristics, which will aid in determining the basket style to use. Among these characteristics are size, shape, weight, number of strands or threads, density, appearance, color, permeability, size, and shape of the threads or fibers. A woven basket-making material may have a certain number of knots per inch. Nylon fiber can have a high density and is typically used to make small-sized baskets, whereas cotton/spandex blends are typically used for medium to large sized baskets.

Basket-making is typically done using a combination of various types of raw materials. Many of the raw materials available for basket-making are available in woven styles. Basket-making is often done with fabrics that have been dyed in various colors. Some colors that are frequently used in basket-making include reds, oranges, yellow, browns, blues, tans, greens, purples, white, and others. Some materials can be made into varying textures with the use of certain processes.

Some of the basket-making processes that can be used are described here. To produce a woven basket, fibers are threaded through eyelets that are then formed into basket shapes. The threads can be supplied through a machine or human intervention, depending on how intricate or simplistic the desired result. A basket with a smooth top is produced when the threads are woven through and around a light metal rim or wooden handle.

In some cases, basketry is completed by interlacing plaited or braided fibers or threads. These types of woven baskets are produced when the threads are laid horizontally. Layers of yarn are interwoven together in such a way that they cover one another and form a tight, sturdy fabric. Examples of such layers are usually from vegetable fiber, silk, and jute.

There are many types of baskets that are made today. The types of baskets that are most commonly used in various scenarios include: general baskets, wicker baskets, gingham baskets, fruit and vegetables baskets, specialty baskets, holiday baskets, pottery baskets, and wine and beer baskets. Basketry may be produced on a small scale as handcrafted objects, but most mass-manufactured basket-making items are created using machines. The majority of these products are of low quality and made for less than $3. They generally cannot be used as decorative household items due to their size, but they are still very useful as holding containers of all sorts of items.