Wicker baskets are used for a variety of purposes, both now and in the past.
Wicker Baskets – Background
All baskets do not have to be made from Wicker. However, wicker baskets must be woven. Wicker baskets are constructed by weaving organic reed grass, cane and roots, or man-made materials into containers for storage Home Improvement and displaying items, or carrying them around. Their functions are unlimited. You can have them large or small. They can be mounted in the walls, a table, or on the ground. They can be made from various materials and are available in a variety of sizes.
Woven wicker baskets are usually constructed by hand. The process of weaving a basket is known as Basket Weaving. From the beginning of Egypt to the current days across the majority of countries in the world, wicker baskets have become widely used and are utilized by a substantial portion of the population. Today, wicker baskets can be found in nearly every house.
Why do Wicker baskets have such a huge following?
Wicker baskets have been used for a long time and are likely to be around for a few thousand more. You may ask yourself why Wicker baskets have been in use for so long and still popular? It’s easy to comprehend why. Simplicity in manufacture and cost , along with a wide supply of materials and skilled people who want to create something beautiful and useful. People are attracted to handcrafted things that are useful, inexpensive with a high degree of appeal.
It is hard to imagine what life would be like in a world without the wicker baskets. Since the beginning the use of wicker baskets to create just about everything they could think of. Wicker products are light and durable. The demand for baskets was much higher than alternatives of metal or solid wood containers.
In the old days, using wicker was a simple way to make things you required as the materials were easily available and the skills were handed down through the family. To enhance their lives, they invented the products they required using the materials and knowledge they had. Making baskets from the wicker was a skill that became highly sought after. The material can be woven into an attractive basket. This container can hold and store large items. The main benefit of creating things from wicker was that they were less heavy than their counterparts could have been. Clay and wood are bulky and difficult to carry. They are popular, judging by the amount of wicker baskets that are sold each year.
Wicker Baskets: What are the uses?
Baskets are useful to help with everyday chores, carry and store goods. You can use them to display flowers or just as decoration. In particular, some wicker containers are intended for cooking and some act as an aerator. Some are used as a trap to contain animals or fish. The use depends on the person you are as well as the location you reside in and what you want to accomplish.
To carry the fish he has caught, a fisherman will use a wicker basket that has lids and slings. A popular seafood restaurant uses the same container as a display piece that is hung on the wall as an artistic piece of art to create a welcoming atmosphere for their customers. Extra-large Wicker baskets are utilized in a variety of third world countries for storing grains, vegetables and fruits in the homes and markets. In developed countries like the USA the same size baskets are used to decorate or for displaying products in retail stores.
Certain types of medium-sized baskets can be used for laundry. Laundry hampers can be used to hold dirty laundry until it is cleaned. A laundry basket with two handles on the top and an opening wide at the top is used to transport dirty laundry out of the washroom to the storage space.
Egg baskets are woven in a specific form to help hold eggs so they don’t move too far and can be staked when harvesting. Baskets for flowers and vegetables have large handles with hooped handles and open space above a slightly bent oval woven bottom to allow you to select things like leafy veggies and spices, or flowers on a plant or onions and many other garden items that won’t fit in the smaller baskets that are closed in.
Wicker wastebaskets are popular in bedrooms and bathrooms. Based on the style the wicker baskets could be used in advanced countries to store magazines and newspapers next to your favorite reading chair. Baskets for magazines are typically equipped with handles. They can also be used to transport wine bottles and Jars.
All over the world, round wicker baskets have lids. There are numerous uses of round baskets. In some countries , these types of baskets for storing root crops or fallen fruit. Some countries use them to protect against insects or snakes. Larger, more advanced nations might use these baskets to collect trash or hampers for clothes.
The examples above only touch on the myriad of possibilities for the wicker baskets. They also illustrate that any particular basket may be used in more than one way and may have different applications across different cultures or countries.
Basket Materials and Construction
The light weight and durability of wicker baskets after they are made is what makes them an excellent product over other. You can make them from a variety of organic and man-made materials. Traditionalists prefer their baskets made form organic materials. But, based on the way they’re used, resin baskets are getting more popular for both indoors as well as outdoor use.
Wicker baskets are made by using any length of flexible material that can be weaved. To soften some materials, like rattan ored for instance the material must be bathed in warm water before it is utilized. If not, it will crack and break. Ultimately, what ever is used has to be flexible to allow it to be woven, especially when the weave is tightly woven.
Before weavers can begin weaving a basket it is important to set up frames and a base. Weavers use spokes to tie the basket together. The staves or spokes are used to make a round, conventional basket that is upright. Weavers weave horizontal running pieces around the spokes.
Every country or region in which wicker baskets are made have distinct patterns. The overall shape and style of the basket is distinctive and the pattern of weaving. Over the years numerous intricate patterns have been developed, some of which are simply stunning. In addition to the weave patterns, some basket makers have taken to paint designs or pictures onto their baskets. These additional attributes make baskets look more appealing and are visually appealing.
It is possible to use organic materials for your baskets in their natural state or you can stain or paint them to give your baskets a look as unique as possible. Organic materials are made of wood and will absorb stain and allow the paint to stick. Resin based materials have the colors already embedded within the materials which means that there is no staining or painting needed.
Handles are crucial to certain baskets and are part of the design process. The basket designer must consider ahead of time weather they would like the basket to include a handle or not. They should consider weaving spokes into the overall design. The spokes then become the handle.
The baskets described in the previous paragraphs are made of 100% wicker however, deviations in design of wicker baskets can include different materials like wood bases, or a frame of wood on the frame a weave can be added.
Many people find wicker bags attractive. They could have changed the way man stored, carried things or how cultures evolved because basket weaving was an essential, a job and an art. Fortunately, we live in a time where we can buy and enjoy wicker baskets without having to make them ourselves. Craftsmen from all over specialize in this dying art. Third world countries create the bulk of the baskets of today because that’s were the expertise is, the labor costs are low and the materials are plentiful. Because the work is tiring and people don’t get much in return The expertise is lost. They move on to more lucrative opportunities as they get.