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Basket Weaving Terms

Basketry Terms

Because the art of basket weaving spans the globe, the terms and terminology used in this basket making craft is universal. Basket weaving terms are descriptive terms used to identify the tools and materials required, along with basket weaving terms and terminology related to basket weaving textures, styles, techniques. Some descriptions are exclusive to basketry, while others are also relative to other crafts and activities.

For example, while shears are an essential tool used in basket making, they can also be a handy kitchen utensil.

Following is a list of commonly used terms related to basket weaving is small part of many huge part basket weaving terms:

AWL: looks like an ice pick, used to open spaces and make holes in weaving materials used in basket making. Awls are shorter and not as sharp as ice picks.
ASH: a tree commonly found in New England. The log from this tree must be pounded to separate the growth rings so they can be peeled off and made into splints for weaving. The ashes are usually medium to large trees, mostly deciduous.
BALEEN: also called whalebone, is a substance made of keratin and is, therefore, stiff but somewhat elastic. Most commonly recognized as the comblike material found in a whale’s mouth through which it sift and filters food (such as plankton). Commonly used for basket handles or embellishments.
BAMBOO: bamboo is a group of woody perennial evergreen plants (in the true grass family of Poaceae. Some group members grow to be giants, forming the largest member of the grass family. Bamboo is found in diverse climates, from cold mountains to hot tropical areas, and are most commonly used by the Chinese in their basketry.
BASKET MAKING/BASKET WEAVING: the process of weaving unspun vegetable fibers, or other materials, into a basket. People with the profession of weaving baskets are known as “BASKET MAKERS.”
BASKET MAKERS: people with the profession or hobby of weaving baskets.
BASKET WEAVE: plain weaving – over one, under one.
BEVEL: to cut a square edge into a sloping edge; scarf.
BIRCH BARK: the outer skin of a birch tree. Rather than being woven into a basket, this material is generally stitched or sewn together.
BUTT: to bring the ends of any two pieces together. To bring flush against each other.
BUTTOCKS BASKET: frame basket with two distinct bulges (such as an egg basket).
CANE: the outer peel or skin of the rattan plant. Very popular, cane (and reed) are commonly available and are sold ready to weave. Also used as an embellishment for baskets, and on chair seats and backs.
COIL: reed wound and tied in a circle shape. Coiled baskets are commonly made of grasses and rushes.
COILING: weaving technique using an inner core that is wrapped solidly with a smaller thread.
CONTINUOUS WEAVE: weaving done over an odd number of stakes. Not done one row at a time, but rather continuously from beginning to end, adding weavers periodically as needed.
D-HANDLE: a basket handle that continues across the bottom of the basket. When turned on its side, resembles the letter “D.”
DIAGONAL WEAVE: a method of weaving in which the elements interweave with themselves. Also called diagonal plaiting and oblique weaving.
DYEING: coloring reed or any other material used in basket making with any number of natural or commercial dyes.
EAR: 1. Verb: weaving or lashing done at the intersecting point of the rim and the handle that holds the two pieces securely; 2. Noun: lashing into which the ribs are inserted; loops that join a “swing” handle to the basket.
EMBELLISHMENT: any decorative treatment done to the handle or body of a basket. Nonessential to the construction of the basket. Embellishments may include beads, dried flowers, feathers, leather, etc.
FANNY: the twin, gizzard-shaped bottom of an Egg Basket (buttocks).
FILLING IN: on some ribbed baskets, a wedge-shaped area remains unwoven when the rim is full. This space must be filled in by some type of back-and-forth weaving. Also called “PACKING.”
FITCHING: the twining method used in stake and strand basketry. Also called“reverse pairing.” Fitching results in a "Z” twist pattern.
GRAPEVINE: a vine used for weaving baskets and handles. Can be boiled and the bark removed, or left natural.
GREEN WILLOW: freshly cut willow which is green because it is heavy with sap.
HAIRS: splinters from the reed that usually occur from overuse. Normally clipped or singed when the basket is completed.
HANDLE(S): the part of the basket by which it is carried. Not all baskets have handles.
HEX WEAVE: also known as the “Triaxial Weave,” where materials are worked on three axes. See “TRIAXIAL WEAVE.”
HONEYSUCKLE: a wild vine frequently used for weaving baskets. Smaller than a grapevine. Can be boiled and the bark removed, or left natural.
HOOP: a ring or piece of wood shaped into a circle. Machine or handmade, used in ribbed baskets.
LASHER: piece of reed that wraps around and secures all of the rim pieces to the basket.
LASHING: act of wrapping all of the rim pieces; the pieces of the reed used to wrap are also known as lashing.
LOOP: an ear that holds the swing handle and pushes down into the basket.
LOSING A LASHER: the means of hiding the end of the lasher reed in the rim or in the basket itself.
MAT: the woven base of a flat basket.
NOTCH: the indented space of a push-in handle made to fit under the rim and prevent the handle from pulling out.
OAK SPLINTS: strips of oak wood thinned enough to use as stakes or weavers; also called “splints.”
OSIER: long, pliable willow shoots suitable for basket making.
PACKING AND TUCKING TOOL: made of wood with wide and narrow ends. A nail saver when packing down rows and helpful when tucking spokes.
PALM: a tree that, in the wild, primarily grows in tropical and subtropical climates. There are over 2,600 species of this tree type, with those in the Arecaceae being the most easily recognizable. Palm fronds are split and cut for use in basket weaving.
PRE-FORM: shaped or formed before being used.
PRICKING UP: pricking a rod with an awl, so that it can be bent without breaking. This is a technique used in stake and strand basketry.
RANDING: the basic weaving technique used in stake and strand basketry; over one, under one.
RATTAN: a climbing palm (vine) from which reed is made. This is the name assigned to a number of plants, primarily growing in tropical Asia and belonging to the palm family. Unlike most palms, rattan is not clustered in a crown; rather, it has a long, whip-like, barbed tips by which the plant climbs to the tops of trees.
From the stem, noted for its extraordinary length (often several hundred feet) is obtained the rattan cane. This vine is slender, tough and of uniform diameter. It is usually split for wickerwork, baskets and chair seats.
REED: the inner core of rattan that has been cut into flat, flat oval, round, half round or oval shapes; used for baskets and furniture.
REED MEASURE GAUGE: a tool used for measuring reed to assure lengths are uniform.
RIM FILLER: a piece of round reed, seagrass or other suitable material that goes between the two rim pieces and on top of the last row of the basket.
SHEARS: available in many different sizes and price ranges. Used for any and all cutting needs in basketry, including cutting spokes and nipping hairs. Specialty shears allow weavers to access tight areas on a basket.
SISAL: course fibers extracted from agave, a large succulent indigenous to arid regions in the Americas.
SPIRAL: (1) the result of twill weaving (under two, over two) continuously over an odd number of spokes; or (2) a gradually widening curve winding away from a base to create a design.
SPOKE: the same as a “stake” but laid circulary like spokes in a wheel.
STAINING: a term that has come to mean coloring a reed to give an aged look.
STAKE: the structural rod that forms part of a basket’s skeleton. Also known as the passive warp element of a stake and strand basket.
STEPPING UP: a term used in twill weaving, meaning to start the next row one stake to the right (or left, as the case may be) of the starting point on the previous row.
STRAND (OR WEAVER): the active weft woven between the stakes of a stake and strand basket.
SWING HANDLE: a handle attached to a basket that allows it to swing freely from side to side.
TRIAXIAL WEAVE: also known as the “Hex Weave,” where materials are worked on three axes. See “HEX WEAVE.”
TRUE: to measure the woven base, making sure all sides are the correct length/ width, adjusting if necessary, and marking corners.
TUCKING IN: when the basket is woven, the outside stakes are pointed, bent over, and tucked into the weaving on the inside of the basket; also known as“down staking.”
TWILL: a method of weaving in which the weaver passes over and under the stakes two at a time.
TWINING: a method of weaving (usually with round reed) using two or more elements that twist around each other as they weave around the spokes or stakes; also known as “pairing.” Baskets that are twined are frequently made from roots and tree bark.
UPSETT or UPSTAKE: the act of driving stakes into the base, in stake and stand basketry, and bending them up to form the walls of a basket.
WEFT (or WOOF): the active element in basket making, i.e., in coiled basketry, the stitches; in stake and strand baskets, the strands; in plaited basketry, both sets of elements. Nowadays, manmade materials are often used in weaving. Because the weft does not have to be stretched in the way that the warp is, it can generally be less strong.
WICKER: from the Swedish vikker, meaning “willow” or “osier.” Generally refers to any round, shoot-like material used for basket making. Wicker baskets are also made of reed, cane, willow, oak and ash.
WILLOW: a deciduous tree (or shrub) that is found, in the wild, growing in moist soils and in cooler climates. There are about 350 recorded species known worldwide. The leaves and branches of these trees are usually elongated with serrated edges. Willows are commonly used in basket making, often for laundry, kitchen and other types of large baskets.
WISTERIA: a climbing vine that is particularly flexible and used for basket weaving and for making basket handles.
“Z” TWIST: fibers plied or twisted together in a clockwise direction.