Threads 123: Using cane for making baskets

Traditionally cane has been used for years to make domestic baskets in Britain and the continent. Cane is a creeping vine which grows in tropical forests like Malaysia and Indonesia. The vine grows 200 to 600 ft up in the trees and is covered with sharp thorns. 

It is collected by local workers, bundled and taken by ship to be processed in factories. The cane is processed into long lengths of different diameters. The outside of the cane is used for canning chairs and the centre cane is used for making baskets. It can also be made into flat cane made for wrapping. 

Today basket makers can still buy centre cane and flat cane processed into different types and sizes. 

In England, I was first taught to make baskets using round and flat cane. As with many plants, there are multiple names for cane, it can be known as round or flat reed or rattan. 

In Canada, many people like to collect and use wild material. It is much easier to learn basketry techniques using round reed. This is because it comes in long lengths, in different diameters that are consistent. After a few minutes soaking in warm water, round reed is pliable and easy to weave with. I’m can also very easily be dyed and used for creative decorative baskets using pattern. Unlike willow which is impossible to dye. It’s also a natural material your can buy year round to makes baskets with. 

I have taught hundreds of children in public school how to make baskets using round reed

On March 7, Michael Peterson will be teaching how to make a basket using this material. https://www.lanarkhighlandsbasketrymuseum.ca/learn

Bibliography: Canework, Charles Crampton, Dryad Press, 1979