Gardening Stool

We found a rustic gardening stool in the charcoal hut,

our new basketry base in Chiba.

It's a good example of hexagonal, 

demonstrating the robustness of the structure. 

The leg consists of a single hexagonal base and two barrel hoops.

The structure cannot be more simple.

But handling thic material is not easy.

So the barrel hoops are used to keep it in shape.

The leg is done.

I'm going to finish the seat next time we visit the charcoal hut.

Dish drier

茶碗かご (chawan kago), dish drier

Kitchen utencil. Coarse basket for drying dishes.

Mutsume pattern 

Basic hexagonal pattern. 

Rim. Naturally formed by twisting back the material using a hoop.

Sashi mutsume

Inserting material to hexagonal pattern to make solid surface.

The leg is upside down Nodaguchi with open end.

Nodaguchi is a common technique fixing the rim between two thick strips. 

Going France

Display, Demonstration and Workshop

Display: 16-18, 23-25 September 2016

Workshop: 12 September 2016,

Ile de Bendor, France

"Would you like to join basketmaking experience on a French island?"

I was planning my vacation when I saw the ad.

It was a kind of AIR open call.

For previous vacations, I had visited basketmakers in Japan.

I had never imagined about going abroad.

Well... Why not?

I contacted the organizer and we have outlined the event.

I'm going to l'ile de Bendor in France for two weeks from mid September.

There are still a lot to do for preparation.

But I kind of enjoy it.

Gallery will be opened weekends.

Visit the island for leisure and chat about basketry and Japanese culture.

For more information about the island: http://bendor.com/

Shopping basket

買い物かご (kaimono kago), shopping basket

Used before the prastic bags had been invented. 

Still prefered by some Japanese restaurant chiefs.

Goza-me pattern

Basic coiling technique to form solid surface without gaps. 

Handle is formed by coiling thick long material three times.

Kazura (ivy) is common material for handle cover. 

But only available in late automn.

Leather is used instead. 

Makibuchi

Coiling around the rim with thin bamboo surface strips. 

Ishizuri

Stone guard. Protecting the body from scratches when place on the floor.

Fruit basket

盛りかご (morikago), serving basket

Used to serve fruit or sweets.

Hana mutsume.

Decorative hexagonal pattern. 

Masawari atebuchi

Yamato musubi

The bottom is protected with triangle bones.

Tiny parts are called Mushi (worm), named after the appearance.

Group Exhibition

It just started at a lunch with my friends from pottery studio.

"Hey, how about doing a joint exhibition?"

"I'm not much doing pottery recently...", I said.

"You can bring your bamboo work"

Seriously?

Several months later, 

we opened an exhibition at a small gallery in Midwest Tokyo.

There are different areas in Tokyo.

Busy city center, hectic downtown, affluent area, east end, endless suburb...

Midwest is relatively affordable residential area,

where people are mild yet open minded.

Me and most of my friends live in this area.

Random weaving flower vases

a fruit basket

a shopping bag,  a square basket, and a dish basket...

a  tiny dish

and a spice pot with a miniature bamboo spoon.

There is a sort of relaxed sense of community in this area.

Friends and neighbors dropped by, attracting passers by. 

You cannot make fortune from making baskets.

Nor from pottery.

"But it was such a good fun"

"Yeah"

"Let's do this again someday"

Someone muttered.

We closed the door and returned the key to the gallery owner.

And we went home with the good feeling.

Making Dish Basket

Hexagonal is one of the basic patterns in bamboo baskets.

It covers a large area with minimum material,

maximizing the advantage of higo, the thin elastic material made of bamboo.

The pattern is primarily composed of triangles

and a hexagon is the minimum pattern.

The bottom is usually woven from the center to outward.

Bend the sides to form corners

and weave up the body part

You can also attach the rim to finish a basic hexagonal basket,

but instead a hoop is inserted to continue making a dish basket.

Fold higos and insert them back into the body.

Fix the end.

Attach the rim

and fix it with rattan.

Turn it upside down.

The rim became the leg part to lift the bottom

so that the dishes dry quickly.

Preparation

"It takes 3 years to master preparation..."

They say.

And it's no kidding.

Preparation is a fairly complex process for bamboo baskets.

It requires skills, knowledge, and most of all, time.

First, cut the timber into manageable length,

and wash the natural wax off from the surface.

Then split them into sticks

and into thinner threads

and split again

and shape them into the same width and thickness. 

Most of the people give up in this process.

I would probably have too,

if not a nice person gave me a bunch of material on the first day.

Well, the most difficult part is over.

Now we can start weaving baskets.