Finnguala ingen Néill meic Chuircc – Small Coiled Grass Basket with Lid

• Item: Small Coiled Grass Basket with Lid
• East Kingdom Wiki Link: https://wiki.eastkingdom.org/index.php?title=Finnguala_ingen_N%C3%A9ill_meic_Chuircc

This is my first attempt at a coiled basket, from late summer this year. I gathered the plant materials from my yard and dried them before use – they are some kind of fine grass (fescue?) and Iris germanica leaves (split into narrower strips before drying). I started this project thinking I would be wrapping dried grass with silk thread, but it quickly became apparent it would take forever if I didn’t switch to something bulkier for the wrap. I ended up pulling out the dried iris leaves and aiming for a palm leaf basket look, as palm leaf stitching seems to be especially prevalent in extant coiled basket finds.

Some lessons learned:

• Seriously, do not use actual sewing thread.
• Soak less material than you think you will need – things get pungent if the leaves stay moist for more than 2 days, and you can always soak more.
• Have extra needles on hand for when you break one.
• When you have the option, use the big hole.
• If your cat is a grass fiend, you will have very close supervision during this process (and frequent attempts to sample your work).
• Making a functional basket this way isn’t that hard – wonky baskets are period.
• Symmetry and straight lines are harder than you expect.

Project page with references and additional pictures and details located here: https://finnguala138493150.wordpress.com/portfolio/small-coiled-grass-basket-with-lid/