Cheerful pine needle basket good with a "kind words speak life" pottery heart pendant and woodburned sunflower wood center entitled "Kind Words".
Remembering to be kind in a world where you can be anything was the inspiration for this good basket...thus the name "Kind Words".
I made this basket using different shades of dyed brown Longleaf pine needles and stitched it together with striped earth tone yellow artificial sinew, which gave the basket a cool ombre effect. I adorned it with Czech picasso yellow flower glass beads around the rim and put a "kind words speak life" sunflower heart pottery pendant on the front. I used a beautiful woodburned sunflower wooden basket base in the center. The beautiful pottery pendant was made by Sue Vandever and the lovely wooden basket base was made by Arts From The Forest.
This basket is approximately 5-1/4" round x 3" tall.
I learned how to make pine needle baskets in 1986 and have had a passion for this craft ever since. I use natural and dyed pine needles from Ponderosa, Torrey, White, Loblolly, Longleaf and a variety of other pine trees. Each basket takes many hours to complete and is carefully hand-stitched and coiled using waxed linen thread, raffia, artificial sinew, poly cord, wire and other things in a variety of colors and textures. I incorporate agate, a variety of woods, shells, pottery, ceramic and other artistic pieces in the bases of my baskets. Some are adorned with gemstones, beads and trinkets. I also use sweetgrass, lavender stems and other dried natural materials that add additional character to my baskets.
A bit of my spirit goes into each of my one-of-a-kind basket creations. Most tell a story about something memorable in my life. My baskets are both functional and decorative and are heirloom quality made to last for generations. I hope my baskets will provide some of the peace and happiness they bring me as I am making them.
Enjoy!
To read more about my hand-crafted baskets and other items, visit my blog at https://www.giggybaskets.blogspot.com