Here’s the first of a few packbaskets that I’m currently working on. They are 18″ high to the rim and 14″ approx wide at the belly. Fitted with veg tan leather straps and solid brass buckles. If you are interested in ordering a basket, please email steve[at]stevetomlincraft.co.uk for more details.
Lovely article in the Guardian this week about the value of wildflower meadows, the work being done to preserve them and how you can create a meadow on even just a small patch of land.
Of course, once you’ve established your meadow, a scythe is the perfect tool for cutting the long grasses and it is nice to see that it’s now an established enough tool for the Guardian to mention is, of course with the obligatory Poldark reference.
My scythe courses will be running again in summer 2021, visit my Learn to Scythe page for dates and more details or email steve[at]stevetomlincrafts.co.uk to book a place.
Winter is typically the time when I make more items for sale and makes a nice counterpoint to the summer of teaching craft courses. This summer I’m enjoying weaving some ash splint packbasket commissions using the beautiful ash splint from Derbyshire which I pounded last year.
I’ll be sharing images of the finished basket with it’s straps shortly. If you’re interested in these baskets, please email me steve[at]stevetomlincrafts.co.uk for further details.
The handle, rim and bottom bond for the Devon stave basket are made from freshly cut ash coppice. I use small diameter poles which are cleft into four pieces and then shaped with a drawknife while clamped in the shavehorse.
While the wood is still green, it can be slowly bend around a former. Usually wood is bent using steam to heat and soften the fibres but with care it’s possible to bend wood cold. After a few days of drying, the shape is set and can be stored for future use.
My Devon stave baskets are made in small batches a few times a year, please email me if you’re interested in more details or to order. I post process photos and new baskets on my SteveTomlinCrafts Instagram feed.
One of the lovely things about basket making is how few tools are needed. When I’m making ash splint baskets, I use just a knife, scissors, small spring clamps and a bodkin. The bodkin aids with packing down the weavers, tucking the uprights into the weave when they are turned down and opening the gaps for lashing.
These bodkins are specifically designed for working with ash splint and sized for 6mm weavers which I use on most of my work. They’re equally suitable for rush or willow basket making work. Available through my Etsy store
I’ve been making ash splint baskets and teaching workshops for several years now and it’s been fantastic to share the skills and knowledge with so many people.
I am always aware though, that there are lots of people who can’t get to one of my courses and are looking for some guidance to get started on their own. Equally, we cover such a lot of processes during the course that participants often comment that they would like some written instructions to help with future baskets.
In response to this, I’ve put together a short pdf introductory guide which covers sourcing an ash log, pounding the splints and step by step instructions on how to weave a square to round table basket, the same basket which we make on the course. While no book is going to be as good as being on a course where I can help and advice you, I hope this will aid some people who want to start pounding ash splints and making baskets for themselves.
The booklet is available as an instant pdf download from my Etsy store:
This course actually took place earlier in the summer but at the time I was too busy to post the photos so here they are at last. Among the group was Eddie Glew, a fantastic willow basket maker, who came on the course to learn to make birds as a break from his hectic schedule. It’s always an honour to have other craftspeople come to learn and Eddie made a fabulous little flock of birds to take home.
For details of upcoming courses, please sign up to my newsletter. If you can’t make a course or fancy having a go at home, I have produced a fan bird carving instruction sheet which is available from my Etsy store.
My final workshop for 2020 was an ash splint basket making course at Greenwood Days near Derby, UK. This was postponed from earlier in the year when running courses wasn’t possible so I was very pleased to be able to teach it.
With it being later in the year than normal, we were all wrapped up well but kept warm with lots of tea and good chat throughout. This is still a new craft to the UK so it’s great to pass on the skills and knowledge and hopefully some of these weavers will go on to pound some of their own ash splint and make more baskets.
If you’d like to learn in 2021, please sign up to my newsletter for details of course dates as they are set.
When I teach people how to carve spoons, I want them to go home with new skills and confidence as well as a spoon that they’ve made. Having two days of workshop gives the best opportunity to achieve this and we can cover more complicated spoon carving as well as reinforcing the basic skills.
We start with making stirring spoons, beginning of course with fresh, green wood and axework then progressing onto knife grips to refine and finish the spoon.
The second day starts with a short session making butter spreaders. These are a brilliant exercise for practising the skills and quick enough for everyone to make a few and see progression.
Then it’s on to eating spoons and the complications of carving a cranked spoon design. We use my teardrop eating spoon pattern and follow my 10-step method for axing the blank – you can find both these along with other spoon carving patterns in my Etsy store.
I had a brilliant couple of days with this group and they carved some fantastic spoons. If you’d like to learn how to carve wooden spoons, check out my courses page or sign up to my newsletter for updates.
I’ve been back to Hullard Park in Trafford, Manchester to run a scything refresher for the volunteers who are helping to manage the wildflower meadow in the park.
Even though it’s a whole year since they last picked up a scythe, everyone got right back into the swing of things (see what I did there?) and dealt really well with the thick vegetation.
They were so confident and capable, I had chance to give Leon, a local Green Hero, some surprise tuition. He was a brilliant student so he and his dad were soon mowing well together.
I have been teaching scythe courses for groups across the UK for over 10 years. If your community group are looking after an orchard, wildflower meadow or other land and would like to use scythes to manage the land then please contact me steve@stevetomlincrafts.co.uk or visit my Learn to Scythe page for more infor
