1 ½"x 3 ½"x 1 ¾" OR 2" x 5" x 2"; Black ash with hand-braided several-strand waxed linen handles in coordinating colors

Miniature tote baskets in swirling twill weave - a perfect accessory for a stylish doll or little girl! When I was a little girl, I had a whole fanciful world with my beloved dolls and was very sad to pack them all away as a teenager. Now my tiny tote baskets are a way to temporarily return to that magical world of dolls.

Black waxed linen neck cord Tiny glass Delica beads or other glass seed beads of the same size (ll/0), woven off-loom into a smooth mesh, with any number of patterns created by the different colors of beads. Playing with the colors is half the fun!

Very finely woven beaded pouch of tiny glass Delica beads in the Peyote stitch.

Fine black cotton neck cord; Initialed and dated on back

Since Whim-Wham is an old-fashioned word which means “a fanciful ornament”, I designed this necklace to be just that. To form the base and the background of the necklace, I weave a triangle of silky black ash in the hexagon weave two times, back-to-back, so that the back is as finished as the front. This black ash triangle is then accented all around with coiled wire strung with semi-precious beads and chips. Choices of semi-precious stones include amethyst, sodalite, malachite, leopard jasper, aventurine, coordinated in color to the coiled wire.

3 strand hand-braided neck cord of waxed linen

This miniature woven basket pouch is created entirely of black ash in an intricate twill weaving pattern whose design is a diamond in the center with radiating bands of the pattern. Waxed linen stitching around the top opening, a hand- braided waxed linen neck cord, and small glass beads are the finishing touches.

3 strand hand-braided neck cord, black ash and waxed linen weaving, glass bead accents

A native American-inspired basket design becomes a necklace created with black ash and waxed linen, twined in two colors to create a checkerboard pattern at the top of each “arm” of the tiny basket.

Initialed and dated on back

2 1/4" hexagon-weave pins of black ash with beaded accents- either glass, wood, or natural bone or seed. Also available as a necklace in the star pattern, a hexagon-weave diamond shape, and a triangle- all with the beaded accents and waxed linen neckcord.

Black ash weaving studded with tiny glass beads in a circular pattern. Hand-braided neckcord of waxed linen cord.

Ever since my husband and I became close friends with an exchange teacher and his family from Northern Island in the 70's, we have exchanged calendars every year at Christmas. The Emerald Isle truly comes alive in the photos each month of their beloved island. Someday, we hope to make that trip across the Atlantic to soak up all that green. In the meantime, I was dreaming of such a beautiful place in the cold New England winter, and created this intricate basketry necklace with the appropriate colors to keep me hoping for that chance to see it for myself. Originally shown in the 2004 Craftwear Exhibit of LNHC.

2 1/4" x 4" x 1 3/4"; Black ash and textured fibers; Waxed linen braided handles with "fly-away" textured fibers braided in.

The League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, of which I have been a jured artisan member since 1997, encourages artisans to explore new ground and sometimes push the boundaries a bit to create new work for the annual exhibits. Most of the time, I am a very structured weaver and use very precise materials. For the Craftwear Exhibit at the Sunapee Fair in 2004, I created this whimsical miniature tote basket with fun fibers. The discovery of the fibers actually inspired this new design. Working with the fiber, texture, and color are such fun!