All baskets are handmade. That one fact is astounding. There is no such thing as a machine-made basket. Baskets are found in every culture in the world. Their materials reflect the bio-diversity of their locations. Most baskets have a plant source, but there are baskets made from animal materials, baleen being the most well-known of these. There are baskets made from man-made materials, too. Telephone wire baskets are striking. Plastic Easter baskets are less awe-inspiring. And duct tape baskets are one of those phenomena of modern culture fads.

Basketry objects include vessels, socks, hats, clothing, houses, sieves, fish traps, nets, and, most common, containers. They are made for every day use or for tourist trade. Today, baskets are important export items, bringing in revenue to indigenous peoples and revitalizing impoverished communities. Basket making is something a mother can do while overseeing her children. It is common to see a group of women sitting in the shade, making baskets and talking, while the children play around them. Basketry builds community.

Twinning a basket

There are only three methods of making a basket - twining, plaiting and coiling. Wicker is a variant of twining, and sometimes considered a fourth technique. The uprights are called the warp and the weavers are the weft in twined and plaited baskets. The weft, either two or three strand, twists around the warp in a twined basket. A plaited basket is like a textile, with the weft going over and under the warp in a plain or twill weave. It is commonly used for making mats. Coiled baskets go round and round, like a coiled ceramic pot construction or a rag rug. There is a bundle that forms the center of the coil and stitching that holds one coil on top of the other. Often the stitching also wraps the bundle. A coiled basket from Africa may look like a coiled basket from Alaska. Sometimes the way to identify the difference is through the plants used in construction. In order to identify these plants, one often needs to look at a thin section under the microscope. Each plant has a unique structure when viewed this way, allowing identification. Another identifier may be the added decoration, the dyes, especially if they are natural, and fancy weave variations.  

The plants and their juxtaposition in the basket contribute to its care requirements. Woven plant materials move with relative humidity fluctuations. If dirt or dust is embedded into the weave, that movement causes the dust particles to abrade the basket fibers, leading to cuts and breakage. The fibers also lose their flexibility, becoming more brittle as they deteriorate. This is hastened by light, heat and relative humidity fluctuations.  Many basketry dyes are fugitive. They fade with light exposure and may run when wet. Feather decorations, common in California's Pomo baskets, are favorite foods of protein eating beetles. If the feathers are still present on older baskets, there is a likelihood the baskets have been heavily treated with residual poisons. Care of baskets requires an understanding of their materials, how they deteriorate, and what might be needed to prevent or slow deterioration. 

 Helen Alten, is the Director of Northern States Conservation Center and its chief Objects Conservator.  She created MS225: Care of Baskets. It is now being taught by Sherry Doyal, head of the organic artefacts conservation section at the British Museum. Ms. Doyal specializes in conservation of botanic materials. She received a conservation and restoration studies certificate with distinction from Lincoln College of Art in 1980 and a diploma in design and craft (constructed textiles) in the context of basketry from City Literacy College, London in 2008. In her spare time she is a maker and exhibitor of contemporary basketry works.