1.

When weaving a basket with an intricate twill pattern, enlarge the

twill graph on a copier. Then you can see it more easily, and you can
also mark or highlight the rows as you weave.
2. Spoke weights - even two or three of them - are extremely useful for
laying out a twill base.
3. If laying out a twill base with dyed reed, pack it tight as you go. If you
try to pack it later, the dyed reed will have bled onto the other spokes
and you'll have a mess.
4. Carolyn Kemp passed on this idea and it's worked well for me! If you
want to try to teach children's classes, try offering Parent and Child
Classes. Both the parent and child weave their own basket - but each
child has an adult there to help them (or vice versa!) It helps with
crowd control, but also makes for a fun holiday workshop!
5. "Whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report;
think on these things." Philippians 4:8
6. The more clothespins you use on the first rows of your basket, the
better your basket will turn out.
7. When you are taking a basketweaving class, don't ask your neighbor
for help - ask the instructor!
8. Use your finger to rub off pencil marks on your reed while the spokes
are still wet and they will come right off.
9. Use vinegar in the dye pot and in your soaking pan and this will help
prevent dyed reed from bleeding.
10. "There is no end to what you can accomplish if you don't care who
gets the credit." General Colin Powell
11. When cutting out your spokes - cut the horizontal spoke ends straight
across and the vertical spoke ends at a diagonal. This way you can
easily tell them apart when you are laying out the base.
12. If you are having trouble inserting a spoke (when folding and
tucking), cut the points off the corners - like a picket fence, but don't
cut them to a point as they will split.
13. When tapering a weaver, cut off the underside, not the topside. This is
especially true when tapering a dyed weaver - then the cut white edge
will be downward and less visible.
14. If a squirt bottle just isn't enough to keep a large basket damp, go over
to your sink and use the sink sprayer.
15. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Matthew 7:12
16. A Stanley Surform Shaver is my favorite tool for tapering rims.
17. When weaving twills, you absolutely must use smooth, supple reed
for the best results.
18. To fold round reed in half without breaking it, twist it between your
fingers or pinch it with a needlenose pliers.
19. How to tell if your reed is long enough to lash all the way around the
rim: if it will wrap 2 1/2 to 3 times around the rim, then it is long
enough. Sometimes more is needed for twills or Nantuckets if there
are lots of spokes and they are really close together.
20. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the
Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance
from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."
Colossians 3: 23-24
21. Run soaked, dyed reed through paper toweling or an old towel before
weaving with it. This will help remove excess water and dye,
preventing bleeding.
22. If your dyed reed has bled onto natural reed, you can touch up your
basket by carefully using some bleach on a cotton swab.
23. You can dye seagrass and use it as rim filler. It can ravel, though, so
make sure your piece is extra long before dyeing it.
24. Measure the base of your basket from end to end - but also from the
center to each end to make sure everything is centered and
proportional.
25. "Excellence is not a one-time event, it is a way of doing things."
General Colin Powell
26. When weaving a twill basket with a repeating pattern, mark the
spokes with tape or a clothespin where the pattern repeats. This makes
it much easier to check smaller sections of each row for mistakes.
(Thanks to Chris Lamb for this tip!)
27. Shaping - to make a basket get larger, the spokes must spread farther
apart. To make a basket get smaller, the spokes must get closer
together.
28. Don't ever put reed in your mouth, or let your pet drink out of your
water bucket! Reed is treated with insecticides so that it can be
imported - you don't want to ingest it!