Indrani Perera

poet, publisher & mentor

Tag: basket weaving

Weaving Together

Each year I dread winter and what is coming. It's the time of year when I struggle to create and to remain positive. August is my worst month. I always think it will be the winter solstice in June with the longest night when the blues hit. But June with its crisp days for exploring and cold nights for snuggling is fine. Then I think it's going to be July when I crash. July sees me writing up a storm and baking tasty winter teats to fill our bellies. I manage to get through June and July with a sense of wonder and gratitude. Then comes August.

It's August when I unravel. When I find myself bursting into tears over the smallest things. When I run out of inspiration and have no creative ideas. When despair makes its home in my heart. When I feel as if I cannot go on, cannot take another step. When I am done.

I thought this year I would be immune as I was spending part of August in the tropics. I was wrong. Oh boy was I wrong. The tears still came and swept me away. Not wanting to come home certainly didn't help with the August blues.

And yet…

even in the darkest times, there is still light

and in the dark there is hope

and warmth

and friendship

and love.

In the middle of the despair, I made a basket with harakeke (a New Zealand flax plant) and lomandra (a native Australian grass). Slowly weaving myself back together with craft and companionship and sunshine and blue skies and an open fire in the bush with my daughter sitting by my side, weaving her own story from grass and hope and truth. And love. Always love.

Big love to Mel from Firekeepers for harvesting the harakeke from her friend's garden and bringing it along. Huge gratitude to Mel mentoring our weekly nature gatherings in the Darebin Parklands (an incredible urban wilderness in the heart of Melbourne). Mel also runs a rewilding session for adults in Melbourne on Fridays with the incredible Claire Dunn.

August 27, 2018
Weaving Together

Each year I dread winter and what is coming. It's the time of year when I struggle to create and to remain positive. August is my worst month. I always think it will be the winter solstice in June with the longest night when the blues hit. But June with its crisp days for exploring and cold nights for snuggling is fine. Then I think it's going to be July when I crash. July sees me writing up a storm and baking tasty winter teats to fill our bellies. I manage to get through June and July with a sense of wonder and gratitude. Then comes August.

It's August when I unravel. When I find myself bursting into tears over the smallest things. When I run out of inspiration and have no creative ideas. When despair makes its home in my heart. When I feel as if I cannot go on, cannot take another step. When I am done.

I thought this year I would be immune as I was spending part of August in the tropics. I was wrong. Oh boy was I wrong. The tears still came and swept me away. Not wanting to come home certainly didn't help with the August blues.

And yet…

even in the darkest times, there is still light

and in the dark there is hope

and warmth

and friendship

and love.

In the middle of the despair, I made a basket with harakeke (a New Zealand flax plant) and lomandra (a native Australian grass). Slowly weaving myself back together with craft and companionship and sunshine and blue skies and an open fire in the bush with my daughter sitting by my side, weaving her own story from grass and hope and truth. And love. Always love.

Big love to Mel from Firekeepers for harvesting the harakeke from her friend's garden and bringing it along. Huge gratitude to Mel mentoring our weekly nature gatherings in the Darebin Parklands (an incredible urban wilderness in the heart of Melbourne). Mel also runs a rewilding session for adults in Melbourne on Fridays with the incredible Claire Dunn.

August 27, 2018
A Few Of My Favourite Things

I thought I'd pop on the other side of the camera for a change and say "Hi! How are you doing?" I really hope you are well as we dive into the darkest, coldest part of the year.

It's time for me to slow down and reflect on my journey so far. I find it so easy to look forward to the next project, the next creation, the next challenge. I rarely look behind and take the time to say, "Wow! Look at all the amazing things I have done, the places I have been and the people I have met." In this post I'm going to share some of my favourite things with you; most of them I have made myself.

In the first photo I'm wearing a cardigan made for me by my wonderful friend, Catriona the crochet queen. Trina does incredible things with wool and a crochet hook. I'm in awe of her talents. And very warm when wearing one of her handmade pieces! I'm also wearing a pendant I carved from bone during a bone carving workshop held here in Melbourne a couple of years ago. The bone is from a cow and was prepared by the teacher prior to the class. Using bone as a material fits with my ethos of using the whole of an animal we have killed to eat and wasting none of its precious gift.

The green bag you can see in the second photo is from The Village Continuum festival where I have taught shoe making and Introduction to Leather Craft to lots of lovely folk. I got the bag the year I was part of the crew organising the festival and it was a wonderful experience to be co-creating such an amazing event. The bag holds some of my favourite pieces.

Peeping out of the bag on the right are a pair of orange leather shoes. I was inspired to make them after teaching shoe making and seeing the amazing designs created by my students, They're a little scuffed and worn but I love them just them the same. They are my favourite pair of soft soled moccasins. When I wear them my feet feel so loved and held.

Next to the shoes is a wool scarf I dyed at the very first Wild By Nature Village Camp run by Firekeepers. It was my first time teaching eco-dyeing to a large group of people and the first time I dyed wool on an open fire. Lots of firsts! There's been a lot of scarves since then (you can never have too many scarves, right?) but this one is still my favourite!

The basket at the back of the bag is made from raffia given to me by Meli, a very dear friend. Learning a new craft is always a wonderful experience and basket weaving is the most recent addition to my craft skill set.

All these handmade items are wrapped up with memories, song, laughter and love. It's wonderful to have things to wear and use that I have made with other people. Using them connects me to my past, the people I shared it with and the place where we made beautiful and useful objects together.

The third photo is a tiny Australian wildflower. I love the way our native flowers are unobtrusive. To see them you really have to look closely or you will miss them. Like a lot of beauty in life – sit still and look and you will see.

I hope you're well and I really appreciate you taking the time to read my musings on the creative process. Thanks for joining me on my adventures!

June 18, 2018
A Few Of My Favourite Things

I thought I'd pop on the other side of the camera for a change and say "Hi! How are you doing?" I really hope you are well as we dive into the darkest, coldest part of the year.

It's time for me to slow down and reflect on my journey so far. I find it so easy to look forward to the next project, the next creation, the next challenge. I rarely look behind and take the time to say, "Wow! Look at all the amazing things I have done, the places I have been and the people I have met." In this post I'm going to share some of my favourite things with you; most of them I have made myself.

In the first photo I'm wearing a cardigan made for me by my wonderful friend, Catriona the crochet queen. Trina does incredible things with wool and a crochet hook. I'm in awe of her talents. And very warm when wearing one of her handmade pieces! I'm also wearing a pendant I carved from bone during a bone carving workshop held here in Melbourne a couple of years ago. The bone is from a cow and was prepared by the teacher prior to the class. Using bone as a material fits with my ethos of using the whole of an animal we have killed to eat and wasting none of its precious gift.

The green bag you can see in the second photo is from The Village Continuum festival where I have taught shoe making and Introduction to Leather Craft to lots of lovely folk. I got the bag the year I was part of the crew organising the festival and it was a wonderful experience to be co-creating such an amazing event. The bag holds some of my favourite pieces.

Peeping out of the bag on the right are a pair of orange leather shoes. I was inspired to make them after teaching shoe making and seeing the amazing designs created by my students, They're a little scuffed and worn but I love them just them the same. They are my favourite pair of soft soled moccasins. When I wear them my feet feel so loved and held.

Next to the shoes is a wool scarf I dyed at the very first Wild By Nature Village Camp run by Firekeepers. It was my first time teaching eco-dyeing to a large group of people and the first time I dyed wool on an open fire. Lots of firsts! There's been a lot of scarves since then (you can never have too many scarves, right?) but this one is still my favourite!

The basket at the back of the bag is made from raffia given to me by Meli, a very dear friend. Learning a new craft is always a wonderful experience and basket weaving is the most recent addition to my craft skill set.

All these handmade items are wrapped up with memories, song, laughter and love. It's wonderful to have things to wear and use that I have made with other people. Using them connects me to my past, the people I shared it with and the place where we made beautiful and useful objects together.

The third photo is a tiny Australian wildflower. I love the way our native flowers are unobtrusive. To see them you really have to look closely or you will miss them. Like a lot of beauty in life – sit still and look and you will see.

I hope you're well and I really appreciate you taking the time to read my musings on the creative process. Thanks for joining me on my adventures!

June 18, 2018
Foraging

Why go to the mall to buy stuff for making things when you can visit a local park and forage the plants you need for your crafting adventures?

This little collection was foraged locally from laneways, nature strips and a park. They are being lovingly held in one of my woven baskets, awaiting their turn in the dye pot. Pomegranates, rose leaves and alder catkins (don't you just love the world catkins? I do!).

The beauty of using natural materials is being able to get them, straight from the source. And at the same time you're breathing in fresh air, getting exercise and looking up, down and all around. Much better than staring at a screen!

May 10, 2018
Foraging

Why go to the mall to buy stuff for making things when you can visit a local park and forage the plants you need for your crafting adventures?

This little collection was foraged locally from laneways, nature strips and a park. They are being lovingly held in one of my woven baskets, awaiting their turn in the dye pot. Pomegranates, rose leaves and alder catkins (don't you just love the world catkins? I do!).

The beauty of using natural materials is being able to get them, straight from the source. And at the same time you're breathing in fresh air, getting exercise and looking up, down and all around. Much better than staring at a screen!

May 10, 2018
Dyeing Raffia With Tea

The basket weaving mania continues! Now I'm combining my love of natural dyeing with basket weaving by dyeing the raffia I'm using with things I can find in my kitchen cupboard.

I read about using tea bags as a natural dye in Rebecca Desnos' book, Botanical Colour at Your Fingertips. If you want to get into natural dyeing it's a great book to have.

Dyeing Raffia with Tea

10 tea bags

raffia

Place the raffia in a large bowl.

Put the tea bags on top.

Boil the kettle and our the hot water over it.

Let the raffia sit in the water for 24 hours.

Dry on the line in the shade.

April 23, 2018
Lots To Love

I have no patterns for my latest craft. There are no stitches to count. No special tools or complicated instructions. Just some raffia and a needle. What's not to love?

And yet for all the simplicity I can make the baskets as complicated and unique as I like. I'm completely in love with the elegant simplicity, infinite possibilities for customisation and creative expression I can see with basket weaving. I can make coasters, placemats, plates, bowls, bags and baskets. I can change the shape and size. I can add handles or not. Hell I can even customize those handles! All I need is my imagination.

PS – I'm having a mini break next week while I'm off on camp. Five days in the bush, teaching eco-dyeing. Yeah!

April 5, 2018
Crafting Lessons Learnt At The Village Continuum

{Basket woven by my ten year old daughter, at The Village Continuum festival.}

We're wired to create. It's in our DNA. I just know it. It's why there are cities and spoons, buildings and blankets, stained glass window and shoes. We just can't help ourselves, we make. The Village Continuum festival was maker's paradise for me with so many amazing traditional craft workshops on offer. If you didn't make it this year and you love craft, you should seriously think about going next year.

{Stringy bark rope made in Josh's workshop and dyed in Heather's natural dye pot. L: eucalyptus R:onion skin with iron mordant}

{Dye pots simmering over the open fire. Onion, eucalyptus and cherry ballart.}

Cross Crafting

One of the really exciting things about the Village Continuum festival was the cross crafting that occurred. There was a steady stream of people going from the rope making workshop across to the fire and the natural dye pots to make their stringy bark rope colourful. Shoes and leg warmers from the felting workshop went into the dye pots too. We even had one facilitator who was chucking whatever she could find into the dye pots- old thermals, socks and bags that needed livening up.

There was also butter made in one of the workshops served the next morning at breakfast time.

{Top: Max's wallet. Bottom: the workshop template}

Creativity

When you put a bunch of people together, show them some skills and give them the tools and materials they need, amazing things can happen. In my leather craft workshop at the Village Continuum, nine year old Max took the card and note wallet prototype and flipped it on its head. He took the middle piece of leather, attached it to the top and turned the whole thing into a little pouch. I love it! Especially the button detail with the loop (the button has been sewn on backwards as well!).

This little pouch tells you everything you need to know about creativity. Age doesn't matter – young kids and old people can do it. Step outside the box (or in this case the pattern). Turn things over. Go backwards. Do it your way. Make it what you want. Be different. You are unique. You can do it.

{Basket weavers weaving their baskets}

Collaborative Crafting

I think there's nothing better than crafting with a bunch of other people. It's why I love doing craft workshops and attending awesome festivals. You get to chat, learn and be inspired. You get to swap stories, talk about your loves and for just a little while feel connected to each other as you share your stories, hopes and dreams. It's amazing how people open up when their hands are busy doing something else.

Sitting together in a workshop chatting as we carve, sew, cook, learn and teach fills my soul right up. I learn as much from the other students as the teachers when I do a workshop and the Village Continuum was no exception. When I was doing the Coal Burn Spoon making workshop, one of the other students, Art, taught me so much about branch wood and choosing a good piece.

{Speedy running an impromptu razor sharpening demo}

Spontaneous Crafting

You just couldn't stop the passionate folks at the Village Continuum from sharing their skills and knowledge with each other. This is Speedy teaching an impromptu razor sharpening workshop during the festival. Speedy is a goldmine of traditional craft knowledge and can turn his hand to just abut anything. From blacksmithing to cheese making, he's done it.

Festivals like The Village Continuum are so important for slowing down and bringing together creative people who are happy to share their skills and knowledge. It was an honour and a privilege to be part of creating something so beautiful. If I had my way, I'd be gong to a festival like this every weekend!

December 2, 2016