when life gives you raffia, you start researching how to make a coiled basket

My original plan for today’s post was to share the progress I’d made on the sweater sampler over the weekend. Unfortunately / fortunately it was gloriously warm and sunny both days and I spent very little time knitting. Which means very little progress was made; which, in turn, makes for a pretty boring update.

So it’s a good thing I let this giant bundle of “forget me not” raffia, in the perfect shade of teal, follow me home from the flea market yesterday. (PS: Maybe 12 ounces is the normal amount contained in a bundle of raffia? I must admit, I’m new to this medium. Either way it was a dollar well spent.)

(PPS: It's a bit hard to get the scale in this pic but you can see it next to a skein of yarn in my IG feed.)

Anywhoo, my first thought when I saw it was “I wonder if I can use this to crochet a basket?” According to my brief internet search this morning, the answer is most definitely yes. Although you don’t really crochet the basket so much as you use some similar techniques in weaving a basket? After I actually make one, I will let you know.  

I think I’m gonna start with this video (I tend to appreciate things hailing from Australia, particularly rock bands, and trust Craft School Oz will not steer me wrong) but I definitely want to try this tutorial from We Are Scout as well.

Have you ever tried basket weaving? I’d love it if you’d share your experiences and / or tips in the comments.