Love and hugs to everyone. ❤️ @karen_lawrence_basketry #valentinesday #letlovelead #hugsareprecious #❤️

This morning on my bird feeder pod. I just love nuthatches, Zorro of the bird world.

DM me if you’d like one. A bird pod of course, nuthatch not included. 😊@karenlawrencebasketry #willow #willowbirdpod #willowbirdfeeder #feedthebirds #natural #forthegarden #nuthatch #nuthatchesofinstagram

Ten minutes of play time. Birch bark that I’ve had for a while and hemp string from @string_harvest. It’s simple but life feels complicated enough 😊. @karen_lawrence_basketry #birchbark #hempstring #hempcordage #simplecheckweave #keepinglifesimple #playtime #takesometime #mentalrest #creativitybringsjoy #creativerest #take5minutes #downtime #simplepleasures #birchbarkwallhanging #wallhanging #bringtheoutsidein #birchtrees #basketryassociation

Willow even makes snow better. 😊
@karen_lawrence_basketry #willow #notasnowfan

Sending this back to its owner today… or maybe tomorrow if the snow puts me off.

It was made in Sweden about 40-50 years ago and brought to the UK by the owners mother. The last 4 pictures show the damage. I’ve put on a new handle and pegged it with willow, replaced the broken and missing weaving on the base and sides. I also reinforced the base sticks and wrapped them. Hopefully there will be plenty of life in this lovely basket for years to come. @karen_lawrence_basketry #willow #willowrepair #willowbasket #willowbasketrepair #swedishbasket #shoppingbasket #newleaseoflife #mendit #I❤️repairing #basketryassociation

Finally finished the new handles on my string bag. I crocheted a couple of rows around the top edge before attaching and plaiting long shoulder straps in a basket stitch. They took a while with such fine material but they are strong and the final plait is nice and flat which is comfortable on my shoulder. Looking forward to testing it out. 😊@karenlawrencebasketry #netting #knotting #string #nettingwithstring #stringbag #marketbag #zeroplastic #takeabag #basketryassociation

I was putting some laundry in my eldest sons room and noticed his peace lily looking rather woeful. So whilst he is out at work I’ve given it a haircut and made him a cordage bangle to help him remember to water it occasionally 😂
@karen_lawrence_basketry #cordage #string #making #loveyourhouseplants #peacelily

I finished this chunky square knotted bag very quickly. The lovely bright wooden handles were too exciting not to use immediately. 😊@karenlawrencebasketrt #knotting #netting #knottedbag #macramebag #marketbag #zeroplastic #noplastic #takeabag #rememberabag #squareknot #macrame #homemade #madeinsuffolk #craft #basketryassociation

Just finished this large rectangular log basket. It was a pleasure to work on something this size. It smells so good. 😊

I spent some time at the weekend messing about with knotting again. Remember my string market bag? I decided the willow hoop handles were a little too rustic for me. They also made the length of the bag annoying, it was too long to carry at your side once full. So I’ve taken those off and am replacing them with a longer shoulder strap made using the basket stitch plait. That is the one 2nd from the left in the photo. It gives a nice flat, strong plait without too much give. I’ll post a photo of the finished thing later this week.

I also ordered some pre made wooden handles and am working on another chunky knotted bag. More about that later in the week.