Tue, 22 Oct
|Lewes
Rush Mats and Back-pack
3 day course £320 Make this beautiful back pack, made from green rush. Suitable for beginners and improvers alike.
Time & Dates
22 Oct 2024, 10:00 – 24 Oct 2024, 16:00
Lewes, Lewes, UK
Overview
Tuesday 22nd - 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 23rd - 10am - 4pm
Thursday 24th - 10am - 4pm
Friday 25th - Free day
Saturday 26th - 12noon - Student Showcase at Lewes Basketry Festival
A 3-day course suitable for beginners and improvers. This beautiful backpack is made of rush from Somerset Levels. Rush is soft, supple and strong, making it an easy material to work with. It is not the same as reed (which is for thatching and is hollow and unbending). Rush stems are soft and spongy and their colours vary from golden-yellow to blue-green, giving a wonderful soft muted spectrum. With time, these colours will all fade to a more uniform soft cream.
Anita will teach the traditional check-weave technique by starting off with some rush coasters. Then you will learn to use this weave, along with pairing and waling, to create a strong form around a wooden mould. Finally, make rush cordage for hooks and ties; a really useful skill, as the plaited rush can be stitched to form all sorts of other baskets.
- Learn checkweave
- weave around a mould
- Learn pairing and waling weaves to strengthen and define the form.
- Make rush cordage and plaiting to create ties and loops.
Course Tutor: Anita Vozic
Anita fell in love with baskets when she was 9 years old “I am Hungarian and I have been to lots of countries where beautiful woven baskets are everywhere”. After graduating in 2013 from the City & Guilds course, Anita was apprenticed at John Lawler's antique restoration workshop. John Lawler is a second-generation Irish seat weaver and upholsterer based in North London and became Anita’s mentor in traditional upholstery. During her apprenticeship she also worked on traditional cane and rush chairs.
She now runs her own seat-weaving business repairing cane and rush chairs as well as wicker furniture.
What is included in my ticket?
Course fees include:
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Use of all tools & materials
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Entry to the Basketry Festival (26th Oct)
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A chance to exhibit at the Festival's Student Showcase (26th Oct)
Where can I stay?
If you need somewhere to stay in Lewes and cannot find anywhere, we maybe able to help you with rooms with locals. Just contact us using the form at the bottom of this page.
What if I have to cancel?
If you cancel your course having paid for it, we will try to fill your place from our waiting list. If we fill your place, then you will get a 90% refund of your fee. If we cannot fill your place then you will get no refund. If we need to cancel the course for any reason, you’ll receive a full refund.