ABOUT WHITE OAK...

  

Primarily a self-taught basketmaker, the first few years of my basketmaking was spent perfecting traditional techniques and searching for my own personal style. White Oak basketmaking is a craft that is slowly dying in America, and this is one more reason I am determined to continue this art or craft. Thus, an almost extinct American heritage will hopefully be preserved. My baskets are available in a variety of sizes and styles.


Basketmaking Tools
Whether it's 100% white oak or a combination of oak, cane or bark, there are designs to suit any taste or need. When each basket is completed, it is then signed and dated.

                         


Here are some of the tools that I use to make the baskets.  The shaving horse, drawknife, right sided   beveled hatchet, froe, mallet, leather pad, & knife are all used to make the white oak  splits.


A beautiful, functional basket will be created that can be a source of pride for its owner, and the owner's family for generations to come. With proper care, this basket will easily last from 70 to 100 years.

WHY NOT START A TRADITION!
YOU CAN PASS IT DOWN FROM
ONE GENERATION TO THE NEXT!

Processing White Oak Splits...

White oak forms the basis for all my baskets. Like the early American Pioneers, I go to the woods and carefully select the trees and then hand split the white oak logs to produce weaving splits that are one of the strongest and most durable basket materials found throughout the world.

Checking the Bark    When cane or bark is used in weaving, it is carefully sorted and sized. I believe both craftsmanship and materials are critical factors in making the finest baskets available.

All of my baskets are formed without use of molds, machines, or glue. Therefore, no two baskets, although they may look similar, will never be identical. Handles and rims are hand carved from the heartwood of the  white oak.

  

 

This tree is about 25 yrs. old.  It has a nice  straight grain and soft bark.   It will make a  good basket tree.

"Good basket timber is hard to find"

This is a common saying amongst white oak basketmakers.Checking the Bark

Just because it's a white oak tree does not necessarily mean that it possesses the desirable characteristics that are needed to make it a good basket tree. White Oak, while not as abundant as in years past, must still meet certain criteria before it can be selected for basket material.

Some examples of this stringent criteria are: the location and the type of soil it's growing in, bark texture (this will determine if the grain will be course, fine, soapy, or splittable), the growth rate (the slower the better), be free of knots and blemishes, have no twisted growth pattern, and the conditions of its natural surroundings.

Only the best White Oak that meets all criteria can be split into suitable  basket weaving materials. Hence, the common saying. These determining  factors can only be learned through hands  on experience.

Splitting a blank with a froe

 

 

  Once the tree is cut down, it is hauled out of the woods on the shoulder, then split into weaving materials with hand tools such as an axe, wedges, froe, mallet, knife and drawknife. 

 

 

 Smoothing splits with a knife

The splits are hand dyed by boiling natural materials such as roots, barks, leaves, and berries. Once the splits are dyed, they are then used to weave color and patterns into baskets.

 

 

Working on the shaving horse with a drawknife These are all assurances of creative hand-craftsmanship.  No machine or splintknives are used to make the weaving splits. I am fond of saying that material preparation is the Work
and the Basket is the Reward.

     
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