Artown: Garlic Basket - Volunteers needed to help make the starts

Written By Great Basin Basketmakers

New member, Leah Boe made her first ever basket with Sue Ann last Thursday. This is the Garlic Basket we are scheduled to make with the general public during Artown on July 16,2026 from 11-3:30 at the Sparks Masonic building. It was a good session, since they realized that the start of the basket with sixteen spokes was a challenge for beginners.

With the limited time for the event, it was suggested that we make the starts for the people attending. We will be scheduling a work session for members to help make the spider starts--laying out the sixteen spokes, then twining three rows. The general public can then complete the weaving. As we all know, the start is the hardest part.

Thank you, Sue Ann and Leah for testing out the teaching and learning experience before our Artown event. It will help create a more successful atmosphere for new potential weavers.

To volunteer to help make starts, or to RSVP for our July 16th Artown Garlic Basket Workshop, email gbbreno@gmail.com.

Great Basin Basketmakers

The Great Basin Basketmakers (GBB) is a guild, created 39 years ago, united by a shared passion for the art of basketry —from time-honored traditional techniques to bold contemporary designs. Our mission is to make baskets, deepen our craft, and pass the art of basketry on to others. All skill levels welcome. It all started with a simple search for honeysuckle. In 1986, Mary Lee Fulkerson placed a small ad in a local newspaper hoping to find a source of the vine for her basket work. The response was immediate: fellow makers Nadine Tuttle, Diane Schaub, Kathy Ralston, Jeanne McClard, and Dora Taylor answered the call. A slide show at the Reno-Sparks YWCA in January 1987 brought everyone together — and Great Basin Basketmakers was born.

https://www.greatbasinbasketmakers.org
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