We recently had the pleasure of hosting local fibre artist Meg Viney for a Twig Basket Weaving workshop at Leongatha Library. It was a fantastic opportunity for our adult group program to explore the art of basket weaving with a contemporary twist, using locally sourced natural plant fibres.
We used a combination of dried raffia, hand-dyed with blackberries, turmeric and indigo plants, and Kniphofia (red hot poker) leaves that had been soaked overnight to strip and weave between a handful of birch twigs or cane that had also been soaked to keep it somewhat flexible. We also had strips of hand-dyed fabric, eucalyptus twigs and branches, jute cords, and various threads available to weave in. Meg showed us how to twine leaves and grasses to create a strong string, and everyone did such a marvellous job!
We also had a display of basketry and natural dye books available for participants to check out if they wished, and several were taken home by very enthusiastic patrons. One pair was particularly interested in natural dyeing experiments, and we are looking forward to hearing about their progress!
In addition to our weaving materials, programs officer Kate brought along some examples of weaving from the Pacific Islands, mostly Tonga and the Solomons, and Meg brought examples of her other weaving projects and some of her pine-needle basketry. It was such a beautiful session of connecting and creating.
We couldn’t have been happier with how the workshop turned out and are really looking forward to the upcoming Winter school holiday session we have planned for upper primary/secondary school students. We hope to continue to bring the joy of weaving and natural fibres to our community and encourage people to explore the possibilities of using locally sourced materials in their creative endeavours.
We are so grateful to Meg Viney for sharing her skills and knowledge with us. We look forward to seeing what other natural fibres and materials we can experiment with in the future!
To view Meg’s work, please click the button below to visit her website.
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