Vine Time

It's Vine Time! Are you collecting?

Autumn is the time when vines are "ripe." They are finished with their summer burst of growth. Harvesting vines in the summer means they are full of moisture. It pays to let them dry a few days before weaving, because otherwise there is so much shrinkage. But this time of year, it is cut and weave, the vines are beginning to shut down for winter.

Hurricane Irene brought down a number of trees in the woods near my home, and almost all of them have a variety of vines clinging to them. Here i am carrying one of three bundles of vines i collected off a single downed tree. There was grapevine, wisteria, Carolina jasmine, porcelain vine, and Virginia creeper, all in one big tangle.

...and then i made baskets! Cornucopias are first and foremost now, since Thanksgiving is coming up! Check out my etsy shop Bazketmakr for what else i have been weaving!