EVENT DETAILS HERE!
Weave a traditional willow picnic basket by hand in this immersive 3-day workshop rooted in skill, heritage, and use.
Willow basketry is a craft built slowly—through repetition, patience and the steady conversation between hands and material. In this immersive 3-day willow workshop, you’ll weave a durable, beautifully functional picnic / gathering basket using the traditional European stake and strand method, a technique carried across generations by migrant ancestors and still trusted today.
Working with strong yet supple willow, you’ll create a compact version of a full pack basket, but small enough to manage comfortably, yet still crafted with strength and durability. These baskets are meant to be used: for harvesting food, carrying daily essentials, or heading out into the wilderness for a beautiful picnic! Your finished piece will be completed with your choice of a wrapped willow handle or soft leather straps.
Beloved Firefly friend and willow weaver Tyler Lavenburg, guides the process with care and attention, helping students move through the inevitable moments of challenge toward real skill and confidence. As your basket takes form, you’ll learn a variety of traditional weaves while developing an intuitive understanding of how willow bends, holds, and even breaks–such good metaphors for life.
Open to all experience levels, this class is ideal for anyone drawn to traditional handcraft, practical skill-building, and the quiet pride of making the things we need in our everyday lives.
You’ll Walk Away With:
A beautiful and unique handwoven picnic / gathering basket made start to finish by you
Knowledge of willow propagation, tending and sustainable harvesting techniques
Hands-on experience with a variety of traditional basket weaves
The skills and understanding to replicate the entire weaving process on your own
A deeper connection to an ancient craft rooted in European heritage
A renewed confidence and appreciation for what your hands can make and do
This class will be held outdoors on Friday, Saturday & Sunday, September 18-20, 2026, from 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm on Friday and 9:00 am – 5:00 pm on Saturday & Sunday, near Weaverville, NC.
