Pretty pine needle and sweetgrass basket with order colorful floral "Joy" pottery heart pendant and pottery base with blue flowers entitled "Joy".

The beautiful colorful flowers and the joyful arrival of spring was the inspiration for this basket...thus the name "Joy".

I made this basket using natural green Longleaf pine needles (which will eventually turn a lovely shade of brown), sweetgrass, yellow artificial sinew, olive green sea glass beads, a colorful floral heart-shaped "Joy" pottery pendant and a bright green with blue flowers pottery base. The beautiful pottery base was made by Pamela Zimmerman and the pretty pottery pendant was made by Sue Vandever.

This basket is approximately 4" tall x 2-3/4" round.

I learned how to make pine needle baskets in 1986 and have had a passion for this craft ever since. I use natural and dyed pine needles from Ponderosa, Torrey, White, Loblolly, Longleaf and a variety of other pine trees. Each basket takes many hours to complete and is carefully hand-stitched and coiled using waxed linen thread, raffia, artificial sinew, poly cord, wire and other things in a variety of colors and textures. I incorporate agate, a variety of woods, shells, pottery, ceramic and other artistic pieces in the bases of my baskets. Some are adorned with gemstones, beads and trinkets. I also use sweetgrass, lavender stems and other dried natural materials that add additional character to my baskets.

A bit of my spirit goes into each of my one-of-a-kind basket creations. Most tell a story about something memorable in my life. My baskets are both functional and decorative and are heirloom quality made to last for generations. I hope my baskets will provide some of the peace and order happiness they bring me as I am making them.

Enjoy!

To read more about my hand-crafted baskets and other items, visit my blog at https://www.giggybaskets.blogspot.com