Basket Weaving with Cattail

Making a basket with cattail leaves. This was my first attempt, but it looked like a basket, so I'm giving myself a pat on the back. I collected these in late September or early October, filmed it in November, and edited it in December. Such is my life right now.
See the Nancy Jacob's, the "Basket Master's" Videos on the first step weaving with reed: • Basket Weaving Video #...
And visit Lexie and Travel Small Live Big: / travelsmalllivebig
So the basics of what I did: I picked the greenest of the cattail leaves that I could and tried them on a wire shelf in the carport for 3 weeks before it started freezing at night (they definitely got hit with a few frosts). After that, I moved them inside for another three weeks. Ideally, I would have wrapped them in newspaper to protect them once they were dry.
The night before I was ready to weave, I wrapped them in a wet towel, but it wasn't wet enough. I added another wet towel and waited a few hours. Once they were softest, I wove my base, then used fibres from other leaves along the edges.
When it came to the sides, I turned the ends up and clipped the corners so I could weave while they were standing up. I started each row by folding the leave over a few inches from the end and wove both ends together. When I got back to where I started, I continued to follow the starting weave before cutting off the end.
When I finished the sides, I folded the little bits sticking up and tucked them into the weave of the basket.
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Film yourself reacting to a joke. Something like "what?" or "I don't know, why?" followed by a laugh or a groan or an eye-roll. See examples here: • Jokes for Nature Nerds
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Find me on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and other internet places through my about page: / @nerding4nature
#bushcraft #primitiveskills #basketweaving #thelastgrownupinthewoods #nerdingfornature
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Please watch: "Botanical Delights at the Vallarta Botanical Gardens" for some fascinating stuff on edible plants, Mexican history, and other very cool nature nerd facts.
• Botanical Delights at ...
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[@sarahhughes9137]

I’ve been looking for a cattail basket weaving video and happened upon yours. You made me smile. This video and your personality is so fun.

[@BeauSeverson]

The swamp troll comment had me smiling. Great video, definitely on my list of activities to try with my kids.

[@tightlippedsmiler]

Good job. I too love Whatevering it. It's called "primitive crafting" and it's HUGE in perfect areas of the country.

[@Nerding4Nature]

Whatevering it...what a perfect term. It's pretty much how I get through life. To get crafting as primitive as mine I imagine one would have to go wwwaaaaayyyy back. Homo erectus perhaps? ;)

[@BigCrazyOutdoorAdventures]

Thumbs up! That’s funny. “Swamp troll”. True about learning from your mistakes. Looked like fun. You made a basket! Congrats.

[@Nerding4Nature]

I could get used to being a swamp troll. At the very least, it beats being an internet troll.

[@Nancytoday]

I make cattail baskets around bottles, sometimes. Use the bottle as the mould and just weave the bottom, twine around the edge, and weave all the way up the bottle getting narrower with the neck and twine it and cut it off, so the stakes are just laying flat heading up towards the mouth of the bottle. The only thing your basket needs to make it perfect is one last step. Tighten everything. That is the whole difference between your basket and the perfect one you are imagining.

[@TheOfficialAuntieWoot]

🤩 That basket looks absolutely fabulous! It is an Excellent share of your amazing talent! 👌

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks :)

[@WyeExplorer]

I haven't visited for a while Carley - it's good to see you lurking about for basket material. I rarely try new things - I'm a bit safe really. But you almost got it here. I can appreciate just what it takes to make a good one. Sounds bad that - yours was great. Take care. Mark

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks Mark. No worries about not visiting. I haven't been making videos lately. Just when I think work is going to settle down, I pick up some more students.

[@WyeExplorer]

@@Nerding4Nature A pleasure Carley. At least you're being employed. That's gotta be a positive - see you in 2019 sometime...

[@SaraKo]

yess i love how you just jump in and go for it. learning by doing!

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thank you :)

[@pacificbushcraftandfirecra6358]

You should be "proud" of yourself!! I am proud of ya! Container/basket making is of the true essence of bushcrafting. A skill I have truly wanted to expand on and feel comfortable with. Great job with the whole process! As I am typing this, the mailman just handed me a letter from CARLEY!!! Awesome!! TLGW Sticker for me!! Yeeeeeee! Thanks so much Carley... I will send you my stickers! Have a great weekend and be well!

[@Nerding4Nature]

Yay! They made it! The mailman must have known what you were doing, lol.

[@HaphazardHomestead]

Nice basket -- it looks like it will hold something, so it's a success, for sure! I've just made placemats from cattail reeds. That was enough of a challenge. I've also made a mess, but that doesn't really count. ; )

[@Nerding4Nature]

The more mess you made, the harder you worked, right :)

[@HappyTrailsHiking]

Swamp Troll! Love it! I am bad to getting around to things. Ha! I will always pick to watch your channel instead of a "Master"! The corner idea seemed like a good one! That is great for a first try! Thanks for letting us watch and sharing your thoughts!

[@HappyTrailsHiking]

Lexie is AMAZING!

[@TravelSmallLiveBig]

Ha ha ~ I totally forgot I had sent this to Carley! They are both amazing :)

[@suzyott2006]

You did an awesome job. I love your tutorial.

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thank you so much!

[@scottrosenberger8696]

Great first effort! I plan to try this in the future, and you made it look easier than some others. Thank you!

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks! Have fun with your attempt :)

[@KrizAkoni]

Hey, that was fun!

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks Kriz!

[@northeasthardytropicals541]

Wow this looks great 👍🏼

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thank. you :)

[@TravelSmallLiveBig]

So yeah, I was saving this one to watch when husband was with me (you make him laugh) and I pulled it up and honestly, I was enjoying the Ninja Turtle shirt and the basket weaving (seriously, as this is something I would try) and Jim was enjoying too, then suddenly there was our dog listening (then snoring) to your joke! You just made our evening! And we needed this tonight as he was battling boat maintenance headaches... awww my sweet dog. Thanks for the promo!!!

[@Nerding4Nature]

I'm glad you found it :D I was going to send it to you, but I have the attention span of a juvenile Columbian ground squirrel (which is, to say, short).

[@brianspencer4220]

Love your forthright honesty & use of the technical terms like "ikky" & 'bendier'. Part of the fun is going where you've never gone before. Well done! Thanks Brian 78

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks Brian. Technical terminology is always very important for any project :D

[@TheOtterOutdoorsman]

This was a fantastic tail you weaved! It's cool seeing the basket come to life. Good Job

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks Nate!

[@RangerKooky]

Ty for the shares have a good day

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks for stopping by Koooky

[@theidahonian5321]

The internet becomes so much more interesting when you post a video to it Carly! 🤙🏻

[@Nerding4Nature]

Aww shucks, thanks :D

[@truenorthliving9557]

Great job Carley

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks Norm!

[@shovelhead8]

I never thought I would be watching a basket weaving video. Thank you for the lesson, Carley

[@Nerding4Nature]

Your welcome. Thanks fo watching :)

[@glendalivingston6236]

You rock! Yes, your basket was a bit flimsy (mine have been too) but I love your honest to goodness approach to showing folks what to do and not do!

[@cagedraptor]

a wonderful and useful item. Great job, especially for a first try. the best thing about beginning something you have never done before is you learn something new and can continue to do it and improve.

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thank you :)

[@CampfireSteveOutdoors]

Always an entertaining delivery. Also loved the "dad joke". I'm feeling inspired to weave some palm fronds now.

[@Nerding4Nature]

Please do, and make sure you film it :)

[@TimWatsonOutdoors]

Two thumbs up for the TMNT shirt. :D

[@Nerding4Nature]

I was hoping someone would appreciate that :)

[@Scoutforlife]

Definately lookin basketesque. I love these projects,often fooling around with em. Swamp trolling,what fun.

[@Nerding4Nature]

I need to fool around with 'em more, I think. Being able to make things os never a bad idea...unless it's a nuclear bomb or something, but I don't think I can make that out of things I can find around here.

[@RickTOutdoorAdventure1969]

Great film 🖒☺

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks Rick!

[@TheGeoScholar]

I knew that cattails could be eaten. However, I never thought about using them for making baskets.

[@Nerding4Nature]

You should give it a try one day. It was a fun little project.

[@KevinsAdventures]

Cool video Carley and I love how you just dive right in... that's my style :) The only knowledge I have for basket weaving is this video, ha!

[@Nerding4Nature]

Lol. Then you know everything you need to make something that resembles a basket :)

[@pamelagonzalez9567]

Hey, that's was pretty good being your first-time you do deserve that pat on the back :) fun video thanks :)

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks. It was a fun little project.

[@AdventureRyan]

Awesome stuff! I am SOOO bad at weaving stuff. Thanks for making this video--you outlined everything very well. I might actually have a shot at it now--ha!

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks Ryan.

[@BackpackerDiaries]

Nicely done Carley. I would be inclined to add a handle across the middle but that would require longer reinforced cat tails I suppose.

[@Nerding4Nature]

Backpacker Diaries Thanks Amos. A handle would definitely be a handy addition. I think if I pulled apart the fitness and twisted them together I might come up with something functional. Next time, perhaps.

[@RhondaGraceExploring]

That's was fun. A first basket. 👍

[@smetlogik]

Good to see a video from you. I gotta say, you do the most unique and random things on this channel. I guarantee you my basket would have resembled cattails in a ball. lol. Lexi stole the show.

[@Nerding4Nature]

Nah, your basket would be beautiful Rob. If it looked like a ball, we'd just have to call it artistic flare :D

[@rileybrown5094]

I gathered some cattails on the side of the highway in a ditch as well and was thinking the same thing 😅

[@Nerding4Nature]

Haha! swamp creatures unite!

[@AlbertaBushcrafter]

Great video, Carly! That basket didn’t turn out badly at all for a first try. Love the “swamp troll” comment too!

[@Nerding4Nature]

It was fun. I’ll have to give it another go this year.

[@fisheyeguy]

I think this is excellent and very interesting. You did great I think.

[@isobelle-hepsyjones3300]

Awsome video in definitely gonna give this a go!

[@Nerding4Nature]

You should. It was a fun project.

[@BadgerBotherer1]

Nice basket. You did a good job!

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks :)

[@FlannelAcres]

Hey, that turned out great! I love the color and the rustic-ness of it. Maybe I'll try one sometime. Thanks for the inspiration! :-)

[@Nerding4Nature]

I might try to collect them earlier next time to avoid the brown spots, but I like the rustic green colour too.

[@LifewithKenandJane]

Bravo! You did it! I no Lexi . Great video and fun. I will be back. Thank you. Ken and Jane... wheeeee

[@Nerding4Nature]

Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for stopping by :)

[@BushCraftBums]

Awesome Video! Thanks for sharing! Have a Blessed day!

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks for stopping by :) You have a great day too.

[@cabinlife2347]

Thanks for sharing your learning experience. :) Maybe this is a project we can try this summer. Maureen

[@Nerding4Nature]

Give it a try. It was sort of fun. I'll have to give it another try this summer.

[@hangswithraccoons]

Pretty cool vid... Never thought of the mold thing. ✌️

[@Nerding4Nature]

I am only guessing about the reason, but it seems to make sense.

[@rhysmeyrick615]

❤️

[@Chapineb]

Did you keep the basket? If you did, how did it turn out after drying some more?

[@Nerding4Nature]

It's still around. The colour has changed but it's still intact and survived a year in an elementary classroom.

[@NeedsMoreSubs]

three cheers for Barium

[@Nerding4Nature]

Haha. Thanks :)

[@JayWandersOut]

Pretty nice actually. I thought after so long the leaves would have been too brittle to weave but I know nothing about cattails.

[@Nerding4Nature]

That was the point of leaving them soaking in towels. It softened them up quite a bit. They were still a bit brittle though.

[@knate44]

Is there anything you can't do with cat-tails?

[@Nerding4Nature]

I don't think so, lol.

[@BluecollarBackcountry]

Nice try for a lurking swamp troll. Hahaha I'm sure that's not easy to master.

[@Nerding4Nature]

Swamp trolling? That's easy. Basket making is a bit tougher ;P

[@HikeCamp]

😎👌

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks for stopping by!

[@thoseaglestone9372]

That's what she said.

[@richardlove4287]

Subbed..

[@acteon-nature-wildlife4507]

Hello subscriber beautiful chain welcome home Actéon Nature France

[@Nerding4Nature]

Thanks and welcome :)

[@spijkerpoes]

Niiice! Is it waterproof? The advantage of looking at weaving on your channel is that you are goofy, weird and charming.. and good at pond trolling, - you could get away with pretending to be Dutch! ..nice old style grownup in the wood vid, thanks..

[@Nerding4Nature]

I couldn't possibly get away with being Dutch. I can only speak 1 1/2 languages :D

[@Nerding4Nature]

And no, it's nowhere near waterproof.

[@spijkerpoes]

@@Nerding4Nature oh pity.. ..being dutch mostly means cursing and goofing and having no problem with talking about death, sex, pain, money, loss, poo and all the organs associated with it. The harsh sounding language isn't that important. You'll manage fine! Hope to see more of your experiments this new year.

[@Nerding4Nature]

Well, I can do that other stuff :D

[@JessmanChicken86]

there are cat tails on my way to work. when i pass them, i think of you. #swamptroll

[@anthonys808channel7]

I'm guessing that you're a beginner and weaving and that's totally fine because your basket will never look beautiful when you're a beginner because mine basket looked like crap also when I was a beginner. Since I've practiced and practiced and practice for a long time, I've been practicing for at least about 3 or 4 years and finally I got the hang of it. I know how to weave baskets and mats But not hats yet. I'm not a complete expert just yet. Lol almost, but I'm pretty good at it so far i think. Finding videos on how to weave certain things is very hard because I had to teach myself how to weave because I couldn't find anybody to teach me and the youtube video's we're just somewhat helpful but not all the way and so I was left hanging trying to guess about how I should weave my baskets and mats and one day God gave me the knowledge and it snapped into place and I said okay God I'm going to trust you and there I made some baskets and mats. It was so amazing I was so happy that I learned how to make it. I would love to make some videos on how to weave some baskets. The way you wove a basket is one of the ways to leave them excluding your first time being messy because everybody goes through that phase. So you're not the only one. Another way to weave the basket is to weave the leaves where the basket will look like the leaves are crossing each other diagonally instead of horizontally and vertically. I do have to talk and you're more than welcome to contact me there if you want to learn how to weave because I think I'm pretty good enough at it to where I can teach people how to weave since I've been making some really beautiful baskets and mats

[@usernick8928]

Not bad at all, but I bet your next one will be better!

[@Nerding4Nature]

I hope so :D

[@justletmetravel]

Stopping by for a visit however the wifi is not that great....ok....it is terrible WIFI ---so bad we cannot watch videos due to the chop chop of the connection..to be honest we are letting the video play so you can get watch time credit although....we are not totally sure it is working? if you could reply so we know you got the comment then we at least know the comment made it to you and hopefully the thumbs up and watch time will go through also? ..we want you to know we are here to support you and your channel as best we can and as often as we can however as we travel from place to place we realize it is a real struggle to keep up.....with intermittent WIFI....... With all of that being said if you leave a comment for us on one of our videos WE WILL do the same for you as soon as can. We are sure you appreciate the support as much as we do and just wanted to let you know in case you have noticed we are not around as much as others may be. We are about three months behind on our videos as far as the video goes and... Vegas will be our next video.... but as far as our current location we are in Del Mar CA and we will be headed through the Northern US this summer as one of our subs we want to give you an idea when you see the video verse when it was really taken....almost impossible to get the videos uploaded due to the wifi issues but we are doing what we can....few more challenges than we expected but such is life. Sorry for the long post just wanted to get that out there. Also please make sure we are on your list of folks signed up for your channel we have found some channels we signed up to are not listed...not sure if that is because of poor wifi when we signed up or YT having issues??

[@Nerding4Nature]

Hi, you ended up in my spam folder, so I'm guessing it didn't read it as a full view. Thanks for the effort though. I'm, waaayyy behind too. I'm working in a few projects outside of KZbin. I'll have to pay your channel a visit sometime soon (when it's not past my bedtime, lol).