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Materials: Straw, or wild grasses, or herbals, water, spray bottle, towel, large
needle, binder twine, raffia, waxed linen, twine. Horn, or guide, (Can be PVC, or piece
of tubing) so the grasses can be kept at an equal coil width.
1. Dampen the straw with a spray bottle, and cover it in a towel to keep it moist. You may choose to use a piece of plastic PVC or like material to form a guide to regulate the thickness of your coils. The thickness is up to you. You may choose to use a binder reed or raffia, or waxed string, or binder of your choice. You may also use what is called a horn. Available from weaving supply sources.
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2. Gather a hand full of straw, clip off the seed heads, tamp them down and clip off
so the starting end is even. Insert the straw into your guide. Push the beginning
coil into the guide until about three inches protrude. Now reach the needle already
threaded with soaked binder reed, or doubled raffia, use twine or other materials
straight from the spool. Anchor the end of the binder and wrap several times
around the three inch length.
3. A skep is begun at the top and worked toward the bottom. Curve the three inch coil around on itself as tightly as possible, keeping the binder tight. When the coil overlaps, it is sewn to the strand beneath it. This is accomplished by poking the needle through the top quarter of that strand, then looping the binder around the tip coil and poking the needle again through the lower one. This is the single stitch you will repeat again and again. If you want your skep to have a handle, a loop of straw should be sewn on at this point.
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4. Skeps are generally dome-topped, so this must be taken into consideration from the very beginning. As the circle widens, make sure it takes on the shape of a shallow bowl. When the bowl has reached the diameter planned for the finished skep, start coiling the sides straight down.
5. Eventually, you will need to add more pieces of straw. Simply trim the heads off more straw and poke it into the horn (guide). Continue weaving and adding straw. When the binder runs out, tie on a new one and continue.
6. Keep coiling and stitching until the finished height has been reached. Some skeps have an entry and exit hole. Simply reverse your direction, go back and then reverse your direction again. This will form a hole, turning around and then back again a few times will leave a hole. Then continue to go all the way around at least two more times to form a secure base. Tie off the last binder and the skep is finished.
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Page Updated Mary 7, 1999