Autumn workshops!

I am still in Hungary, enjoying the last days of my holidays, but I have been busy organizing the autumn basket making workshops in the UK as well :)

Here are the dates and places for the courses I am planning; if there is an interest, I would hold more seasonal workshops focusing on Christmas decorations (wreath, willow Christmas-tree, etc).

Saturday, 10th, November, EYNSHAM, TOLKIEN ROOM (10 am- 4 pm)
Saturday, 24th, Noveber, EcoHouse, Leicester (10 am-4 pm) WILLOW CHRISTMAS DECORATION!

Should you be interested in any of the above workshops, please send me a note to borbalahidvegi@gmail.com

Bird feeder, anyone?

It's been a time since I made one of these, but with the autumn coming I thought sooner or later the bird feeders will come handy...
To build the feeder, I used professional American willow which had been soaking for 3 days prior to use.
Although the weaving I used is pretty simple (basically an in-and-out step) it was difficult to make the feeder due to its tightness and size.
If there is an interest, I might be doing a one day workshop focusing on bird feeders this autumn/winter.

Back in Hungary

I am currently enjoying my holidays in Hungary, but will be back to the UK in October. I have started to arrange a couple of basket making workshops for the autumn-winter period; dates and locations will be posted soon.
This picture was taken on the river Danube (close to the historical town of Esztergom) where we spent a pleasurable weekend canoeing.

Salcey forest

Yesterday Akos had a day off, so we decided it was time for another minibreak, possibly the last one before I have to go home to Hungary...
This time we wanted to go Salcey forest, a lovely green paradise just next to Northampton. The whole idea was born when I picked up one of the free tourist brochures at the local library and saw a picture of the so called "tree top way"...I was immediately hooked.
The wooden pathway, built about 15 meters high, was even more impressive in real; here are two of my favourite pictures taken there.

River Leam

Last week we took a day off and went to Leamington Spa for some canoeing.
The weather was gorgeous, just perfect for such adventures, the newly bought rubber boat proved to be a great buy, so nothing could spoil our perfect day.
This is one of my favourite pictures I took while rowing.

Workshop in Daventry

As most of the people interested in basket making signed up for my mail list from the Northampton area, I decided to organize a workshop that is conveniently close to their home.

I have been struggling to find a suitable (and affordable) place in Northampton, but I finally managed to book a room a 20 minutes drive away in Daventry.

The Daventry basket making workshop will be held on 7th, July between 10 am - 4 pm.

The course is designed for complete beginners, however I am welcoming second timers who can try their hands on something new this time (an oval based basket, perhaps?) 

On this course I am able to tutor 8 persons so please book your

place to make sure you don’t miss it!

Come and learn this beautiful ancient craft with me and go home with a

finished rustic basket!

For further details and to book your place please contact Borbala at:

borbalahidvegi@gmail.com

Booking is on a first come first served basis.

Beware! Basketmaking is highly addictive!

EcoHouse follow up

So my first (but hopefully not last) workshop at the EcoHouse in Leicester was over yesterday afternoon.
I felt lucky again to have such enthusiastic, good humoured people attending the workshop; everybody went home with a finished, medium sized wicker basket and the basic knowledge to be able to start making a second one!
The EcoHouse is an amazing place with lots of interesting activities going on; it is definitely worth a visit if you live in the area and are interested in organic gardening, recycling and other green activities!
I am definitely planning to have a second workshop here, and next time we might be able to work in the garden if the weather is nice.
Although we used mainly grown buff willow on the course, I made sure we had some colorful green willow and red dogwood to make the baskets a bit more colorful; this is Monica, preparing the dogwood sticks for weaving. The best time to harvest your own material is between late November and early March, but you can still collect dogwood in the summer if you don't mind getting rid of the leaves.