Wyldwood Willow
Welcome to Wyldwood Willow.
Wyldwood Willow is a small business that was established in 2000. My aim is to re-educate people in the versatility and sustainability of this natural craft which i do by running and teaching workshops throughout the year. I keep in stock many types of baskets that i make during the year to provide the customer with a natural and beautiful handmade product.
February 2010
Last year was probably my busiest and most successful year yet. Looking back it seems to have flown by, I finished the living willow garden at Paddington Farm which incorporated a maze, tunnels, bowers, arches, domes and hurdle fencing last April and moved on to making baskets to sell. May came and summer events started with Wild Heart and Sun Rise both of which I ran basket making workshops at. Last year I ran workshops at more festivals than I had before and was amazed at the amount of time, effort and work that goes into setting up and running them. This effort was worth it although I finished the summer reeling with exhaustion! In between festivals I was commissioned to make many things from two huge square baskets, 3ft x 3ft x 1ft deep, as under-bed storage in a shepherd’s hut, willow flowers, coffins, dog baskets and shopping trolleys not to mention a set of 6 Jacobean chairs to reseat with rush. It all kept me out of trouble. I also tried my hand at sculpting and made a willow horse.
One of the things that has given me much satisfaction has been to share my skills with my daughter Zennor who has begun making and selling her own baskets at the age of eleven. It is fun to sit with her and watch a pile of sticks grow into a creative basket and see the look of pleasure and concentration on her face. (We won’t mention the scowls and throwing a basket across the room)!
Just before Christmas, Newport City Council in Monmouthshire gave me some living willow projects to carry out with primary schools in an around Newport. This was brilliant fun and with the help of my partner Bart and the children we have planted and created some wonderful spaces in the school.
Looking forward into 2010 I am still finishing the primary school projects in Wales. I have been asked to give a willow dome a haircut at Baltonsborough Primary School in Somerset. I am also making hurdles for the Carymoor Environmental Centre in Castle Cary – where we are having a willow open day on March 20th, I will be demonstrating basket-making at the Rural Life Museum in Glastonbury on February 19th and teaching for a week at the Sustainability Centre in Hampshire in May. For more details please email or phone me.
On rainy days I am trying to fit in updates to the website!
Compiling a leaflet for maintaining living willow and rush seating another six chairs for a restaurant in Padstow in Cornwall. The summer – when it eventually gets here – looking out at yet more snow falling from the sky! will see me making more baskets and running workshops at festivals again although this year will hopefully see me doing more localised events in the South West and South Wales and spending more time with Bart in his woods and maintaining the willow we have planted. I also hope to run more private workshops. More details to follow.
Manda
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