Workshop Dates March-July 2026

Saturday 28th March,9.30am-4.30pm Rush Baskets & Mats £120 per person Suitable for beginners & intermediates.1 Place available.

Weave a place mat,small basket or pocket on or off a mould in fine or coarse Cambridgeshire grown rush. This is a great way to experience weaving with a beautiful vernacular material and learn several basic basketry techniques. A mindful experience in a calm atmosphere focusing gently on the material how it behaves and what you can create, rather than volume.

Friday 17th-Saturday 18th April 2026,9.30am-4.30pm Rush Twill Weave Tote with leather handles £240 per person Suitable for those with some experience of Basketmaking.

Weave a really useful and attractive basket with coarse Cambridgeshire rushes harvested in the Summer of 2025. You will learn how to prepare materials, plan your basket, twill weave the base on a template,tie the base to a wooden mould,pairing weave, twill the sides, weave a strong border, attach leather strap handles.

Monday 27th-Tuesday 28th April, 9.30am-4.30pm Rush Clutch Basket £240 per person Suitable for the more experienced Basketmaker.

A small clutch basket made upon a mould with twining techniques to give a textured finish. The envelope lid that folds over to sit beneath a fine plait means you will grasp how to turn on various stakes to shape the triangle. There will be other leaves available to add another texture and colour contrasting beautifully with the rush.

Friday 1st-Saturday 2nd May, 9.30am-4.30pm Oval Willow Garden Basket £240 per person Suitable for beginners and more experienced basketmakers.

Weaving with homegrown willows and Somerset willow there are 2 approaches to create the Oval base;a Catalan base for beginners and a Continental style for more experienced makers. Fine weavers give the opportunity to explore a variety of weaves such as French Rand, English Rand, 2 Rod slew and packing to increase material in the handle area. Traditional and durable rod borders to complete the basket top and then how to add the central handle. A certain level of strength is needed for this 2 day workshop.

Saturday 9th May Willow swallows and swifts workshop at Ely Museum, book direct with the museum.

Friday 15th-Saturday 16th May, 9.30am-4.30pm Rush & Willow Arc Basket £240 Suitable for beginners and more experienced makers.

A hybrid Frame basket with a willow handle bow lashed to a horizontal rod about which soft Rushes are woven to create a striking hand held basket.Covering many basketry techniques in two contrasting materials.Beginners will work on a smaller scale to allow time to complete the baskets in two days. Three sizes of frame will be available to choose from.Twining techniques and Trac borders will allow for each maker to create richly textured surface. A useful basket for foraging as well as for a handbag, that can be stored on a wall because of its flatter form.

Friday 22nd-Saturday 23rd May, 9.30am-4.30pm, Willow Log Basket £240 per person Suitable for beginners and more experienced weavers

A two day course learning to make a round willow log basket. Depending on levels of strength and experience a raised border creates handle spaces or double twisted rod handles can be practised. Various side weaves such as 2 rod slew, French or English Rand, 3 rod waling weave and a paired split stick continental base. This course requires a good deal of physical strength as you will be handling 6/7 foots for side stakes and the scale means weavers will be 4/5 foots. The hard work will be worth it as you will leave with a very functional basket.

Saturday 20th June,9.30am-4.30pm Willow Shoulder Basket £120 per person (1 place available) Suitable for beginners and those with a little more Basketmaking experience.Full -please email if you would like to join a waiting list or be notified of a repeat of this workshop.

Weave a very practical and attractive basket that can be worn over the shoulder on a long fabric or leather strap. Working with fine willows grown by Nadine as well as Somerset grown white willow. Weaving on a preformed narrow oval hoop for a base, exploring a variety of traditional weaves such as 3 rod waling, English randing,French randing and slewing.

Monday 14th-Wednesday 16th September, 9.30am-4.30pm, Square lidded basket in Cambridgeshire rush taught at The Old Brewery Studios, King’s Cliffe for Sue Kirk Willow Baskets please book direct with Sue there are £320 2 places left currently suekirkwillowbaskets@outlook.com

Monday 12th-Thursday 15th October, 9.30am-4.30pm, Autumn School, Rush Docky Bag £450 Suitable for those with some Basketmaking experience 1 Place available

For Autumn School 2026 dive into the rush world of Fen dwellers of the 1800’s and plait yourself a Docky Bag. Long lengths of 7 end plait are stitched together with a mattress stitch that hides the hemp cord and pulls the two edges of plait into one another. Starting at the base then spiralling up to the top rim, making a lid from two other lengths of plait stitched about one another.Finally stitching leather handles to the main body of the basket that thread through slots in the lid to make a historical basket very functional and appropriate for modern living. There is a very comprehensive handout that accompanies the teaching, a useful reference document if you wish to make more after the course.

More courses & dates coming soon……….watch this space.

If you are interested in arranging a private workshop with a specific focus be it materials or techniques please do email Nadine at elybasketmaker@gmail.com to discuss dates, projects and cost. I also offer mentoring days for those who may be at a sticking point or crossroads in their Basketmaking practice.

Workshops will take place on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays with the occasional Saturday or Sunday.

Costs for a Full Day £120 and this includes materials and tea, coffee and biscuits, bring your own packed lunch if attending a full day. Full days start at 9.30am and finish at 4.30pm.

The class numbers are kept small so each participant has generous contact time in a relaxed mindful atmosphere.

The studio is a safe space and inappropriate language and behaviour will not be tolerated.Nadine reserves the right to ask participants to leave if unreasonable actions or language are displayed.

Booking & Cancellations

Email me Nadine at elybasketmaker@gmail.com to arrange a date and receive payment details. All workshops have to be paid for in full, two weeks prior to the class date to allow for material preparation. If you have to cancel your workshop for whatever reason, I have to adopt the following approach as lots of preparation happens prior to every session, and non-attendance results in wasted materials.

In the first instance a new date at a mutually convenient time will be offered.

A full refund will be given if the place can be filled by another participant if you can no longer attend BUT this has to be with two full weeks notice.

If the workshop is cancelled within 48 hours of the date only 25% of the booking cost will be refunded to cover administration time and material wastage.

If a participant cancels within 24 hours of the date no refund can be given.

Health & Safety

Sometimes accidents happen and this usually is through loss of concentration or too much haste. I will instruct participants in safe handling, use and storage of tools and materials to reduce the chance of an accident. Every workshop begins with health and safety and house keeping to ensure everyone is informed of possible issues and how to avoid them. I do not provide safety spectacles but participants are welcome to bring their own. Participants are encouraged to wash their hands well before eating and there are suitable facilities provided.

Because the materials being woven in workshops is usually a natural plant they may need a little wiping over before use, especially where the Rush is concerned. It grows in flowing water and likes to grow in the reed swamp margins of a waterway. This means it can be silty at the thicker butt ends and so wearing old clothes or coveralls or aprons is encouraged. On very rare occasions participants may react to the mould spores on the Rush because it grows in water. If you have allergies such as hay fever or are asthmatic bring antihistamines and inhalers in case you have a reaction. The regular washing of hands and avoiding touching your face is encouraged to reduce the likelihood of a reaction.

The materials themselves can be up to 2-3 metres long and present as trip hazards so careful, respectful and considerate handling of willow and rush is really important. Even short off cuts of willow make for a rolling hazard if stood upon so working in an organised manner keeping off cuts in buckets or baskets is very sensible. I know this from experience and have unintentionally roller skated onto my backside, so for warned is for armed!