Friday's Why In Design Series: part three - the appeal and history of American baskets, wicker and rattan
Why do we love wicker in our interiors?
Glen Senk & Keith Johnson's PA Dutch Colonial
grape collecting vintage basket from Champagne valley
"A tisket a tasket
a green and yellow basket"
My love for wicker and rattan
originated with these little Lightship Nantucket Baskets
I have been enamored with these precious Nantucket baskets since my early years when our family vacationed on the island of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard are sister islands just off the coast of Cape Cod. Many residences in New England keep these baskets throughout their interiors as both decoration and functionality. In addition, many proper Boston Brahmin ladies still carry them to market when shopping. Check out some other basket images on
my Basket Pinterest Board
grape collecting vintage basket from Champagne valley
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| pottery barn offers lovely wicker baskets |
a green and yellow basket"
photograph via stylemepretty.com
originated with these little Lightship Nantucket Baskets
I have been enamored with these precious Nantucket baskets since my early years when our family vacationed on the island of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts. Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard are sister islands just off the coast of Cape Cod. Many residences in New England keep these baskets throughout their interiors as both decoration and functionality. In addition, many proper Boston Brahmin ladies still carry them to market when shopping. Check out some other basket images on
my Basket Pinterest Board
an antique Nantucket Lightship Basket fetches quite
a price at auction
The History of the Nantucket Basket: Early settlers learned basket making from native Americans and the
tradition continued for years. During the whaling industry’s dwindling
days of the later 1800s, ships sailed farther away to the Pacific to hunt for whales, often returning with an exotic material called rattan. The whalers passed the long hours away on the ship by making baskets to earn extra income. The basket is woven in a mold of rattan (cane) with a wooden bottom. Rattan is a jungle plant similar to bamboo and in Nantucket became the main source for making baskets. Later, artisans crafted the baskets out of reed with wooden buttons and then hand carved whale bone for a special feature.
Chinoiserie hall table in our beach cottage
Mecox Gardens carries a beautiful basket collection made by a group of women weavers in India to help other impoverished women in the area. Using handspun dyed woven cotton, banana and
mesthea with leather these bags/baskets offer great storage solutions in a
stylish package. With leather handles
they are very sturdy and offered in classic blue and white colors. They are available online or in select shops.
with Easter just around the corner...
I need to start thinking about our Easter basket gifts.
Happy Nesting
XO Tamara
I need to start thinking about our Easter basket gifts.
XO Tamara
research sources:
