Repairing an Antique Basket

A friend gave me a basket a while back that needed repairs to its base and handle, where the reed had become brittle with age and broken in a few places. It was an antique Norwegian basket that had originally belonged to her grandmother, and she asked if I would be able to repair it.

Since the basket was woven with a fairly standard size of reed (#2 round according to my measurements), I was able to stain some reed and weave small pieces alongside the old, broken stakes to secure the brittle areas. The patching was successful in strengthening the basket and is a bit more inconspicuous than the previous method of repair (an old shoelace woven in alongside the broken stakes). Take a look at the before-and-after photos to see the difference the repairs made! Hopefully they will help the basket survive so that many more generations will be able to appreciate its simple beauty.

Bottom (before)

Bottom (after)

Handle, left (before)

Handle, right (before)

Handle (after)