In August 1926, Olive D. Campbell, co-founder of the John C Campbell Folk School, wrote “If you could see our neighbors busily at work about the place, you would understand how we have become so soon well acquainted. …They…have gathered with us…on the porch…to hear what some passing guest could tell us; to discuss…our first co-operative association; to make plans for a community fair this fall…”.
The concept of neighbors gathering on the porch comes to life once again at Olive’s Porch in downtown Murphy, North Carolina. Olive’s Porch is a “Folk School experience … [which] features classroom space, a retail shop showcasing the work of Appalachian artists, and a studio space dedicated to the Artist in Residence program. Named after the Folk School’s co-founder Olive Dame Campbell, Olive’s Porch offers Community Workshops focused on traditional Appalachian crafts, music, dance, and community events and demonstrations designed for locals and visitors.” explains their website.
The community workshops offered by Olive’s Porch are a great addition to the options offered on the Folk School campus. Workshops are often taught by the same high-caliber instructors who teach at the Folk School. In the tradition of the Danish folkehøjskole, the “school for life” model upon which the Folk School is founded, instruction is non-competitive, “discussion and conversation, rather than reading and writing, are emphasized, and most instruction is hands-on.”
Olive’s Porch was opened in 2022 in the response to feedback from area residents requesting the Folk School offer alternative ways for them to engage with the School. Olive’s Porch workshops tend to be a shorter duration than the weeklong and weekend classes at the Folk School. The schedule varies but many workshops are held in the evenings and on weekends to better accommodate the schedules of the targeted audience.
This makes an Olive’s Porch workshop the perfect “add-on” activity when visiting the Folk School.
I’ve had the opportunity to attend two workshops at Olive’s Porch—both were great! The first one, Colorful Woven Bells with Mark Hendry, was held last year. The second one, Make a Pine Needle Basket with Pam Hermann, was conducted recently. I’d like to share that experience with you in today’s blog post.
The workshop was held on Saturday from 9:00 to 5:00. A small group of six eager students gathered in the Olive’s Porch classroom space. Our instructor, Pam Hermann, had a number of her gorgeous baskets on exhibit to demonstrate the possibilities of this traditional craft.
Here are a few more of Pam’s beautiful baskets photographed in natural light.
Naturally, as beginners we weren’t yet ready to take on such challenging designs, instead we focused our attention on making a charming little basket Pam calls the “Little Show Off”. Here’s my finished basket nestled into a pine tree—granted, the photo is a little misleading since we used Longleaf Pine needles not the local pine shown in the photo.
One of my key learnings from this session was the importance of sourcing and preparing the pine needles. The needles of the Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) are typically 9 to 18 inches long which makes them ideal for basketmaking. Dry pine needles are collected, ideally in the late summer/early fall, and washed. The pine needles are pliable enough to weave in their natural state but Pam recommended treating them with glycerin first. This treatment makes the needles more flexible, enhances their color, and preserves and protects them over time. Pam prepared pine needles for us in advance.
Also included in our supply kits was artificial sinew for stitching the pine needle coils. Traditionally, raffia from the palm trees of Madagascar would have been used but Pam recommends artificial sinew for its strength and longevity.
Pine needle baskets are made by coiling bundles of pine needles and stitching each coil to the previous one. The most difficult part of the process is getting started. But the wooden bases on our Little Show Off baskets simplified this step significantly. In this photo you can see Pam starting the first coil by tieing a bundle of pine needles to the wooden base.
Shown below is my basket with the first coil underway. The stitch we used, with one straight and one slanted line, is called the “wheat stitch”. The small copper tube you see on the pine needles is used as a gauge to keep the pine needle core a consistent thickness. It’s actually a copper crimp wire connector designed for electricians to connect copper wires. This is a brilliant alternative use! The idea is to refill the gauge with pine needles as they are run out.
Here’s my basket heading into the third row. At this stage, we learned to start shaping the profile of the basket by altering the angle of our stitches and coaxing the desired shape with our hands.
We continued coiling in this way for another 6 rows. This was definitely the most relaxing bit—we were able to fall into a calming rhythm of stitching the pine needle core in place while filling the gauge with pine needles. Then it was time to create the handle. We inserted a short piece of 20-gauge wire into the pine needle core to form the handle. Then we wrapped it with the sinew.
We stitched one more row of pine needle core around the basket. Then finished it off with a final row of stitches creating a pretty fern stitch along the top edge.
Shown below is my Little Show Off basket. It’s not perfect but I’m really pleased with how it turned out!
It’s easier to get a feel for the size of a basket with something in it—mine turned out to be about 2” high at the front, 4.5” from side to side and 3” from front to back. It would be the perfect size for holding a set of keys, a few pieces of favorite jewelry or some colorful, dried strawflowers.
In this photo, you can see how the wheat stitch creates a pretty spiral pattern around the sides of the basket.
And here’s a closer look at the fern stitch along the top edge.
Learning to make a pine needle basket with Pam and my fellow students was a great way to spend the day at Olive’s Porch. Special thanks to Pam Hermann for generously sharing your knowledge and patiently guiding us all to success!
Now, to bring this story full circle, here’s the pine needle basket I made at Olive’s Porch on the original Olive’s porch of the Farm House at the John C Campbell Folk School.
More Info
Olive’s Porch, a Folk School experience is located at 27 Peachtree Street, in downtown Murphy, North Carolina, a scant 10-minute drive from the John C Campbell Folk School. The location features classroom space, a retail shop showcasing the work of Appalachian artists, and a studio space dedicated to the Artist in Residence Program. See Olive’s Porch website for more information including a list of upcoming workshops and community events.
Pamela Hermann (formerly Talsky) is an award-winning basket artist and teacher. She has been making baskets for nearly 30 years starting with her first pine needle basket in 1994. She has traveled nationally and internationally to learn from traditional basket makers. Traveling to Alaska, for instance, to study with Haida master basket weaver Delores Churchill. As noted in Pam’s artist biography “She enjoys creating beautiful, functional vessels, discovering intercultural connections, and teaching and learning from other basket weavers.” Pam also teaches at the John C Campbell Folk School, Stowe Basketry Festival and other major basketmaking events. Check out Pam’s Instagram account at WeavingAbundance to learn more.
The John C Campbell Folk School, as described in the class catalog, “fosters a non-competitive learning environment where adults of all ages, skills and backgrounds learn from one another”. See the John C Campbell Folk School website for more info.
“John C. Campbell Folk School published a series of newsletters from 1926 to 1950. Written like a letter from the school’s director, the newsletter is a source of information about the classes and activities at the Folk School and their impact on the surrounding community.” These newsletters can be found in the “Craft Revival” collection on the Southern Appalachian Digital Collections.
I’m currently participating in a 6-week Work Study Program at the John C Campbell Folk School. This is my third visit to the Folk School where I’ve had the opportunity to take a variety of classes from leathercrafting to basketry to broom making to pottery to woodcarving. I’ve shared these experiences here on the blog—they are all listed on the FanningSparks’ About > Folk School category index.
Today’s Takeaways
1. Consider a visit to Olive’s Porch in Murphy, North Carolina to attend a workshop.
2. Consider “adding on” an Olive’s Porch workshop to your next visit to the Folk School.
3. Natural materials, such as the commonplace pine needle, can be coiled to make beautiful baskets.
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