If you landed here, you must be looking for some bamboo baskets for your table. But how do you make them? what materials are used in making bamboo baskets? Where do we use these baskets and how do we organize them? All answers at one page. First, we should get some details about bamboo baskets.
People use to gather bamboo poles and tur them into aesthetic items like baskets, mugs, pans and boxes. They are a good alternate of plastic and also eco friendly. You can style your entire home with them. Moreover, Furniture, table, baskets, decorative and storage accessories all are possible. You just need an experienced hand and you can be a master too. Another benefit of bamboo products is, you can totally DIY all your stuff in minimum budget.
All About Bamboo Tree
A versatile and qualified wood plant from forest is Bamboo. You must have heard of it many times. It grows in tropical and subtropical climates on all type of lands. It means it can grow all around the world. From ancient times, trees’ thin skin and plant leaves were meant to be used in home decoration and daily used items.
Baskets were also in tend but from bamboo poles and thin strips it was initiated from China & Japan. Now you can observe this world wide. Some other famous bamboo based crafts and products are briefly described below.
Bamboo Products
Toothbrush & Bamboo Bottles
People use to make these toothbrush to go more natural and avoid plastics. These are as functionals as other plastic brushes are, moreover, they save our environment too! To replace plastic bottles, bamboo bottles were designed to maintain sustainability.
Bamboo Cutlery, Shelves & Didgeridoo
Spoon, forks, chopsticks, were there to get benefits like recycling. These products are re use able and biodegradable. Shelves are made from organic bamboo wood, that is also known as Panda friendly. From many years didgeridoo were used by cutlers and chefs to go green.
Bedsheets, Towels, Cane Mats
Textile industries are also designing with bamboo to get more friendly with nature. They are making it with raw and treated bamboo both. Paper, sheets, paper towels and other products like these to reuse them efficiently. Cane mats are made from bamboo straws, and are used to sit comfortably.
straws, Combs, Lampshades
To avoid plastic damages and making environment more safe, these are introduced with bamboo poles. One of the best comb used in world is made from bamboo pole. It’s Anti static property makes it unique to use. Specially designed for lamps.
Cables, Utility & Baskets
These are made from mechanically processed bamboo fiber to avoid fungal properties. general used items like cups, straws and comb. the main item of bamboo poles, used for storage.
Material Needed For Bamboo Baskets
Bamboo Splints, Rattan
Let’s get to the main discussion, i.e. What materials are used in making bamboo baskets. you will need some fresh bamboo sticks to weave them for making a basket. Rattan is to provide extra strength to the basket, you can use these flexible weave strips.
Binding Clips, Dye, Sealers
Some clips made of thin rope should be there to bind open points together. To add some color, your favorite dye has to be incorporate here. Moreover, to prevent your basket from leaking, or insect attacking some sealer is necessary.
Pruning Shears, Twine, Scissors
A saw should be there to cut the bamboo pole into splints. You would need a twine to make some handles, join points and to add some shape. You would need a pair of fine scissors to cut any extra splint, twine and long strip.
Procedure
Now, you gathered all the necessary items to make a basket, let’s move further in the process of making one. For a basket, you should make a bamboo splint very thin and then make it soft. This process is know as weaving process. Although, in the market there are many weaved ropes, rattans are available to help a beginner, but if you know how to do it, you should do it.
Similarly, Many of the baskets are and other bamboo crafts are often prepared from raw material, mechanically prepared fiber, rattan and reed. All of them are necessary for different items.
Prepare The Bamboo Pole For Basket Making
Choose & Cut Bamboo Pole
Materials that are used in making bamboo baskets need to be accurate. All you need to do is prepare your material more workable. As for baskets, you have to make the bamboo splint very soft, so that you can wave it accordingly. Choose a bamboo tree with just right diameter and in suitable condition. Cut the bamboo pole in to 1.5 meter long pieces for more ease.
Boil The Pole & Peel It
Now, peel off the most outer layer of the pole. Along with this, take a large pot of water and bring it to boil. Dip each bamboo piece in boiling water and keep it in there for average 10 minutes. As a result, This pole will get soft and it will be easy for you to convert it into splints and thin strips.
Drying Process
Once they are boiled properly, take them out of water and let them cool till the end. Make sure to dry them slowly and under proper temperature or under shade. This will keep bamboo pole soft and convertible. This process should take at least 2-3 hours depending on the size and diameter of the pole.
Make Bamboo Splints
Now this bamboo stick is soft enough to cut it with a pair of scissors. Cut it into thin long strips. Remember to cut it lengthwise and make a single cut from top to bottom to achieve a more accurate splint. Now these splints are ready to make baskets, towels, sheets and every product that needs detail and designing. Materials that are used in making bamboo baskets need exact preparation for best results and long term use.
Benefits Of Eco-Friendly Bamboo Baskets
Sustainability
As bamboo is a highly renewable resource, it usually grows quicker with minimum sources required. Like less water, pesticides, and fertilizer to hype the growth. Baskets from bamboo does not cause environmental disaster, deforestation and natural habitat damage.
Biodegradable Quality
Bamboo baskets does not leave any harmful residue behind and break down naturally with time. They does not harm environment with pollution as compared to other synthetic options for storage baskets like plastic, and acrylic ones.
Durable
Baskets made from bamboo tree are very durable as bamboo is naturally strong and durable. Lightweight straws usually do not look like strong ones, but once you start using them you would feel the lengthy life span. They can handle heavy weights without warping, cracking and deteriorating their shape.
Versatile
You can design bamboo in variety of shapes, sizes, and styles. That makes it versatile to use for different purposes like storage and daily kitchen use. Both indoor and outdoor use of bamboo baskets can add a touch of class and elegance to your home.
Breathability & Aesthetic Appeal
Bamboo baskets’ open structure allows them to circulate air better, that eventually helps to get rid of moisture build-up. Which is ideal for fruit storage, vegetables and other perishable items. Bamboo baskets and other products add an aesthetic appeal to your home by adding a traditional and modern touch together.
Cultural Heritage & Maintenance
Bamboo basket weaving and other products have a historical journey to come to us, around the world. You can support traditional craftsmen, and heritage by using bamboo baskets. They have an easy maintenance with almost zero cost budget. You can just rinse them with clean running water to get a clean use.
Why Bamboo Storage Baskets Are Great For Eco-conscious Homes
Natural Resource
If we talk about materials that are used in making bamboo baskets, all of them are environmental friendly and mostly harmless. So are the products, baskets, sheets, cutlery, boxes and bottles are not only useful for daily routine but they also make our environment plastic free. As the above information shows bamboo’s sustainability and biodegradability, it is also renewable resource.
Keeps You Healthy
Eco friendly bamboo baskets can be a real reason why you do not feel sick any more. More plastic you involve in your life, more harmful products and chemicals would be in your body by touching and inhaling toxins. When you adopt bamboo products you are treating storage problems more naturally.
Help To Keep Environment Clean
You can use nature for these products, and benefit nature in reverse. Growing a tree and using a tree for your home necessities is more beneficial act to perform than using environment pollutants.
Educate Others Too!
Home owners that are conscious with environment friendly products should use bamboo baskets and other products very fearlessly. Also, they should educate others to use it more often for the sake of environment health. More people use natural resources more benefits our environment would have.
Conclusion
Some materials that are used in making bamboo baskets, need to be treated beforehand. Like bamboo pool, you would need to boil it and make it very soft for making bamboo splints. That will be woven further into baskets.
Bamboo baskets are environment friendly replacement of food baskets, storage baskets, decorative bins and clothing bins. Some other products are famous too, just like toothbrushes, sheets, and cane mats etc.
Frequently Asked Questions
Bamboo is the main product for basketry. In specific areas of the world they use cultural methods to do it. In Japan they make bamboo baskets with bamboo weaving.
Baskets are usually a bi-product of natural materials. Mostly, they are tree twigs, willow, grasses and vines of bamboo tree.
Peel bamboo strips very thin. Use these threads of bamboo to make basket with 5 foot piece of string each. Make a U shape for a circle.
Very thin strips of bamboo to weave the baskets like threads. They are basically prone to prepare more fine products in terms of details.
Bamboo varieties with flexible and straight culms (stems) are ideal for basket weaving. Some popular choices include Moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis), Tonkin bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens), and Black bamboo (Phyllostachys nigra). These varieties offer a good balance of strength and flexibility, making them suitable for different parts of the basket, such as the frame and weaving elements.
Before using bamboo for basket weaving, it’s important to prepare it properly; Harvest bamboo when it’s mature but still green. Avoid using bamboo that is too old, as it may become brittle. Remove the leaves and branches using pruning shears. Allow the bamboo to dry for a few weeks to reduce moisture content and prevent mold growth. If needed, treat the bamboo with a preservative to protect against pests and decay. Cut the bamboo into desired lengths using a saw or pruning shears.
