During this 4-day workshop you will learn techniques for weaving an organic, three-dimensional form using river rush. The process will involve crafting a small hip-pouch style basket over a hollow wax mould (prepared by Elizabeth ahead of the workshop), building a form and shaping and opening, exploring different pairing techniques, incorporating other soft plant materials such as sedge and sweetcorn husk, making and attaching a hinged lid and making a fastening and belt loops.

River rush is a beautiful, malleable and versatile material that has been used for basketry and other crafts for many centuries. The rush used during this workshop has been sustainably hand harvested and sorted on the Somerset levels, where it grows in abundance. Rush is a fantastic material for learning soft basketry techniques, and you will leave this workshop equipped with skills not only for rush work, but for weaving with other leaf and bark type materials. 

This longer workshop is an opportunity to really drop in with the weaving process, and with how materials and craft can bring us closer to ourselves and the land we are working on.This retreat is aimed at people with some existing basket making experience.

Cost - 465 Euros

Please book directly through the De Ratelaar website: https://mandenmakerijderatelaar.be/product/rush-workshop-with-elizabeth-crawford/

This two day workshop provides a great introduction to basket weaving techniques using soft river rush. You will make a small lidded pot, which will include a check weave base, pairing weave, incorporating willow bark as a secondary material, weaving two types of border, and making and fixing a lid. The basket is made over a reusable mould. The skills you will learn can also be used to weave a vast number of other soft plant materials.

This workshop will take place in Dilsen-Stokkem on the beautiful River Maas - further details and booking can be found HERE

Do you long to deepen your relationship to the land through the act of making? Are you interested in cultivating a reciprocal way of being that feeds the more-than-human world as much as we receive from them?   

Nature offers us the constant reflection and inspiration that we are innately creative – and that our human creativity has a home and purpose within the wider, wilder landscape of beings. When we connect with this bone-deep knowing, our hands and heart are guided by the creative force inherent in all life and infused by the memory of those before us whose lives depended on transforming raw materials into functional artefacts and offerings of beauty.

During this five day residential programme, we will explore the materials that exist in the land around us, and how our creative natures and making hands can draw us into relationship with the natural world through craft.

With Isla Macleod, Elizabeth Crawford and Caroline Ross

To find out more and book a space, please visit the Embercombe website: https://embercombe.org/landscapes-of-making/

You can watch an introductory webinar with myself, Caroline and Isla discussing this new programme HERE.

This course is suitable for those who have already done a rush weaving course with me, or who have some existing soft basketry experience.

During this 3.5-day workshop you will learn techniques for weaving an organic, three dimensional form using river rush. The process will involve crafting a small hip-pouch style basket over a hollow wax mould (prepared by Elizabeth ahead of the workshop), shaping an opening, exploring different pairing techniques, incorporating other soft plant materials such as sedge and sweetcorn husk, making and attaching a hinged lid and making a fastening and belt loops (or strap if you prefer). Making such a basket requires time and concentration, so this longer workshop is an opportunity to really drop in with the weaving process, and with how materials and craft can bring us closer to ourselves and the land we are working on. Ideally it will be a time in connection with older rhythms, listening to the language of plants and nature around us. This is an opportunity to feel for a short time a real sense of crafting community, close to the river and around the fire

A hot lunch will be provided on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Location - the venue is a private home just outside the town of Chagford on the north east edge of Dartmoor. Camping is available at no extra cost in a large peaceful meadow next to the river Teign. There are washing and food storage facilities available, and it is a short walk to local amenities and shops in Chagford.

Cost - £390, includes all materials and a hand made mould, three catered lunches and snacks.

FULLY BOOKED - Please CONTACT ME to be placed on the waiting list.

During this workshop you will make a wide-brimmed hat from river rush, an incredibly versatile, traditional British basketry material.

You will begin by making a personalised mould to ensure a perfect fit, then craft your hat over this using a check-weave technique.

You will leave with skills to continue your hat making journey, and with a practical and stylish accessory for the summer months that will last for many years to come!

Cost - £240

Booking via Nettlecombe Craft School

During this two day workshop you will design and make a small rectangular bag or belt pouch entirely from Somerset river rush (Common Club Rush; Schoenoplectus lacustris). This traditional basketry material has been harvested from British rivers for centuries, and used to make all manner of items from carpets, chair seating and horse harnesses to satchels and baskets. You will learn some fundamental principles for working with rush, that can be applied to a variety of other soft plant materials. We will discuss how rush and other river plants are harvested and prepared; how to plan a basket; mould making; weaving using check weave and pairing; how to finish off a border; and how to make and attach a strap or belt loops. You will leave with a beautiful item to use and skills to continue your basketry journey! This workshop is suitable for beginners, and those with some basic experience. 

This workshop is taking place in association with the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, and booking is via this link: https://www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/slimbridge/whats-on/rush-bag-a-two-day-basket-weaving-workshop

Come and spend two late summer days on the land in South Devon, and learn how to make a beautiful foraging pouch from soft river rush.

We will gather in a beautiful yurt in the rolling wooded Dart Valley, connecting with the creative potential of this years rush harvest. The techniques taught can be applied to many other foraged materials, and the bag you craft will be a great ally while out collecting wild foods and medicines throughout the year!

-learn a traditional basket design that can be made using various soft plant materials, including bark.

-learn about river bulrush - where it grows, when to harvest, its properties and uses.

- discover check weave and plaiting finish off a border, and make a plaited strap

- leave with a practical and robust cross-body foraging pouch that will last you for many seasons to come!

Time: 10am - 4pm

Location: New Futures Academy Yurt, Littlehempston, Totnes

Cost: £145, includes all materials and snacks

You will need to bring a packed lunch. Hot drinks and some snacks will be provided. While we will have shelter and a fire for warmth if necessary, please come dressed appropriately for a day in an outdoors setting.

This workshop is now FULL. A waiting list is available.

This workshop is a great opportunity to begin learning (or refresh your knowledge of) a set of fundamental techniques for soft materials basketry. We will be using soft river rush as our primary material, but the skills you learn are transferable to other plant materials including sedges, iris, bark fibre, reed mace and much more. Over the course of two days, we will look at check weave, pairing weave and plaiting, and you will leave with a beautiful water bottle holder or small rectangular bag.

I will be teaching some more complex projects later in 2023, so if you are new to weaving and would like to join me on an in depth course this could be a great place to start.

The workshop will take place in a spacious teaching yurt close to the river Dart, not far from the town of Totnes. It is accessible by car, or by bus from Totnes (ten minutes plus a twenty minute walk). Snacks and hot drinks will be available, but you will need to bring your own packed lunch.

Cost: £145 including materials

Spaces are available - please CONTACT ME to book your place!

Do you long for a deeper connection between your hands and the land beneath your feet? Do you wonder what it really means to be human, to understand how our ancestors lived and worked in synergy with the world around them? Do you think you can find the wild beating heart of the maker within?

This is a gathering of humans on a piece of land, looking for our belonging to it, through our ability to transform its generous bounty into objects of use. In doing so we will observe the transformation of ourselves.

During this rich 6 days in the beautiful wooded valley at Embercombe, you will have the chance to work with four different crafts, all of which use materials from the land. The maker-facilitators are: Nick Kary - green wood work; Jessie Watson-Brown - hide tanning and leather work; Ruby Taylor - wild pottery; Elizabeth Crawford - basket weaving

Cost: £525

More information and booking can be found through the Embercombe website: https://embercombe.org/material-the-alchemy-of-making/

The weekend will bring together techniques to create a beautiful small pouch, woven over a mould. An additional third day on April 27th will cover all sorts of straps, fastenings and embellishments using rush and natural moorland materials. Please specify when booking which days you will be attending.

Taught by Linda Lemieux and Elizabeth Crawford.

Cost per person for three days £185

for the weekend only £135

third day only £65

Prices include materials and hot drinks. For booking please visit www.woodandrush.net

We will introduce a range of techniques for working with river rush, including multi element plaiting, diagonal plait weave, and twining/whaling over a mould. You will produce one or more small finished pieces as you learn. Taught by Linda Lemieux and Elizabeth Crawford.

£135 per person for two days. Materials and hot drinks are included. Please contact me for more details or visit www.woodandrush.net to book.