Zarzo Baskets with Clare Revera - 16th/17th July 2022

Two one-day workshops were held at Etal Village Hall, making Square Zarzo baskets on one day and Round on the other.

Both workshops were fully attended and kept Clare busy, ensuring we all completed our baskets. She commented on how diligent we were compared to attendees at some other workshops she has run.

The following feedback is from some of the attendees:

Many thanks for organising the workshop this weekend I had a lovely time. I had been hoping to have a go at making these unusual baskets for a while, and Clare is an amazing tutor. It was also nice to meet up with members from other groups. JC The Zarzo basket - a simple basket of beauty and economy. Clare talked us through the careful preparations- sorting and selecting the willow, careful measuring and utilising the willow’s natural bend to produce a stunning basket. Although I was less experienced and skilled as the others in the group, Clare’s enthusiasm and care enabled me to make a basket to be truly proud of. Can’t wait to make another! LM

Really enjoyed the opportunity to make a basket in an entirely different way. Clare was an enthusiastic teacher with a great range of other Zarzo baskets to demonstrate the possibilities of the technique. The willow available was a delight to use. MB

I thoroughly enjoyed making the square Zarzo basket. It was surprisingly straightforward, starting from a Catalan base, and I’m now looking forward to making more using variations in colour and design. Clare also showed us some good ways to sort rods and was very knowledgeable about growing willow. TG

Lovely day. Basket making made easy by a very talented tutor. Thoroughly enjoyed my day. LD

The workshop at Etal was a wonderful experience. A totally new technique which produces beautiful baskets and has the option of adapting it to make fantastic variations on the theme. Clare's guidance was excellent; gentle, encouraging and thorough. A good day was had by everyone there and the baskets produced were all individual and beautiful. LG

It was a very enjoyable workshop with an excellent tutor. The technique provided very satisfying results. I’d love to make more Zarzo baskets in future! NH

I thoroughly enjoyed the day making a round Zarzo basket. Clare is such a good teacher and provided inspiration and advice that made the process of working the willow to make the basket very straightforward. The finished item has been much admired! CJ

Thanks again for organising this very enjoyable workshop. Would be good to do some more at one of the meetings in the Autumn? SS

I really enjoyed it and think it's a really interesting technique with lots of scope for variations. I thought Clare was an excellent teacher - very generous with both her knowledge and time. I left with a gothic style basket but couldn't get the top tied to please me and decided it would be more useful with a handle - but made a tiny one with some off-cuts as a reminder. JS

It was a lovely three days. Thank you for having the idea. AO

Sheila Patrick 01.08.22

Image Gallery