Meet-up #7

Corinne

The question I came with:

How can I use my creativity to develop my garden space to be a beautiful, productive haven for family and friends?

The question I leave with:

How will I continue to bring fun and magic into my garden?

How would you sum up your Makers Marathon in 3 words?

Interesting, fulfilling, motivational.

How would you define making?

Using yourself (generally hands) to choose to make certain things/materials interact, to create.

What have you learned from this process?

To be resilient, not everything goes as you would like it to, all the time. Keep trying, learn!

Tell us about something you’ve made.

A vegetable bed, with potager. Never having grown things to eat before, it was a joy to sample and share the fruits of my labour.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to connect with their inner maker?

Go for it, don’t be put off by what you perceive to be hurdles. Great things can even come out of mistakes. If you don’t start, when will it happen?

Activity: Willow Weaving

One of Corinne’s intentions at the start of the Marathon was to make some sculptural features for her garden. Melise - Corinne’s buddy for the first half of the Makers’ Marathon - found a willow workshop for her to attend, where she made Harvey Hare. Corinne decided to bring this new skill to the group for her meet-up, where we all made willow wreaths.

We used a kit from The Willow Barn - see here: https://tinyurl.com/5dtrsbta

If sourcing your own, you will need:

• 30 pieces of 4ft willow • A soaking bag • A circular frame (optional) • Secateurs

Preparation:

Set your willow to soak 4.5 days before you want to work with it. After 4 days, drain the willow and let it sit in the bag for 8 hours to mellow.

Ali and Rilke in the garden Isla making in Corinne’s kitchen

Step 1:

Insert the butt (the thick end) of 1 willow rod through the wire ring leaving it sticking out 5cm or so. Taking hold of the thin end, start feeding the rod around the wire ring, making sure you let the willow lay where it wants to and don’t force it.

Step 2:

Next, 10cm along from the previous piece, insert another rod of willow. All your rods must go in the same direction.

Continue adding the rods at 10cm intervals. This will help the wreath be even in shape.

Step 3:

As it becomes fuller, trim the thick ends.

Continue until you have the look you want.

Step 4:

Now it’s time to decorate your wreath.

What would you like to weave into yours?

Six months ago a dozen makers planted a dozen seeds, in the form of ‘learning questions’ such as ‘how can I explore human emotions through creativity and making?’ and ‘how can I make from the heart?’ Since then we’ve been growing these seeds alongside one another, into projects, songs, practices, poems and more. The Makers’ Marathon is drawing to a close, but a new chapter is just starting to unfurl.