Draw the sharpened end of the pliable reed between the thumb and finger into the smallest possible coil. Lay the end of the raffia to the point and along the sharpened end of the reed and hold it in place with the left hand. By a sharp turn in the thread begin winding over the reed and raffia to the point. Then shape into the coil by sewing through the center, thus forming the "button" as in the illustration.
BASKETS BEGUN IN THREE DIFFERENT WEAVES.
| 1—Round basket in the Navajo weave. |
| 2—Oval basket in the Lazy Squaw weave. |
| 3—Round basket in the Mariposa weave |
B. The Oval Basket:
GROUP OF BASKETS SHOWING VARIETY IN SIZE, SHAPE AND DESIGN.
The end of the reed is not sharpened, and must be very soft and pliable, or it cannot be bent together at the desired length, two, three, four, five or more inches from the end, without breaking. It will do no special harm if it splits, however, as it is to be covered with the raffia. Lay the end of the raffia to the end of the reed, along the reed and around the bend, and by a sharp turn in the thread wind four or five times over the raffia, covering the bend in the reed. The two reeds may then be caught together by the stitch selected for the basket, or the "Navajo" or "figure eight stitch" may be used and the other stitch introduced on the second round.
Splicing the Reed.—As the reed naturally coils somewhat take care to splice it so that the coil in the two pieces remains the same, otherwise it would draw apart. Sharpen the top side of one reed and the underside of the other to a long flat point and slip one past the other until the two together form the uniform size of the reed. It is sometimes advisable for a novice to wind the spliced reeds with fine thread, but experience will teach one to do the splicing with the sewing of the basket.