Fig. 20
Let us weave a nest that shall be light and yet firm. Spokes of rattan will give it strength and weavers of raffia will make it soft and comfortable. Two groups of spokes, one of four and the other of four and a half, are crossed at the centre, bound three times with a strand of raffia and woven into a bottom an inch and a half across. Another weaver is then added and an inch of pairing is made. Pairing, or bam tush, as the Indians call it, is a simple stitch. Two weavers are started, each one behind a spoke (see Fig. 20). The one on the left is brought over the first spoke, under the next and down in front. It is now the turn of the second weaver, which also passes over the first spoke on its right, under the next and outside, where it is held down in front while the other weaver repeats the process. So it goes on around the nest. The spokes are then wet so that the bottom may be formed into a bowl shape, with sides rounding up from the very centre. A row of pairing in No. 2 rattan is next woven to hold the slippery raffia in place. This is followed by five-eighths of an inch of raffia woven in pairing, the sides still being flared. Two rows of pairing in No. 2 rattan are then woven, drawing the spokes in very slightly. At this point, which is the widest, the nest should measure eleven inches around the top. A row of under and over weaving is started, and at the place which has been chosen for the doorway the weaver is doubled back on a spoke and woven from right to left until it comes to the second spoke to the right of the one it first doubled around. It is brought around this spoke, thus making the beginning of a doorway, which has an unused spoke in the centre of it. The weaver then returns to the spoke it first doubled around, where it doubles back again. This is repeated until the doorway is an inch and a quarter high. Two rows of pairing in No. 2 rattan are then woven all the way around, forming a firm top for the doorway, where they cross it. The spokes are drawn in closer and closer with rows of pairing in raffia, until, when an inch and a half has been woven, they meet at the top. The ends of the spokes are left uneven lengths and bound around with a strand of raffia threaded through a tapestry needle.
A loop to hang it by is made of two strands of raffia, five and a half inches long, covered close with buttonhole stitch in raffia. The spoke in the centre of the doorway should be cut at the lower part of the opening, just above the weaving, and after it has been wet until quite pliable it is bent and pressed up between the weaving beside the upper part of the same spoke.
[Knots with Raffia and Cord]
[CHAPTER IV]
KNOTS WITH RAFFIA AND CORD
Sailors' knots are of course fascinating to boys, but why should not girls enjoy making them, too? Think of the dolls' hammocks, the work bags and twine ball nets one can make, and think of being able to tie a good, square knot—one that will hold—instead of the "granny knots" that brothers and boy cousins laugh at!