Old boats and weaving? Indeed!
We spent a morning at the Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough, Ontario. It was here I was stunned by how weaving fit into the ancient history of the far northernmost parts of Canada.
The traders and voyagers who used the marvelous birch bark canoes had to have vessels to store their goods in, and what did they use? Baskets. Woven baskets made of leather or strips of reeds and wood. They also had to travel on snow, and what did they use here? Snow shoes made of woven animal sinew stretched on wood frames. And the ever-present Hudson Bay Blankets are still stunningly efficient.
But for me the most exciting was the finger weaving of sashes or ceinture fléchée. Strips of woven cloth in vivid colors and patterns attracted me to a hands-on opportunity to try it myself. And the best part? I got a book, Fingerweaving Untangled to bring home for sharing and continuing to learn about this amazing technique.
Another stop displaying wonders of hand weaving in a canoe museum of all places.
Click on any of the images below to see larger photos.
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- Basket
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- Snowshoes
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- Cienture fléchée
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- Patty trying cienture fléchée
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- Patty doing cienture fléchée
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- Another cienture fléchée
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- More cienture fléchée
