Surf and Turf Basket

With this birch bark and seaweed basket, I'm making a segue from trees to tree bark. This is my first birch bark basket (circa 1987-1990). I cannot remember the instructor's name but she was wonderful.
Harvesting the Bark
She even taught us how to harvest birch bark! Each of us got a chunk of birch trunk, we cut through the bark lengthwise, lifted the bark along the edges of the cut, slipped our hands inside, kept working around the trunk until the bark popped free with a distinctive popping sound! It was much easier than I expected! The opposite was true of making the basket, but with the instructor's help, all was possible.
Birch Bark Basket
10" W x 6"D x 4.25"H
First we made our own designs/patterns on paper. Mine was inspired by origami and a takeout food container -- minus lid and wire handles! Two pieces of soaked bark are cut and placed back to back. The double-knot ties are made of spruce root. Originally, I had more ties along the top edge, but later removed them for a cleaner look. The design is simple but it took a lot of thought and planning. Here's a great link with more info regarding harvesting birch bark and birch bark basket constuction.
Seaweed Basket
4.0-6.5 "W x 3.5"H
Some time later (circa 1987-1999), I made the seaweed basket. I have no idea how I thought this one up. I just found some seaweed on the beach, took it home, stitched the edges with dental floss, trimmed the top, and stuffed it with newspaper and plastic bags to hold the shape while it dried.
What Is That Smell?
I'd never seen a seaweed basket before (or since) so I had no idea how it would look when it dried. I also had no idea how it would smell! Imagine the smell of the ocean (a smell I love). Now, magnify it by 1,000. It's an awful smell and a strong one. You cannot get this smell out of your nose. Even after you put the seaweed outside your second-floor kitchen window, on the roof, to dry, the smell just lingers in your nose -- night and day. You will get a headache from this smell and begin to wonder if this was a crazy idea. You will ponder if this is why you have never before seen a seaweed basket. But, eventually, it dries and the smell goes away!
Voila!
To finish the basket, I removed the dental floss creating a lacy effect along the edges of the seaweed fronds (a happy accident) and threaded green florist wire through selected holes. A couple of those joins have since been lost -- the seaweed cracked and the wire fell out. I like the way the seaweed basket allows you to see the structure of the plant -- something I can never figure out when I look at the tangled mass washed up on the beach.