The Three J's of Basket-Weaving

When you pull into the driveway at the Richmond home of Janice Luxon, you might notice a small wood sign with a basket in the middle and the words “Basket Weavers” and “Entrance” with an arrow pointing towards the basement.

Welcome to the workshop of Janice and her friends Judy Ridings and Jo Ann Park. The “three J’s” as they call themselves.

Best friends? Janice says, “we have been together since the 70s, and Jo Ann and I've been together since the 40s. I do not remember any time that we have fallen out. We just are on an even keel. And if we do get disagree on something, that's okay.”

On this weekday morning the “three J’s” are quietly sitting around a small wood worktable, heads bowed, staring down as their fingers weave small baskets.

The table is covered in baskets in different stages of completion. The basement has hundreds of baskets on tables, cabinets, and shelves. Coils of reed and cane hang from posts.

In the corner, a large set of shelves are filled with wood basket molds of different sizes. An old garden seed bin holds bags of basket-weaving parts like tiny nails, screws, and handle hardware.

If there’s any doubt how passionate these ladies are about weaving baskets listen to Janice.

“I'm lying in bed at night thinking about, what am I going to weave tomorrow? What colors Am I going in to put together? I would call it a passion. For me, I just love the simplicity of some of them. I just like the repetition, and it's just relaxing to me. It just makes me happy.”

Jo Ann says she appreciates their deep friendship. “I think my biggest thing is the fellowship is learning from my friends and being with them and doing it now.”

For Judy creating baskets of different shapes and styles is appealing. “It's an amazing thing to be able to create something. I've always done a lot of crafts. My mother was a seamstress, and from an early age, I learned to sew. I was about five, and so I, I did. I've done that all my life, but when Janice got me started weaving baskets, it was like a light bulb went off, and it was, it was just love at first sight.”

Many of the baskets they make have all kinds of purposes: carrying things, a wine holder, a door ornament, or an ice bucket. They sell their baskets at shows or give away to friends or donate to charity.

But they also make baskets to admire almost like pieces of art. The ladies specialize in a basket called the Nantucket. Remember those wood molds? The Nantucket basket is made on a wood base that’s attached by a screw to a wood mold. The mold is used to shape the basket. The base has tiny holes where the weavers insert staves that become the foundation for the basket. Then they weave cane strips in and out of the staves.

Jo Ann demonstrated. “The weaving is important, and that's the way I think all of us weave, is that you want to be sure that you have brought it behind that stave. You've sort of tucked it. See, I'm putting a little pressure with my hand. I use this hand to go to the next stave. So, we're carefully doing each stitch, if you want to go in sewing terms, so that we're pleased and proud of each stitch we've put on there.”

It can take dozens of hours to finish one Nantucket. The “three J’s” have even gone to Nantucket, Massachusetts where the basket originated. Jo Ann says it was a dream come true to learn from Nantucket Basket weavers. “I was in awe, because it was pretty new to me. But just to see the country and to be able to weave with these experts and weave have your friends with you. And I think my jaw stayed open the whole time. It was like, just can't believe this. I can't believe this is happening to me.”

The ladies travel several times a year to other states for basket weaving.

Judy says, “we go to classes when we go, and these are people that have national reputations as instructors. Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina. Judy and Joanne have been to Idaho. You take these trips, both to learn, but also you do. You're basically presenting to customers, right, or people that want to see how you do this.”

The “three J’s” have no plans of slowing down. Judy says, “Sometimes, if I've been intensely weaving for, say, a month. And I'm talking about weaving every day for a month. I walk away from it some, but not for long.”

Janice agrees. “Coming up every day, I already know what I'm going to be doing. I've picked out the basket that I'm going to weave. I have the handles. I will cook the three days. I'll take care of my husband, but during my main spare time I will be weaving on that basket.”

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