We will be heading to Indiana soon for the Stateline Convention so Mr. Basketmaker has been busy in his workshop.
Below, he just pulled a strip of Ash through his knife slitters and is trimming off the “grip” edge (what he uses to hold on to as he’s pulling the material through).
Now he has a new set of materials. Just looking at this image, I would say they are Weavers. But he let me know that this batch are Uprights for his mini wine tote baskets.
However, before he starts trimming the uprights, he needs to run “Quality Control Checks.” Yes, even Mr. Basketmaker’s little ‘ole workshop has quality control procedures.
First, he inspects them simply by feeling with his fingers to see if they are the correct thickness, and continuous, from the edges to the middle: CHECK
Then he double checks it with a micrometer, which accurately measures the thickness down to thousands of an inch: CHECK CHECK
And then finally, he inserts the material in the base for triple insurance: CHECK CHECK CHECK!
I don’t know about y’all but this is a lot of work to make teeny tiny little uprights! I’m just saying. I feel proud that Eric provides his clients and students with one hundred percent quality, handmade materials!
Now I wish he would’ve did this “triple check quality control thing” before we special ordered our door. That’s a post for another day.
