How could I not have seen the beauty of the fall season before? The quaking and shimmering leaves and the vibrant autumn leaf carpet with a musky, sweet smell have won my heart forever. Whole forests transition into bright red, orange, and yellow, their astounding beauty teaching us that we must learn to thrive in all life cycles. Besides, fall has countless smells: sweet apple juice, wood smoke, plum jam, vegetable spread, fermented cabbage, and many other smells that make fall smell so good. This fall, I added one particular smell to my fall scents list: the smell of peeled willow, while the master basket weaver, Ciobanu Gheorghe, walked me through the complete process of weaving willow furniture.
Willow is planted near streams and wet ground, and since the village of Calafindesti was an important basket weaving center, there still are plenty of willow plantations on the outskirts. With an experience of over forty years, Ciobanu Gheorghe is one of the few remaining willow weavers in the village. He can make anything with willow, from baskets to willow furniture.
Watching him prepare his weaving material was an interesting experience. Late fall is harvest time. Processing involved boiling, followed by peeling and drying. He headed to the willow plantation and carefully cut each willow with a scythe. He then boiled it in a large cauldron for eight hours. Afterward, the freshly boiled willow was taken to a peeling machine to remove the stems. Then, it is left outside to dry.
Another interesting process was skeining the willow. „Skeining is turning a willow rod into a flat material that’s useful for weaving only. It will soften the willow, making it more pliable and suitable for weaving”, explained Mr. Ciobanu.
He then proceeded to weave the sofa seat on a frame while his wife helped make the seat braces in the form of two crosses beautifully wrapped in willow ribbons.
It was very interesting to find out that the legs of the sofa were of different lengths. Therefore, the front legs were longer than the rear, which is quite usual in some older pieces. This is often seen in old armoires.
„There are six legs: Two legs of 65 cm, three shorter legs of 35 cm, and the midfront is 37 cm. The sofa is tilted to the back to sit slightly, leaning back rather than forward”, explained Mr. Ciobanu.
Different weaving techniques were used in the process of making willow furniture. He worked up to form the backrest with a crisscross weaving. The arms and the backrest were beautifully edged with willow braiding.
All this time, his wife was there, either moistening the willow with a wet rag to avoid it getting stiff and dry or serving meals. Everything was made with close attention to every detail, and the willow sofa was flawless and very comfortable to sit on.
Once more, I am glad I gained knowledge about the technical process so that each time I come across any kind of willow furniture, I know how to contemplate and truly appreciate the work of art.
Young man, 20, keeping willow basket making alive
Contact Ciobanu Gheorghe: 004 0749 891 368
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