Creating masterpieces from unnecessary things has always been an original activity, which was especially popular. Old things that can no longer be used for their intended purpose for various reasons, all have a lot of houses. They often lie idle due to the fact that they are sorry to throw out. Craftswomen and needlewomen are beginning to use an increasing variety of materials. Amazingly beautiful souvenirs can be created using various types of weaving from newspaper tubes. In this way, baskets, boxes, decorative elements for the interior are made. This is not difficult, so everyone can master this technique.
Surface Options
There are different types of weaving from newspaper tubes. Some allow you to craft dense products, while other methods create the impression of lace. The objects in this case turn out to be translucent, that is, the contents of such a basket or container will be visible.
So, if you decide to master weaving from newspapers, its types are as follows:
- one strip;
- rope in two strips;
- alternation of weaving with one and two tubes;
- oblique weaving using racks alone.
Beginners should start with the first option. He is the easiest. The last method from the list is illustrated in the photo, which shows an ice cream souvenir in the form of a Santa Claus hat. The method of creating a base that is colored red is quite complicated. It is better to leave it for later. If you decide to immediately master such a newspaper weaving, a master class in video format will be a good help. Just by reading the description, working with this method for the first time will be difficult.
Material preparation
To get an artificial vine, you need to find newspapers, magazines, catalogs. Some prefer to make non-color editions out of soft paper; others work with variegated gloss. You can use both options. What is best for you, decide in the process of practice. Sheets are cut into strips about 5-6 cm wide. A needle is taken, which is applied to the workpiece at an acute angle. Start twisting the tube. The edges will need to be fixed with glue. This job is easy. It is only worth practicing. At first, you may get uneven thickness on the left and right of the paper stick. Do not worry. This is acceptable, although the difference should not be too large and noticeable.
Tube extension
If you work with a real willow vine, then problems with the length of the elements occur less frequently. Here you are limited by the size of the newspaper. Buying a large roll of paper, which is used in the printing industry, is expensive and does not make sense. You can get out of the situation by adding the length of the tube by building. When you twist it, one edge is a little wider. Accordingly, the narrow tip will just enter it. The junction should be made as less noticeable as possible and glued. As a rule, the addition of a new part occurs during the weaving process, because working immediately with a long one will be inconvenient, and you still don’t know exactly what size will be required.
Do I have to paint the vine?
You can use any types of weaving from newspaper tubes, but for each of them there is a general stage of processing the material. To give aesthetics and decorative properties to the manufactured object, the artificial vine is usually painted and coated with varnish or stain. Acrylic immediately creates a waterproof layer, and in addition, it lays well on a paper surface. Some people prefer not to use color, doing very beautiful things, where black text on a white background serves as a peculiar pattern. This option is really possible, but the color newspapers will not look very aesthetically pleasing, since the object will be too colorful. For such things, it is better to apply a drawing on top, and to add a glossy shine, add a layer of varnish.
What is the best way to decorate the surface?
There are two options for staining: the first - before weaving, the second - after. It makes sense to make the tubes colored immediately after production, if you will create a very complex shape of the souvenir, it will be too difficult to color all the parts qualitatively. However, you should first try what the tube will be after the manipulation. Some paint formulations make the paper stiff and the stick will lose flexibility. In this case, weaving is impossible. It is best to decorate the product after its manufacture. They use different decoration techniques: painting, decoupage, ribbons and other options. The combination of several ways of processing the material looks original, for example, the holes in the wicker basket are filled with delicate elements using the quilling technique (the first photo in the article).
What items can be made?
Having looked at any workshop "Weaving from tubes" once, you can start creating souvenirs on your own. You can make any object.
Most often weave such things:
- baskets;
- vases;
- large boxes or small caskets;
- napkin holders;
- decorative decorations for the home.
The choice of subject depends on your skills, imagination and desire to create. As a first experiment, you can choose a round, square or rectangular box with a solid bottom. A variant with a vase will do. When you understand the technique of creating the walls of an object, start making the bottom also wicker.
Sequencing
If you want to master weaving from newspaper tubes for beginners, a master class in the format of tips will be enough to start independent work. Creating a souvenir like a basket or casket consists of the following steps:
- If you assume that the material you have already prepared, start with the manufacture of the bottom. In the first versions, it is better to use a solid, made of thick cardboard. Cut the base in the form of a circle, square, rectangle in two copies. In the first, vertical elements will be fixed, and the second will be decorative and close (hide) the connecting parts.
- Follow the wireframe. In a cardboard circle, make slots under the racks, install them there. For reliability, small tips can be glued to the base. Fasten the outer decorative bottom.
- Insert the object that you will braid into the space between the racks. Vertical tubes should be attached to the base, as shown in the photo. Here it is done using clothespins. If your souvenir is small, use other methods, for example, paper clips.
- Start weaving from bottom to top. The picture shows an example with two tubes, for the first time you use the only one. Pass it between the racks in principle through one. If you start to drag the stick in front of the counter, then move on to the frame element. And so on until the end. It turns out a solid surface. Try to hide the joints of the tubes in the places of building inside, behind the rack. In the case of weaving with two elements of a paper rod at the same time, one passes behind the vertical stick, the other before it, then they cross and everything repeats.
Making the bottom
In his first works, it is better to use circles, rectangles from thick cardboard as the basis. However, the most spectacular look is completely wicker souvenirs. When you have gained some experience, try making the bottom using the same technique.
For the manufacture of a rectangular or square bottom, a kind of machine made of cardboard is required. It is a design in which holes are made into the line with an awl at a distance of about two centimeters, and their diameter corresponds to the tubes. Insert the required number of sticks into the holes, while leaving a free edge on the outside, which will later act as a vertical rack. At a right angle, insert the working tubes and begin to braid the bottom frame.
In the case of a round base, several tubes are crossed, for example, four. By the working element, you begin to go around them, evenly distributing in a circle in the form of radially diverging rays. Do this to the desired bottom diameter.
Weaving newspaper tubes: basket "Chess" (diagram)
You can try to master not continuous, but with holes, weaving from newspaper tubes. Basket "Chess" is well suited as an example. The bottom can be done in the usual way, and to get a pattern of squares and holes, you will need to use several work items. Each braids for two racks, then there is a shift to the next pair.
So, you have learned what types of weaving from newspaper tubes are, what you need to work with this material. You can choose any sample you like and try to implement it yourself. Start mastering the technique in a simple form, then gradually move on to the manufacture of complex souvenirs.