Wild Basketry is a crafting guide to foraged and found natural baskets with tutorials by Ruby Taylor. Released 6th May 2025 by Simon & Schuster on their Herbert Press imprint, it's 176 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats.

There are numerous tutorial projects included, as well as good info to help readers with sourcing, foraging, preparing, and using found materials and cordage from plants. The author also includes a lot of information about sustainability as it relates to crafting materials.

The book is beautifully photographed throughout, and the photos are clear and unobstructed. There are numerous inspirational photos of projects and essays by other artists as well.

Five stars. Superlative book. It would be an excellent choice for public or school library acquisition, home studio, as well as for a shared studio/makers' space.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

In a time when so much of life feels digitized and disposable, this book feels grounded, practical, and full of reflections on sustainability, tradition, and our relationship to the materials around us. It contains both inspiration and how-to. The seasonal projects—ranging from woven bramble baskets to coiled grass designs—are beautifully documented with clear photographs. As someone who’s dabbled in various crafts, I appreciated Taylor’s encouraging tone and the flexibility to experiment with foraged materials, whether invasive vines or backyard weeds. The emphasis on ethical foraging—understanding plant life cycles, legal guidelines, and the impact of harvesting—gives you something to think about long after you set the book down.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

I appreciated the balance of technical basket weaving instruction and the conversations about sustainability and respect for the natural world that they built into this book. It makes me want to take a second look at some of my own yard waste too, maybe I could so some weaving with those obnoxious invasive vines instead of making the city haul them away.

I really like the format of this. I appreciated the inclusion of different artists, historical and sociological background, and environmental impacts. It felt very comprehensive, but also a beautiful book. I would like to own a hard copy of this to refer to at different times and seasons.

Wild Basketry is a beautiful book. One of the best on Basketry that I've gotten my hands on. The instructions with pictures are clear and easy to follow. Some very beautiful basket designs included in this book.

This is much more then a how to book. It does into the history and culture of basketry and has essays from various basket artists. The projects have clear pictures and good instructions

This is a fantastic book. I even showed it to my 26 year old (who also loved it) and am seriously considering buying a copy. It’s filled with detailed instructions and photos to make all kinds of baskets from all kinds of plants, plus beautiful inspirational woven landscape art projects by other artists.

One of my favorite reads so far this year. Highly recommended.

I read a temporary digital loan of this book for review.

If you want to know how to turn natural materials into baskets, this book is for you! Half of the book covers in brief: history of baskets, types of baskets and natural fibers (things like cattails, grasses, daffodils, brambles), and a handful of artists who work in basketry or ephemeral art in nature using similar materials to the baskets. But the most wonderful part of this book is the detailed instructions to start doing this yourself. The second half of the book is comprised of 6 projects that feature step-by-step instructions, with loads of pictures, to lead you from harvest to completed project. The level of detail and advice is exceptional and is clearly designed for the reader to follow along. The projects include, woven baskets - one from bramble and one from cattails, a bark basket, 4 different types of cordage (twisting fibers, grasses, stems, etc, to make something rope-like), a net bag, and a coiled basket made from grass. The book includes information on the role of the plants in their habitats, ethical considerations, and information on sustainable harvest, as well as relevant UK laws on harvesting plants.

This book is a wonderful introduction to making cordage and baskets. It has clear instructions with lots of pictures. A great, useful, and inspiring addition to any library craft or art book collection.

Whoa! Who knew there were so many kinds and techniques put there in the world of baskets. Beautiful photography and well researched background. The projects are interesting and varied.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.