Book Review: Straw Plaiting

Attention spiral braid hatmakers!

In a nutshell, this book is an invaluable reference on an area of millinery previously only minimally documented, as well as the crafts of woven and braided straw in the making of mats, bags, and other items.

Author Veronica Main has conducted an enormous amount of research globally to document the history of straw plaiting as a craft, art, and trade in various cultures around the world. Those chapters are interesting for the cultural and historical scope--I learned about the connection between plaiting straw for bonnetmaking and other fashion uses in the 18th century and the establishment of "plaiting schools" in which children were taught to read as well as the making of specialized plaits. The fraught relationship between the value of straw plaiting as a trade and the economic power it granted to the women who gained expertise in it is also important and interesting.

The second half of the book is a manual of clearly-illustrated instructions in how different styles of straw plaits are made, for readers who want to experimemt with this heritage craft. The documentation of these techniques--particularly the more elaborate multi-strand styles--is wonderful and may also be of interest for practitioners of related crafts, such as hair braiding and yarncrafts.

The full-color hardcover book, at over 300 pages, is almost more of a coffee-table art book in format, although it's an important reference volume and will go into the workroom library at my millinery studio.

Highly, highly recommend if you are interested in learning more about this niche topic