The art of hand-woven Sweetgrass Baskets has been practiced for more than 300 years. Sweetgrass Baskets were introduced to the Mt. Pleasant and Charleston SC area by slaves who were brought from West Africa.  During slavery, rice cultivation and plantations were in high demand for agricultural purposes.  Baskets woven like a “rice fanner” (the oldest basket pattern) were used during that time to assist with productivity.   The art of sweetgrass basket weaving has been passed down from generation to generation through the Gullah Geechee community who descended from those West African slaves.

 

Sweetgrass Baskets are made from the native grass only found in the lowcountry and coastal areas. It has a sweet, hay-like pleasant fragrance and soft texture . Materials also included in most masterpieces are bulrush (marsh grass), longleaf pine needles, and palmetto leaves (from the palmetto tree) for wrapping. The only tools required to complete a Sweetgrass Basket are scissors and a nail bone (usually a sharpened metal spoon).