Wickerwork is the craft of weaving flexible plant materials like willow branches, reeds, or rattan into useful objects. When you see a woven basket at a farmer's market or a chair with a woven seat, you're looking at wickerwork.

The process works like weaving fabric, but instead of thread, craftspeople use long, bendable twigs or stems. They soak these materials in water to make them pliable, then weave them over and under each other in patterns, creating everything from picnic baskets to furniture to decorative bowls. As the woven material dries, it hardens into a sturdy but lightweight structure.

Wickerwork is one of humanity's oldest crafts. Archaeologists have found ancient wicker baskets that survived for thousands of years. Before plastic containers and cardboard boxes, people relied on wickerwork for storage and transport. Today, wicker furniture remains popular because it's strong, attractive, and has a natural, earthy look.

You might also hear people use wicker as a shortened form: “a wicker chair” or “a wicker basket.” The materials can vary, from willow grown in wet areas to tropical rattan imported from Southeast Asia, but the weaving technique stays essentially the same.