Teacher Developed Activity, T-DA!
Susan Yolmeh
IMPORTANT REMINDER: Some schools/systems will not allow you to bring up a religious
subject. Therefore, I am not focusing on the religious aspect of palm weaving in this lesson. I
am only concentrating on the actual lost art of the craft. If you do want to introduce the
religious aspect, you may want to check with your supervisor first.
Activity Name: The Lost Art of Palm Weaving
Seminar: Building America
Grade Ban: K-12, depending on level of difficulty
For use with lessons about: Bringing the tradition of palm weaving to the Iron Range in MN
Time Needed: Minimum of 3 lessons
Materials :
 Palm Fronds or natural weaving material from your geographical area
 Palm Weaving Guide Sheets (attached)
 Palm Weaving, The Story and the Art
 VHS video, Palm Weaving: the Story and the Art
 Primary Source Interview and pictures from Kathy Culbert. She is a weaver who was
displaying her craft at Ironworld, in Chisholm, MN. (optional)
Overview :
This activity is designed to introduce students to the craft of palm weaving
Essential question: What is the history and process of palm weaving?
Outcomes :
 Students will be able to understand the history of palm weaving

Students will be able to follow the historical progression of palm weaving from Europe to
the Iron Range in the 19th Century

Students will have a finished product
Activity steps:
1. Introduce the history of Palm Weaving in Europe
2. Introduce the immigration progression to the Iron Range in the 19th Century
3. Introduce the concept of why immigrants brought their artistic traditions to the United
States.
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4. Introduce the palm weaving activity. This time could vary in length due to interest and
time constraints.
Handout Source: Palm Weaving Guide Sheets By Sister Cecilia Schmitt, OSF
Background Information: Palm weaving dates back to thousands of years. Although it started
in warm climates it, it has moved around the world. It was a very popular form of art among
sailors. Many religious communities also incorporate palm weaving. Palm weaving was
practiced in European and Catholic churches. Italian, Polish-American, German and the
Swedish people brought this tradition to the Iron Range in Minnesota in the 19 century.
Rubric/Assessment tool: Finished Product
Palm Weaving Guide Sheets: by Sister Cecilia Schmitt, OSF, 2001, TT 877.5 .S36 2001,
Regal Printing St. Francis Studios: Iron Range Research Center, Chisholm, Minnesota
Palm Weaving…the Story…and the Art: by Sister Cecilia Schmitt, OSF, 2001, TT 877.5
.S36 1999, Regal Printing St. Francis Studios: Iron Range Research Center, Chisholm,
Minnesota
VHS Video: Palm Weaving: the Story and the Art: by Sister Cecilia Schmitt, OSF, 2001,
TT 877.5 .S36 2001, Regal Printing St. Francis Studios: Iron Range Research Center,
Chisholm, Minnesota
Primary Source Interview: I interviewed Kathy Culbert at Ironworld in Chisholm, Minnesota
on June 26, 2008. She has an education/art degree from the University of Minnesota/Duluth.
She is a former art teacher who now works at Ironworld. She also works as a demonstrator in
area schools and does craft shows. Her specialty is weaving and spinning. In the summer time
she gathers the bark in sheets. She then cuts it into strips. She uses three kinds of bark for her
baskets; birch, cedar and black ash. She showed me several weaving techniques to introduce
weaving to children. She also showed me how to make a doll out of cat tails. This is a craft
that American Indians used to do with their children of yesteryear.
Internet Sites About Palm Weaving
Minnesota Folk Artists Directory: http://www.mnfolkarts.org/sister_cecilia/sister_cecilia.html
Nun Helps Revive Spiritual Art of Weaving Palms (newspaper
article):http://www2.jsonline.com/lifestyle/people/apr00/braid16041500.asp
Naturals Teachers Registry (cross-referenced by state):
http://naturalfibersgroup.tripod.com/naturalsreg.htm
How To Palm Weave (There all lots of sites, I have just one a few of them):
http://www.mbwg.org/classes.html
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Youtube example; Coconut Palm Frond Weaving )Although I found my good examples on
Youtube, many school districts have filters that ban the use of
Youtube):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y98KfilYj6E
Minnesota Basket Weaver’s Guild Classes: http://www.mbwg.org/classes.html
Palm Weaving Tutorials: http://www.italiansrus.com/palms/palmpatterns.htm
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Palm Weaving:
The Story... and The Art
By Sister Cecilia Schmitt, EdD OSF
There are endless uses of palm on stationery. You could make a palm ornament by using an
extremely narrow strand of braided palm and affixing a card. Or one might take a tiny 3-strand
braid, shape it into a heart or circle, affix it to a card and maybe add a picture, ribbon, or
ornament.
For folks who do much reading, the palm cross bookmark will remind them of the presence of
God as they read. Here the tiny cross made with a punch will be very easy to use. Because there
is a great deal of shuffling in and out of the book, it is wise to dry it well and cover with contact
paper or laminate it.
Religion teachers can introduce the art of using palm by creation a piece called "Crosses on a
Hill". Simply make 3 vertical beams and 3 shorter cross beams and paste construction paper.
This can also be a lesson in perspective when children make the closer cross larger than the
others. Press under a heavy book for three weeks. Click on any image to see
a larger version.
A-4 The Thumb-Tack Cross
Our ancestral fathers often cut 2 pieces of palm to make a "thumb tack
cross". They would make a cross of these two pieces and place a thumb tack
in the middle, attaching the cross to a doorway in the barn or shed. Their
strong faith told them that the blessed palm would protect them from the
dangers of fire, theft, and storm.
There are many ways to do crosses. One way is to fold the palm to make vertical and horizontal
beams, then staple or sew the center. The cross can be decorated with a picture or ribbon.
A-5 The Folded Cross
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Trim a piece of palm and cut to about 10" and cut another to about 5". Fold the longer piece so
the ends meet about 2" from the top of the back side. Staple in place. Fold the second piece so
the ends are also in the center and place this as a crossbeam on the cross.
Staple, sew, or glue the center. If you wish, you can secure the center by
wrapping a narrow piece of palm or the tough rib. Press until dry.
A-11 The Folded Aura
This is the easiest design possible. Take 2 leaves of equal width connected at the bottom and fold
one over the other at 90° angles. Continue to fold one over the other holding the folds tightly
with the left thumb. If it gets too large to hold, leave some go and keep holding the new folds as
you make them.
You can use the aura to encircle a bouquet of other palm designs. It can be made into a kind of
crown to be placed on a crucifix, made into a heart-shape and decorated and, if made small
enough, can be used as a border for pictures. In bouquets it can hang loosely in a cascade effect.
A-12 The Circular Folded Rose
You need 2 tapered leaves of equal length connected at the bottom. The rose
will have a center only if the palm leaf is tapered and becomes smaller as you
fold. The width of the palm can be up to 1/2" at the base.
Beginning at about 2" from the base, fold one leaf back, slanting 45° to the left
(1), fold the other leaf back, again at a 45° angle under it (2), fold the first
under again continuing in in a counter-clockwise motion, bringing the "rose" as
it is now appearing, over the front of the stem (3). Since the palm is tapered,
the rose begins to become smaller as you continue. When you feel you have a
nice rose, secure the center with a pin or inserting the ends into the weave. You can either trim
the ends, or let ends spin off. The center of the rose can be decorated with sequins, a tiny ribbon,
or just a knot. It does not need to be decorated if done well. Roses look nice alone or in a
bouquet of roses. A palm rose bouquet is welcome as a gift to the person who has everything
money can buy! If hung on the wall, the roses can open and hang down, forming a nice spiral.
Some leave the folds tufted, not pulled tight, for a rounded effect.
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Roses can also be made into a circle with tape or by stapling; they can be placed next to each
other on a cardboard cross. Tiny roses can be made into corsages. Give a corsage or bouquet of
blest roses to a family who has lost a loved one. Make the number of roses you place in the
bouquet significant. Perhaps you can have 7 roses for the years of a child's life.
A-18 The Square Cross
1. Cut 2 strands of palm about 1/2" x 14". Place the ends of the 2 strips
together to form a right angle. Bend #1 down and around the back to make
a loop around #2.
2. Fold #2 behind and bring it through the loop in front.
3. Bring #1 through the top of the loop to create the top of the cross. Loop
#2 through the same side in the same manner to create the left side of the
cross.
4. Tuck the loose ends of #1 and #2 into the center to finish the bottom and
right side of the cross.
Introduction to the Cone Patterns
The pattern referred to here as "The Square Cone" is often called the "grape". Since this is the
most traditional of all patterns, it has been carried down through the ages. However, it really
never had a name. Some just called it "palm braiding". Others called it the pyramid, the basket,
the bird's nest, the rosebud, etc. Sailors called it "boondoggling".
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Children (and sometimes their parents, too) struggled every year to remember how to start the
cone. It is one of the more difficult pattern but as diagrammed here, will be easy to do. There are
actually 5 kinds of cones as shown here. It is best to begin with
the square cone.
C-1 The Square Cone
Take a palm which has 4 strands or make 4 strands by slitting
palm pieces, stapling palm together if they are not already
joined at the base. Your width of palm will determine how large
your piece will be.
If you have very long pieces of palm you might consider cutting
them in half and using the tapered end for your cone since a tapered leaf makes a nicely shaped
piece.
Take 4 strands connected at the bottom. Begin by bending one strand away from you (pointing
north), another strand over this and pointing to your left (pointing west), another strand over this
toward you (pointing south). The last strand will point to your right and be placed over the 3rd
and under the 1st (pointing east). Thus you have a strand going in each direction and are ready to
weave.
Pull the braid tight and continue to fold the strands in 4 directions, weaving the 4th strand under
the 1st. The children chant, "1, 2, 3, weave". You will braid clockwise then counter-clockwise,
beginning with any strand. To speed up the process, try to have only one weaving leaf and trim
the end for easy weaving. Otherwise all 4 ends need to be trimmed. Watch that your weaving is
even and the tightness of the weave is consistent for nice looking piece.
Finish by putting a pin in to secure the tightness. Remove the pin when dry. One can simply trim
the ends or leave them curl on their own. Others pull the ends together and tie them; others tuck
in the ends. A highly artistic look can be achieved by making a loop with the ends and passing
some loops of thin strands of palm into the loop. The cone then has a "bow" at the top.
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C-2 The Interrupted Square Cone
Begin as explained in Patter C-1. Weave 3 or 4 round of palm. Loop a bit of the palm then begin
braiding again. One can make a very attractive series of braids interrupted by loops. These make
beautiful palm bouquets. The interrupted cone can become a Christmas tree ornament.
C-3 The Circular Cone or Rosebud
It is begun the same way as the square cone (C-1). However, after the first
round, one slants the palm strand when placing it on the palm piece instead
of placing it squarely across. That is:
1.Weave from South to Northwest.
2. From West to Northeast.
3. From North to Southeast.
4. From East to Southwest and continue.
Every 4th strand is woven under the first. The weaving pattern is the same except that the strands
are placed diagonally over the other strands and the result will be round instead of square in
shape.
A "Combination Cone" is also possible by combining the round and square cone patterns. Make
one square round, then one diagonal round, or any combination you wish.
A fascinating variation of the cone pattern is the "Rat Race" cone which goes in both directions.
Begin the square weave, split the 4 strands into 8 strands and weave, going one direction and
then the other.
C-12 The 4-Strand Plait
Cut two strips of palm leaf about 1/2" wide and as long as possible.
1. Double one piece and insert the middle of the other piece inside the fold, thus
dividing the piece into 4 strips.
2. Fold strip #3 in back of #1 and next to #2.
3. Weave or plait strip #4 over #2, under #3, next to #1.
4. Fold #1, the outside strand on the left, under #4, next to #3.
5. Plait #2, the outside strand on the right over #3, under #1, and next to #4.
6. Repeat the above, folding and weaving from one side then the other until you
reach the end of your strands.
If narrow strands of palm are used, the resulting braid or "plait", as it was called by the pioneers,
can be used as a halo or encircling band in a bouquet or arrangement.
This is much easier than you might think. And by making two of these and combining them, you
can create a cross.
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C-21 The Monstrance
Here is one way to make a monstrance. The pattern shown here has the top piece made like the
loop bouquet pattern (B-4). The loop, however, is made about 3" in diameter and the weaving
around the center of the loop results in a large center weave which is about 1" in diameter.
The bottom is made much like the chalice. Select 5 pieces of palm rib and make a sort of
"wheel". One can place narrow strands of palm in a large darning needle and weave around these
spines. Begin the weave at the top, securing the rib pieces. As it dries it will need to be held in
place with clothes pins. Connecting the top and the bottom are palm braids reinforced by palm
rib pieces. There are more patterns in the Supplement of this book.
C-22 The Symbol of a Dove (The Bird)
The dove is one of the most popular decorations of
arrangements, for the desk, for mobile, or to hang on the door or
the wall. You can put it at the end of a rib of palm, the Zig-Zag
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(A-20) or hang it on a string.
1. The dove is made from two separate leaves of palm. Start with two even and similar palm
leaves, 12" to 20" long. Trim the leaves of their hard rib and split each of the two leaves evenly
into four strands, leaving about 6" of the butt end of the leaf unsplit. The unsplit end of the palm
leaf will become the wings of the dove and will be trimmed in the final step.
2. Leaf A is in your left hand and leaf B is in your right hand and the four strands of the leaf that
you split are numbered 1 through 4, top to bottom. Fold strip A1 down perpendicular over the
top of the other strands and crease it firmly. Then weave it over A2, under A3 and over A4. Fold
strip A2 down perpendicular over the top of A3 and A4, crease it firmly, and weave it over A3
and under A4 (the opposite of what you did with A1).
Do this exact same weaving pattern to leaf B except that its weave pattern is done the opposite of
leaf A. This means that since strand A1 is over the top of A4, B1 needs to be under B4. It is
imperative that these two halves are woven opposite of each other for the rest of the weaving
process to work.
3. Weave strands A3 and A4 together with B3 and B4. Also weave A1 and A2 together with B1
and B2. This brings the two halves of the dove together, and there should be continuous
over/under weave pattern for each of the strands.
4. The dove gets placed on a flat surface at this point, and the part facing up is the belly of the
bird (so put the worst side up at this point). Pull strands B3 and B4 over the bird, but do not
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crease them. Pull A3 and A4 over the top also and weave them into B3 and B4 making sure that
A3 and B3 stay crossed in this weave pattern (refer to the video for a demonstration).
5. Pin the strands from step 4 under your pinky finger or the edge of your hand and pull strands
A1, A2, B1, and B2 up like you just did in step 4 and weave them together. Also be careful that
they are properly crossed in the weave pattern or they will not weave together properly in the rest
of the dove.
6. A1, A2, A3, and A4 are now woven together on the left side of the dove. B1, B2, B3, and B4
are woven together on the right side of the dove. Each of the strands should have an over/under
weave pattern throughout the entire dove at this point. The body of the dove is a loose, open
weave pattern which will now stay together without holding onto it at this point.
7. The opening at the top of the dove created when strands A3 and B3 were pulled up and over to
star forming the belly of the bird are where A1, A2, B1, and B2 all pass through to form the head
of the dove. Since A2 last passes over A3 in the weave pattern, it passes under both B3 and B4 to
come out of the opening for the head. A1 is under A3 and thus goes over B4 and under B3 into
the opening at the top of the dove. B2 is under B3 and thus must go over A4 and under A3. B1 is
over B3 and is now passed under both A3 and A4.
8. The opening at the bottom of the dove created when strands A1 and B1 were pulled up into the
belly of the bird become the opening where A3, A4, B3, and B4 pass through to form the tail of
the dove. A4 is under A1 so it is now woven over B2 and under B1 into the opening for the tail.
A3 is over A1 so it is woven under both B2 and B1. B4 is over B1 so it is passed under both A1
and A2, and B2 weaves over A2 and under A1.
9. Tighten up the weave pattern of the body of the dove by pulling each of the strands one by
one, no more than an inch at a time. Start on either end of the dove, pull the 4 strands one at a
time, and switch to the other end of the dove to do the same. Continue doing this until you have a
nice, tight, even body of the dove. If it is lop-sided pull on the strand that straightens the body of
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the dove. out. Since the palm leaves dry out and shrink over time, it is important that you pull the
weave pattern very tight and close together.
10. Align the 4 strands for the head, and tie an overhand knot to form the head of the dove.
Leave the neck the length you desire and crease the knot firmly. Trim the ends of the strands off
at an acute angle (60° - 80°) as shown in the video to form the doves beak.
11. Align the two wings together and cut them off at the same length. They may also be trimmed
and shaped in various ways to look like wings of a dove.
12. Trim the 4 strands for the tail. They also may be curled, kept extremely long, or split ;and
frayed for a more full appearance.
C-23 The Symbol of the Christian: The Fish
The fish was the symbol for the Christians and is still
symbolic of the church.
1. Begin by cutting 2 lengths of palm 20". Fold in half. Insert
the base of #1 into #2 to form a "V" shape. The right palm
strip is always on top.
2. Leave the two front strips dangle.
3. Taking the back strips, bring #1 around and to the left.
4. Take #2, go behind and down through the loop in the center. Slip the right front top strip back
in place.
5. Continue with #2; loop over #1 and weave into same loop and step 4.
6. Turn the fish over taking #2 and bend over.
7. Take the bottom strip and go under the 2 remaining strips and roll over and lay along side.
8. Take next lower right strip and weave over and under. This completes one side of the fish.
9. Flip fish over, take top right strip and lay over as step 7 then weave as step 8.
10. Trim ends. You may add pieces for a tail.
Another way to create an interesting pattern is to place a knot in the end of a strong palm rib and
insert it into the fish. It looks like a fisherman's joy!
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