Manchester City Library

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May Baskets

April 25th, 2010 · No Comments · Books, Children, Events, News

May Day flowersMany families have special traditions or customs that have come down over the years and through generations. One such custom for my family is the making and giving of May baskets.

As a little girl I remember making May baskets with my mother and my grandma. The baskets were often just leftover berry boxes or newspaper rolled up into a cone shape and decorated with streamers, ribbons and bows. We would line the baskets with moss or paper doilies and fill them with flowers, feathers, seed packets, ribbons, homemade sweets, or a small note or poem. After the baskets are finished they are delivered to friends and neighbors on the first of May (May Day) and left in secret. They are often left on doorsteps, hung on door knobs or hung on porch railings where they will be easily found.

The fun of the baskets is the surprise for the person who finds the basket and the making and giving of them in secret. Here at the library we have many books on gift making, basketry and craft ideas and we’d be glad to help you get more information on springtime crafts and activities.

So for May Day (or for Mother’s Day), I invite you and your families to make up some May baskets this year for your family, friends and neighbors. It’s a really fun and easy project to do and it doesn’t have to be expensive. This is not something limited to children, either. People of all ages can have fun doing this and bring a bit of surprise and happiness to someone who might need it. And in closing, I would like to wish all of you a happy spring season.

See you at the library!

~Yvonne~

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