Debra Zvanut
Baskets In The Woods
Debbi has been basket weaving for over 32 years, and working with children for 52. Most recently she has been teaching children the basics of basket weaving. Spring and fall weekends finds Debbi leading heritage worships for children 6 years and older, making basic baskets. She teaches all 3 levels of 4-H basketry and she creates weaving programs and workshops for the Girl Scouts- youth and adults. Deb teaches adults at 5 locations throughout Lehigh, Northampton and Berks counties.
Zvanut is also a competition winner, winning 32 ribbons over 9 years and Best of Show in 2013 & 2019 at The Great Allentown Fair. These baskets include a large creel-shaped bicycle basket, a cane non-traditional Nantucket basket purse with lid, a small ash back pack, large Nantucket bucket, a two-tone Nantucket Fruit Bowl Nantucket ‘Jailhouse’ swing handled oval. She has placed second and third nine times at the North Carolina Basketry Association Guild Exhibit.
Debbi dyes most of her own reed and weaving materials and love to create deep, vibrant hues and an occasional lighter shade to compliment the darks. She enjoys designing a basket with a pattern-symmetrical patterns – these are always challenging and fun.
She says: “My primary medium is reed-both flat and round, but I also weave with cane, ash, oak, waxed linen, paper, fabrics and different types of reed.” I enjoy making traditional types of baskets, but find it especially stimulating to make an unusual shape or incorporate a non-traditional item into the weave; such as wire, beads or buttons, philodendron leaf or deer antler. Debra continues striving to learn new types of weaving and to design new styles for herself and for her students.
DEB’s GLASS CREATIONS
Deb has been creating Fused Glass art pieces for 12 years. After trying Glass blowing she stumbled upon this delightful way to create and blend glass colors to kiln-form glass. Most of her creations are decorative but many are functional pieces that can be used for everyday uses: meals, serving dishes and decorative vessels. In addition, Zvanut creates glass pendants and earrings, some of which grace her baskets in the form of ‘basket jewelry.’
Decorative pieces have included clocks, wind chimes, glass wall hangings, woven glass strips and framed glass animals. Using bright colored glass, the sky’s the limit.