Binder Cane, 500 ft Hank, 4, 5 or 6 mm Wide

Binder cane is the same glossy rattan peel as strand cane, cut wider and flat. On a hand-caned seat it is the last step: a strip laid over the row of holes around the edge, held down by a thin strand of cane that comes up through a hole, crosses over the binder and goes back down the same hole. It hides the holes and the strand ends, and it protects the edge of the weaving from wear.

Binder has other jobs too. Wrapped tight around a chair leg, a loose joint on wicker furniture or a basket handle, it gives a hard, glossy wrap that shrinks snug as it dries. Basket makers use it to lash rims and, on large baskets, as a weaver.

Our strand cane hanks already include binder: one 4 mm strand in each 270 ft hank and four in each 1000 ft hank. A 500 ft hank is for when you need another width, binder for many seats, or binder for wrapping and baskets.

How to work it:

• Soak binder for 15 minutes before use. It is wider and stiffer than strand cane and needs the full soak to turn a corner without cracking.
• Keep the shiny side out, and run it in the direction that feels smooth under your fingers.
• On a seat, begin and end the binder at a corner hole.
• When wrapping, overlap each turn slightly, tuck or tack the end where it won't be seen, and let it dry before handling.

All three widths are natural, undyed rattan.

Binder should cover the row of holes with a little to spare. Lay a strand over the holes on your chair, or measure the old binder and match it. As a rule of thumb, pick binder about two sizes wider than the strand cane on the seat.

4 mm is the width packed in our strand cane hanks and suits most seats woven in fine to medium cane. Choose 5 mm when the seat is woven in common 3.5 mm cane or the holes are large. 6 mm is the widest: it covers quickly when wrapping legs, joints and handles, and it suits basket rims and big, coarse seats.

One seat needs only enough binder to go once around the holes, plus a little at each end.