Egypt, preceding the discovery of basketweaving. Her materials, though, are not the reeds of riverbanks, but modern telephone wire or rush (the twisted kraft paper used for country chair seats.) The coil is variably thickened or thinned by splicing or unsplicing wires and stripping off the insulation to taper the connection. Wound tightly around the rush or wire is colored, waxed Irish linen thread. The linen used to be available in only ten colors; now there are 34, which sometimes makes it harder, says Wiss, to decide what to use. Like patchwork quilters who use every bit of scrap, Wiss uses every last leftover strand of thread.