How to make a Besom Broom ...

It's that time of year when a broom comes in handy, and not just as a means for witches to get about, so why not have a go at making your own broom ? this one is more a prop for Halloween as the process of making a proper Besom broom takes about a year, as you have to wait for wood to dry out and such like.


The Besom broom (I have a better quality picture for the end of the post) -

It took about half an hour to make.

I'm pretty sure that if you look about the interweb you can find numerous how to's on broom making, so this is more a 'how I make a broom' type post.

As it goes this is pretty close to how these types of brooms have been made for years, the only difference is the materials, I've used different wood to the traditional Hazel and Birch, and I've used wire instead of the traditional split withy, or in some cases twine made from brambles or nettles (yes you can make twine from brambles and nettles)

So grab a bunch of small twigs, the ones I've used are from the branches of a tree that I'm looking to use for other things, they aren't dry enough really, but they'll do for this, seeing as it's more a Halloween prop than a broom.


The twigs & tools -

Not sure how many twigs I've used, but you want a good bunch.

What you want to do is get the twigs in a nice tight bundle, I've used garden wire, but you could use some natural fibre string or normal string, as long as you can get the bundle tight enough to hold the broom handle, don't worry too much about the length at this point, but do try and get the thinner ends of the twigs more or less level.

The bundle of twigs all tied up - 

Nice and secure, the ends of the wire are tucked into the bundle.

Next we need to trim up the end of the bundle where the thicker ends of the twigs are, I used my secateurs, if your sticks are thin enough you could use a sturdy pair of scissors.

Ends all trimmed - 

It doesn't have to be perfect.

Next the handle (you can see it at the bottom of the next picture) - 

A chicken is not needed for this, but it helps apparently.

For a proper broom you would really want a straight handle, which is why Hazel is normally used, as it grows nice and straight, I've gone for effect though and chosen a slightly crooked bit of wood for a handle, I also peeled the bark of it, but you can always leave it on, or maybe use a thick garden cane.

Now you need to make a point at one end of your handle, although if you use a garden cane you should be fine leaving it as it is, to fix the handle to the brush part of the broom is just a matter of finding the middle of your bundle and poking the handle into it, then turn it upside down and give is a few good bashes on the ground, the handle should work it's way into the bundle, and providing what ever you used to hold the bundle together holds, the handle should be nice and secure, no other fixing is needed, but you can always use a nail or two.

Fixing the brush to the handle - 

All done, the two bits should stay together.

Ta Da ! you've made your very own broom, and as I've said if you managed to get the twig bundle tight enough it should stay together, the broom I made has had extensive testing by my daughter and it's still in one piece.

So there you have it, an easy to make Halloween prop, mine cost nothing as I already had the stuff lying about, and if you want to make an actual broom for sweeping then I'd suggest gathering your materials (twigs for the brush and handle) this year, and  leaving them somewhere to dry and by the time next Halloween comes round they'll be ready to make a broom you can use for sweeping as well as riding about in your cape and pointy hat on all hallows eve.

The broom (after testing) - 

Looks speedy, better than a Nimbus 2000

Thanks for reading.