Melinda West | West Gardens Basketry

Growing, gathering, and weaving with plant fibers from the Pacific Northwest

Art in The Woods Studio Tour – Nov 13, 14, 15, 2026

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Greetings. I hope this note finds you well. Perhaps, like me, you are in the midst of Huckleberry picking, and daily harvests of garden vegetables, and fruits, like the ripening Asian pears. Here, the Osprey are perching on the broken tips of dying Madrones on our bluff, emboldened since the Eagles that nest nearby have left, gone to their favorite … [Read more...]

Some old notes on Schoenoplectus Pungens – NW Sweetgrass

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Growing and Harvesting Your Homegrown NW Sweet Grass. 9-3-2024 Melinda West Not everyone is fortunate to have there own land to cultivate, or even a place to call home, but perhaps you have a balcony on your apartment, or a friend with space in their garden, or access to a public Pea Patch? That’s all you need besides a large pot without holes … [Read more...]

Harvesting Homegrown Schoenoplectus Pungens

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Hi Friends, For some of you who are learning to grow your own materials for basketmaking, it seems early to me, but I harvested my first pot of basketmakers sweetgrass, Schoenoplectus Pungens, that I grow at home. I live in a canopy of beautiful big conifers. Over the years we’ve emulated “bog” conditions in our sunniest spots, which means … [Read more...]

Lissa Hunter’s Take Two Online Workshop

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Yes, this is an advertisement for a fun workshop with Lissa Hunter, a fantastic fiber artist and teacher. Since she lives on the other side of this broad country, we may never have had the chance to meet. I’ve admired her work from afar through fiberart and craft magazines, so when Take Two provided the opportunity for me to learn from her last … [Read more...]

Ernestine Hayes – “Here We Are Together – Our Only Future Is a Future Together. As Humans.”

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To listen to Earnestine Hayes in this beautiful short profile is a gift to any heart that aches for the ills in the world today. I’m so grateful that she found her gift of writing. I hope you enjoy! “I believe that the things that we learn about balance and about sharing and kinship and survival and dependence are not strictly Indigenous values … [Read more...]

About Melinda

Forty years ago, while sitting on the beach playing with my young children, I made my first basket out of a pile of willow trimmings someone had tossed there. It looked wildly made like a crazy bird’s nest. While being together with my two sons on a beautiful Pacific Northwest shoreline, this simple experience of crafting with the natural materials at hand kindled a passion for creating forms using plant fibers. I thank my family, my community, and all my teachers for cultivating this gift in me.
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Melinda West and basket, Indianola WA