Melinda West | West Gardens Basketry

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

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Cedars Become Teachers

June 5, 2015 By Melinda

I want to thank Leslie Newman and Tim Celeski for sharing three young Western Red Cedar trees with me so I can share the wonderful attributes of this tree tomorrow with some extra special students at Bainbridge Artisans Resource Networks’ interim space, in Rolling Bay Washington.  I especially want to thank my sweetheart and right-hand man, Paul West, for helping me by cutting down, sectioning, and hauling these beautiful materials home so I could speedily get them in the kids soaking pool. It is supposed to get to 83 degrees in this region of the Pacific Northwest, and I need all that juicy sap to stay in the bark for 24 more hours! Stay tuned, and I’ll let you see what these artistic students create! Cedar is a Wonderful teacher!

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Filed Under: My Teachers, Weaving with Cedar, Workshops Tagged With: BARN, berry picking, cedar, Cedar From Tree To Pouch, Folded Bark Pouches, Leslie Newman, teacher, Tim Celeski, WeavBainbridge Artisan Resource Network, Weaving With Western Red Cedar

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About Melinda

Thirty 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. The experience of weaving with the materials at hand while being together with my sons on a beautiful Pacific Northwest shoreline, kindled a passion for creating art from natural plant materials. I thank my family, my community, and all my teachers for cultivating this gift in me.
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