Melinda West | West Gardens Basketry

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

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2012 Art in the Woods Studio Tour

October 22, 2012 By Melinda

M. West, Madrona and Curly Willow, 10-10

Greetings to Friends and Fellow Art Appreciators! I’d like to invite you to Art in the Woods, an annual studio tour featuring over 65 artists, nestled in 24 North Kitsap studios, this November 9, 10 and 11, open each day from 10:00 – 5:00.     http://www.cafnw.org/resources/forms/2012/FINAL_AITW_BROCHURE_2012.pdf Please … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Artwork, News Tagged With: art, Art in the Woods Studio Tour, baskets, Cedar weaving, Fall, invited, jewelry, new work, show, Sterling Gallery, Studio Tour, Sydni Sterling painter

NCI Students Begin Their Projects

July 13, 2012 By Melinda

8-8-11 033

The following images were taken by Julie Toomey.  Thanks for sharing these Julie! Many students came with their own project ideas.  It was amazing to see how these ideas became transformed into objects.  Don is making a wall sconce for a light fixture at home. Mary wants to make a special open basket, for holding her "angel cards" … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Artistic Uses of Plant Fibers, Students, Workshops Tagged With: 2011 Class, Artistic Weaving With Western Red Cedar, baskets, cedar bark, creative, design, function, inspire, North Cascades Institute, Pacific Northwest plant materials, projects, retreat, students, summer, workshop

Weaving From the Garden – Potato

May 29, 2012 By Melinda

Potato Baskets

  The Potato Basket, refers to this ribbed-style basket in the largest size, but this style can be adapted to any size and renamed as you like.   In a medium size this makes a great bread serving basket.  Students will learn how to select and transform plant materials from Pacific Northwest landscapes and gardens into beautiful and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Weaving from the Wild, Workshops Tagged With: assorted NW plant materials, baskets, branches, bread dish, class, decor, function, garden, inner cedar bark, preparation of weaving materials, ribbed, sampler, students, utility, Weaving From the Wild and Garden Landscapes, workshop

Bear Grass is Blooming

May 5, 2012 By Melinda

Bear Grass

In the Pacific Northwest, this perennial herb has been utilized by basket weavers for a long time.  With great care and delicacy, individual leaves, and only a few from each plant, would be pulled from near each stem.  It had, and still has, value to First Peoples cultures for decorative work on baskets and hats, and was and still is used as a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Plants and Places Tagged With: baskets, bears, decorative design-work, early spring, forest, huckleberry, limited gathering, meadow, mountain blueberries, preparation, sharp edges, sweet scent

Western Red Cedar

April 12, 2012 By Melinda

Gifts of the Pacific Northwest Forests

The forest is a special place, and each plant has it's own story. Once tall, thick forests covered the land surrounding the Salish Sea, or Puget Sound, region. Since about five-thousand years ago, among these tall conifers, there is a pollen record of the existence of the Western Red Cedar.  This slow-growing, water and shade-loving plant, became … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Plants and Places Tagged With: baskets, canoes, clothing, culturally sagnificent tree, First Peoples, forest, Long Life Maker, sap rising, shelter, spring, Western red cedar, Wild Rose

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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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