Melinda West | West Gardens Basketry

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

A Moist March Day in the Woods

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The past two moist March weeks I've been lucky to spend time diving into the experience of Plant-Fiber Technology with 90 wonderful young people, while teaching at IslandWood, a fantastic environmental learning center in Washington State. Here are some pictures of the budding young artists at work. Students pictured in this blog entry are … [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