Melinda West | West Gardens Basketry

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

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Weaving With Western Red Cedar

May 11, 2015 By Melinda

It was a lovely week at IslandWood this May, with every kind of weather. Warm and sunny, then cool winds with dramatic clouds and thunder, torrential spurts of showers, and back again to warm slightly humid air, scented with the fragrance of everything living.   I brought a simple project for both the graduate students professional … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Students, Weaving Nature, Workshops Tagged With: cordage, Eagle Rock Multi-Age School, inner cedar bark, Island Wood, Professional development, sap is up, spring, students, The Evergreen School, The Valley School, Weaving With Western Red Cedar, Western red cedar, wild rose blooms, Woodenville Montessori, woven Cedar Bark Mat Wall-Hanging

Coiled Cordage Pendant

February 20, 2014 By Melinda

Coiled Cordage Pendant

Learning to make cordage from the leaves and grasses at hand is fun for every age. Discovering a bit of ancient knowledge about how to appreciate and utilize the plants around us, transforms us into makers of make beautiful and useful objects. Here are some pictures of young people making coiled cordage pendants, but this workshop is fun for all … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Students, Weaving Nature, Workshops Tagged With: ancient, coiled technique, cordage, grasses, leaves, sewing, Small Plant Fiber Projects, universal

Fall Fireweed on Mt. Townsend

October 10, 2012 By Melinda

10-7-12-6 Mt Townsend, Fireweed

Paul and I were happy to be able to sneak a day away from a busy fall, to visit our favorite close-by Olympic Mountain hike.  We've lived on the Kitsap Peninsula for 33 years, and we are pretty sure that this was our 33rd visit to Mt. Townsend.  Though it is mostly uphill to get there, the 2,880 feet of elevation is spread out over 4 miles, and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Plants and Places Tagged With: cordage, Fall, fireweed, hiking, Hood Canal, Mt Baker, Mt Kulshun, Mt Tahoma, Mt Townsend, Olympic Mountains, Rainier, thimbleberry

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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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