Melinda West | West Gardens Basketry

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

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More Pictures From NCI Art Retreat

October 2, 2012 By Melinda

Kathy Puts It All Together

I am a hunter-gatherer of plant materials and I use them for specific fiber technologies.  Because of the rarity of some materials, the time put into the gathering of others, and the painstaking preparation of most of the materials once gathered, I have developed the habit of saving my scraps.  When I met Sue Smith in the late 1980's early 1990's, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Artistic Uses of Plant Fibers, Students, Workshops Tagged With: armatures, cedar bark paper, creative, Creative Arts Retreat, Fall, mixed grass paper, North Cascades Institute, Northwest Landscape, Paper making, plant fibers, recycling materials, Sculptural Basketry and Paper Making, students, surface treatment

2012 Images from NCI Retreat

September 26, 2012 By Melinda

Inspriation Out Our Door

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ncascades/sets/72157631506760027/   Here is a link with the photos that Katie and Jessica took at NCI.   … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Artistic Uses of Plant Fibers, Students, Workshops Tagged With: 2012 Artists Retreat, armature, cedar bark paper, creative, Fall, inspiring, Lake Diablo, mixed grass paper, North Cascades Institute, papermaking, sculptural basketry, students

North Cascades Institute 2012

August 28, 2012 By Melinda

A Class Example

http://ncascades.org/signup/programs/weaving-an-artistic-basket Fall is in the air, but it isn't too late to treat yourself to the North Cascades Institute Artist Retreat. Four days of focused creative time surrounded by the North Cascade Mountains as you sit at the edge of Lake Diablo, is an experience that can give inspiration to last you … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Artistic Uses of Plant Fibers, News, Workshops Tagged With: class, creative, Fall, inspiring, North Cascades Institute, retreat, Sculptural Basketry and Paper Making With Plants From the NW Landscape, students, workshop

More NCI 2011 Class Images

July 15, 2012 By Melinda

8-8-11 Sample

  More to come..... … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Artistic Uses of Plant Fibers, Students, Workshops Tagged With: 2011, Artistic Weaving With Western Red Cedar, cedar bark, cedar bark preparation, class, creative, design, inspire, North Cascade mountains, retreat, students, weaving, workshop

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

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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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