Melinda West | West Gardens Basketry

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

Cedar-Tree To Pouch

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I am grateful to my friend and neighbor, Suquamish elder, Ed Carriere, for teaching me how to make folded bark pouches, and for giving me his blessing to teach this class!  If Ed weren't so busy teaching for the Burke Museum, researching and making replicas of 2000 year old baskets, and having others documenting his life for publication and in … [Read more...]

Gathering Cedar Bark

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Here's my crew! Asha and Calla are in charge. The owners of this property have decided they need to remove these two Western Red Cedar trees. Passiko and Dean waited to get them cut down, until the sap was up, so that we could gather the inner bark. We've all made our personal apologies to these beautiful cedars for what we are about to … [Read more...]

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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Melinda West and basket, Indianola WA