Melinda West | West Gardens Basketry

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

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Clam Shell Rattle Necklaces

May 24, 2014 By Melinda

2014Odyssey

I was delighted to be invited by teacher, Peggy Koivu, to share the cultural art and science story that my practice of art imparts, with her first and second graders at their Environmental Education Camp retreat. Part of the Bainbridge Island Public School system, this was a class from their Odyssey Program, an alternative program involving lots of … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Students, Weaving Nature, Workshops Tagged With: Bainbridge Island, clam basket, clam shell rattle necklace, cultural art, Ed Carriere, Environmental Science, first and second graders, First Peoples, Katie Jennings, Media Alley, Odyessy Program, Pacific Northwest, Peggy Koivu, public schools, Small Plant Fiber Projects, spring, Suquamish elder

Remembering Fireweed

February 21, 2014 By Melinda

2013 Fireweed on Mt Townsend

We are on the other side of winter where I live along the temperate Salish Sea, in the Pacific Northwest of North America. I'm thinking about the many people in harsh weather conditions today, even while I watch the Annas Hummingbird gathering fluffy anemone seed right out my window, one tiny beakful at a time. The little bird reminds me that … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Plants and Places Tagged With: bast fiber, cordage-making, dogbane, Epilobium angustifolium, fireweed, Indian hemp, lap spinning cordage, Margaret Mathewson, nettles, Pacific Northwest, Salish Sea, winter

Woven Cedar Bark Satchel or Purse

February 18, 2014 By Melinda

Cedar Satchels

Explore the generous nature of the Western Red Cedar tree as you learn the basics of weaving, twining, and cordage-making using the inner bark of cedar, along with other plant fibers held in high regard and used for thousands of years by the First Peoples of the Pacific Northwest.  As you create your own small satchel or purse you will also learn … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Artistic Uses of Plant Fibers, Students, Workshops Tagged With: artistic cedar weaving, Artistic Weaving With Western Red Cedar, fiber plants, First Peoples, North Cascades Institute, Pacific Northwest, preparating materials, respectful gathering, Twining, weaving, Weaving With Western Red Cedar

A New Years Greeting

January 28, 2014 By Melinda

A New Years Dawn in Indianola 2014

Welcome to 2014. I have so much to be grateful for. Family, friends, health, a warm home, good food from our garden, and an occupation that I love. Weaving with plants, being outside close to the birds and the bugs, building and creating whatever comes to mind, gosh, this sounds a bit like a childhood dream! For now this dreamer is content to get … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Plants and Places Tagged With: art, cousins, craft, culture, First Peoples, kvaeoy, new year, Norway, Pacific Northwest, Sami, teaching, winter

Vine Maple

May 11, 2012 By Melinda

Vine Maple

… [Read more...]

Filed Under: Plants and Places Tagged With: carving, deciduous, forest, graceful growth pattern, hardwood, hooks, impliments, native plant, needles, Pacific Northwest, Plants and Places, tools, understory tree

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Recent Posts

  • Spring – It’s on the Way
  • Water Is Life – A Song Worth Hearing
  • Suquamish Elder Ed Carriere is a 2023 National Heritage Fellow
  • Our Sacred Obligation – A Story Worth Spreading
  • Basketry Program at BARN-Bainbridge Artisans Resource Network

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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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