About
Canceled by Sybil on 4/24 via email. Tt
Steeped in Northwest traditions, this basket is created with striking bands of cured halibut skins as they are woven in a twill work pattern highlighted by the beauty of western red cedar.
The subtle colors of basketry sedge offer a contrasting band framing the weaving. This basket is finished with a diagonal folded rim adding beauty and strength to the form.
Students will learn the weaving techniques of twill work, strait twining, and three-strand twining along with a double folded rim. These foundation weaving methods can be applied to other projects creating opportunity for many more baskets to come.
Students will be able to choose from back, belly or a combinations of light and dark skins to create their own, unique basket.
Join us to explore Northwest traditions while working with these beautiful materials. Finished baskets measure about 4 x 4 x 4 inches.
Time will be given for students to learn the Athabascan traditions of fish skin curing through an informative demonstration during the class.
Students should bring:
Bring a bag lunch. We have a refrigerator for people to store their lunches and drinks!
Details:
- Please note for this class, cancellation requests received 14 days or lessbefore the workshop start date will not be eligible for a refund or credit.
- There is a materials fee of $75 included in the price of class. Materials provided include cured and sized fish skins, Western red cedar, basketry sweet grass.
- Tuition assistance is available. Click here to apply.
- Skill Level: Universal. All skill levels welcome.
- Ages 14+ Welcome.
Instructor Bio: Karen Sherwood began her basket weaving journey creating vessels useful for wilderness survival and woven with materials gathered from nature. Over the last 25 years, her understanding of weaving and the preparation of traditional materials has become much more refined while her interest in creating “working” baskets remains strong. Karen carries a passion for exploring historic basketry techniques and styles and brings this to her work by harvesting and preparing her own basketry materials. She shares her connections to the plants and their remarkable uses when teaching each project. With these connections, each project becomes a unique blend of past and present. “It is with this vision we hope to honor the plants and the traditions they have grown from to give insight to, not only the past but how it can illuminate our future”. Karen teaches ethnobotany programs with the Washington State Department of Ecology. She leads basketry classes throughout the county and as well as other earth- centered programs through Earthwalk Northwest, a wilderness school she and her husband founded in 1996. More info at: www.earthwalknorthwest.com.
