Candace Pratt began a career in architectural glass in 2000, after 25 years in new product marketing. In 2015 she decided to explore her own work and was selected for a prestigious Pilchuck Glass School residency. From that opportunity, she has slowly woven a story through her contemporary basketry sculptures. In her own words: “It took 65 years of making to figure out what I wanted to say and through what media. I intertwined my love of glass and fiber, and chose vessels and basketry as my voice to highlight global issues of equality and sustainability.”

Learn how to make two willow garden structures – an obelisk and a trellis. This class will take place in-person with instructor Carol Horvath, in Salem, Oregon. The techniques learned will be waling and random weaving. Project sizes will likely range from 18” X 2’ to 18” X 6.’

In this class, we will create a unique basket by working with plant materials that your instructor grew, harvested and processed by hand. Each basket will have a different pattern, since we will be designing them as we go, using a mixture of twining and plaiting. This class is all about playing with design, using iris leaf and willow bark to weave this traveling leaf-patterned basket. 

On Day 5 of our March Zoom-In, March 15, you have the choice of 2 different classes: Lavender “Wands” with Anne Bowers, or a triple-twined cotton basket called Twizzy with Linda Schwerz.

On Day 4 of our Zoom-In, Friday, March 15, we have 2 class offerings. Classes include: Rosette Pendant Necklace with Cael Chappell and Tapestry with Anne Bowers.

March’s general meeting will be online over Zoom. We will be talking with David Bacharach, a metalsmith who has been creating work from his studio outside of Baltimore for over 30 years. David is known for his signature woven copper technique and his emphasis on patinas, texture, and natural forms.

On Day 3 of our Zoom-In, March 14, 2024, we have the class: Woven Mini Gourd Necklace with Jennifer Wool. Thursday will also be the 2nd day of the class: Church’s Oval Double-wall Basket with Anne Bowers.

On Day 2 of our March Zoom-In, Wednesday, March 13, we have the class: Oval Diagonally-plaited Willow Bark Basket with Carol Horvath. It will also be the 2nd day of the following classes: Stairway- Full-turn Twining with Susan Hanks, and Small Waste Basket with Sheila Wray and Elaine Twogood.

On Day One of our March Zoom-In, we have the choice of 4 classes: Small Waste Basket with Sheila Wray and Elaine Twogood (2-day class); Seashells and Knotless Netting with Jane Wilson; or Stairway: Full-turn Twining with Susan Hanks (2-day class); Church’s Oval Double-Wall Basket with Anne Bowers.

In this 3-hour online class, students will learn to weave a shekere, a West African percussion instrument. It is made from a dried gourd that has a painted metallic finish. Wooden beads are woven in a net around the gourd. The shape of the gourds determines the sound of the instrument. Finished size is 5 ½" x 8".  

In this class Chloë Hight will share her love of weaving with a wide array of plant fibers, from leaves in the garden compost bin to materials growing in neighborhood alleys. Students will learn how to make cordage as an entry point to begin creating a relationship with a new plant material and explore its viability for basket weaving. Foundational weaving techniques including plaiting, twining, and border patterns will be introduced to create a small vessel using local plant fibers.

February’s general meeting will be online over Zoom. We will be talking with basket artist Sally Metcalf. ​Here are a few words from Sally, “I started my basket career when I was in my forties while staring at a very dead tree. It called to me. And that was the beginning of ‘What if.’ Basketmaking is a meditation as well as an artform. My handcrafted baskets and plates are woven from natural materials that give them strength and durability that will stand the test of time.”

CBBG members can collect cut red osier dogwood branches from Hoyt Arboretum throughout the day on Wednesday, February 14, 2024. There is no charge for this event, but participants must register. Red osier dogwood is a native shrub that grows in the woodlands of Pacific Northwest where rain is abundant. 

Weave a decorative 8-9" trivet with instructor Barbara Kommer in this online class. We will open-twine in a spiral and finish the trivet with a track border and a footed base. We will use natural and dyed round reed.

Weave A Real Peace (WARP) is an international organization with the mission of improving the quality of life of textile artisans worldwide. WARP's Executive Director, Kelsey Wiskirchen, will share stories of connection and empowerment for women in weaving communities around the world. The program will be an inspiring look at the work done to support the future of handweavers, basket weavers, and textile artisans in communities around the world.

At our December Hands-on General Meeting, Cathryn Peters will lead us in creating a pendant and earrings using a Pipa teardrop knot. The figure-eight Pipa Knot is named after the Chinese pipa instrument that looks somewhat like a lute.

At our November member meeting we will have a hands-on project; Rose Covert will teach us how to make a Monkey Fist Knot. The monkey fist knot is a fun and meditative knot to tie. The knot was traditionally used by sailors to throw a line from ship to shore or another ship. Today it’s used decoratively as knots for lidded baskets and or decorative elements on baskets, as well as for key chains, earrings, cufflinks, zipper pulls and as the knot in frog closures for jackets.

In the class, you will learn how to attach copper wire and seagrass spokes to a gourd, how to twine using seagrass, and how to create an unraveled edge. You will be provided in advance with a gourd that has an antique bronze finish, among other supplies. Finished project size is 5–6” in height.

In this class we will cover a small vessel using a combination of lark’s head knots and half hitches. This technique produces a beautiful spiral pattern but can be manipulated to make almost any pattern.

In August Annetta Kraayeveld joined basket makers from around the world at the World Wicker and Weaving Festival in Poznan, Poland. She competed with three other Americans in the weaving competition, which requires contestants to create and complete a project in 15 hours; for our October general meeting she will share her festival experiences with us via Zoom, from her home in Montana.

We will be examining processes for design and planning a Sally bag in this online, 3-hour workshop. We also will discuss the Native American origins of these bags, which were used for root gathering.

Using Western Red Cedar bark and cane in your choice of color, you will make 2 – 3 bracelets in different weaving patterns and/or widths.  These are great gifts and fast and fun to make!

CBBG members have a wonderful opportunity to gather on September 9, 2023, 10:30am. No chemicals, ABUNDANT supply and 6ft or better in length and ribosome roots can be gathered too. Gathering fee is $10.

Come make a plaited pouch with cedar bark! All weaving levels are welcome in this class.

CBBG is sponsoring a Sweetgrass Gathering! The site is located in Tillamook near Cape Mears, about 2 ½ hours from Portland, Oregon.

Basket Day is a special class opportunity for members only, in which the Guild pays the class fee and students pay only the material fee. Cedar preparation will be available on a drop-in basis, and students will have the choice between three classes: “Weaving with Iris Leaves,” “Over and Under, Bark Pouch in Cedar or Willow,” and “Create a Willow Base”.

In this intermediate level workshop taught by Chris Bush, students will weave a Twilled Biscuit Basket. This basket has an oval wood base and multi-color spokes that will be pre-glued into the base.

Join us to celebrate summer. In lieu of our past December holiday party, we will instead gather in July with a basket raffle and a brown-bag gift exchange. We’ll have pizza and salad, beverage and cake. Party time!