Basketmaker & Smallholder.

I am a basketmaker with a smallholding of willow, dogwood, lavender & heirloom apples in the rural Blue Mountains of Ontario, Canada.  It’s rewarding to cultivate this beautiful little patch of Earth with my family.  We have met great friends and neighbours in the communities throughout the Blue Mountains since buying the empty lot in 2001.

Willow in the foreground & dogwood in the background

The ebbs and flows of our lives can make it challenging to create balance.  At 50 years old I listened to my recurring heart condition and need to prioritize physical & mental health, so I now aim to incorporate mindfulness and meditation into every day.  It might sound crazy, but if I carve out enough time each week to create one basket, I feel like I’ve balanced time for myself with all the other commitments on the list. I get lost in the rhythm and flow of the weaving, and my nagging thoughts & stresses melt away for those moments.

Let’s get excited about basketmaking together!

Do you want to create a mindful pause in your busy life?  Can you remember that last time you had a chance to do something creative? Do you love working with your hands & crafting functional art? Forage from nature or upcycle long wiry materials from around the house. As you weave your basket you will feel rejuvenated, creative, accomplished and a little more balanced in your week. Enjoy this blog with tips & links to good learning resources or sign up for a workshop!

Defining moments as a basketmaker.

Turning 50.

  • I made a list of 50 things I have always wanted to do or things I used to do but stopped prioritizing.
  • I don’t need to do all 50 things on this bucket list- some are big dreams, some are small habits- but I look at the list every now and then and check off just one or two more.
  • Among the 50 were to take blacksmithing,  dry stone walling and YES basket making workshops… Guess what! I have done all three and loved each one.  Watch for my Thinking Outside the Basket posts where I share my experiences with metal and stone!

Balancing life.

  • Here at home in the Blue Mountains I live with my husband, son & 5 cats. We cultivate willow, dogwood, lavender & heirloom apples &  I make baskets.
  • In community life, I am a Town Councillor. One of my roles is to work with our agricultural community, so I enjoy learning from experienced farmers as we cultivate our smallholding. I am part of the Artsburg community of the village of Clarksburg where I find inspiration  & mutual support with fellow artists.
  • I visit my parents & daughter each week in Newmarket. My mother is a weaver so we can be creative together in her studio when I visit. My daughter also joined me for a basket workshop in England while we were visiting my Father-in-law.
  • Until I was elected to Council, I taught at Niagara College and before that was a local high school teacher. I am delighted to now combine my vocation & my craft to teach beginner basket workshops!
  • To create balance in life with a busy Council schedule, I have set a 2019 goal to pay attention to my craft and my emerging artisan business each week.  I love weaving & growing willow and want to share it with others as we build a basket weaving community North of the GTA!

Living mindfully.

  • My heart condition flared up like a wake-up call.  I want this body for another half century.  I want the most out of every day with my family, my friends and my self.  I have adopted new approach to life by learning mindful meditation & mindful-based integrated stress management. The message to take time for self-care has enforced my decision to make space in my life for basketweaving. Hmmm…sounds intriguing? Check out Thinking Outside the Basket posts about exploring mindful living.
  • Walking on our trails in our woodlands is a favourite spot to practise walking meditation.  Now I can immerse myself in the emerging willow patches— I can stroll along or stretch out flat on the boardwalk and take in the sights and smells of willow & dogwood all around me. I am happiest when I am messy with mud and have spent the day in the sunshine and wind.
  • When I weave baskets I experience a mindful pause from everything else in the world– the rhythm of the weaving, the artistic energy in creating something with my hands, the feel and smell of nature like the peppery scent of fresh dogwood or the waxy smoothness of willow…

Artistic Inspirations.

My artsy parents

  • Dad is from Latvia & Mom is from Germany and met at the Ontario College of Art in Toronto.  I grew up with an appreciation of art and the encouragement to live creatively.  Okay, so

    ‘Copan Silence’ by Mom in the Georgian College Library

  • then I became a French and English teacher but was always crafty on the side.  Besides learning and re-learning languages is on my List of 50.  See above.

‘Trails’ by Mom

  • We never had a dining room because that was Mom’s loom space. She is an accomplished tapestry artist and Ontario Society of Artists member, taught at several colleges and continues her work in her home studio. Notice any of the woven rugs in my photos? All lovingly woven by Mom!

‘Niagara Escarpment’ by Dad

  • We have countless cartoons too all drawn by my Dad to celebrate decades of our family’s special moments. I remember as a kid on weekends my Dad would pack up a suitcase of paints and head off on road trip to go paint landscapes.  My favourite is a painting of the Niagara Escarpment. Little did I know one day I would be living on top of it!

Basketmakers in Ontario

  • I took my first workshop from Lene Rasmussen at Lakeshore Willows & knew I was hooked on baskets from that moment on! Lene has created a welcoming basket community on the north shore of Lake Erie for those of us in Ontario & the Northeastern States.
  • Jacquie & Jill at the Branch Ranch southeast of Peterborough run another enclave of regular & new basket weavers. I took a couple of their workshops before Christmas last year and thoroughly enjoyed learning new skills.

Basketmakers in Europe

  • I have also taken workshops with Steen Madsen at Lene’s.  Steen is a Danish master basket weaver who has taught all over the world. Specializing in historic & traditional European baskets, Steen has taught me how to make a Latvian log basket & this year we worked out how to make a Latvian willow hangbag (soma). How lucky we are that he is good friends with Lene here in Ontario!
  • I was thrilled to discover that there has been a basketmaking hub for centuries only a half hour from where I visit my Father-in-law in England! Maggie Cooper is a basketry historian and artist in Castle Donington in Leistershire not far from Nottingham. My daughter and I took a daylong workshop with her and learn to braid and weave rush into a willow basket (a Donington tradition).
  • This year when visiting my father-in-law, I learned how to weave a willow heron from Kate Morrell who specializes in large & small creatures out of willow! I made it just small enough to cram in my big suitcase & added the legs back home!

Join Me!

If you crave to meet new & seasoned basketmakers north of Toronto, let me know if you are interested in creating an in-person community.

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