Pacific Northwest Traditional Cedar Uses
My name is Squeek. I am a Basket Maker.
Several years ago, a friend gave me the gift of a small, beautifully crafted, handwoven basket. Inside she said included the artists name and tribal affiliation. Now … I never told my friend what my grandfathers name was or where he was from, but there was his information on the slip of paper: Plaster, from Lummi. She unknowingly gave me a basket made by a cousin I had never met. My path changed at that moment. Though I was skilled at gathering and identifying plants and berries for nutritional and medicinal uses, I needed guidance regarding basket material harvest and weaving. Fortunately, I had a friend willing to share how to respectfully and safely harvest bark, as her grandmother showed her, and another provided instruction on weaving. Harvesting of the cedar root, cattail, nettle and soft rush I was able to acquire by listening to the plants and spending time working with them. All materials are gathered with care and respect from my own land near the Olympic Mountains. The addition of a Jeep in 2020 dramatically increased my available harvesting grounds in the surrounding area.
I began creating baskets for gifts and use in my gathering but have found those same techniques, when coupled with my imagination, can create pretty much anything I set my heart on, though occasionally these materials have a statement of their own and I allow them to speak through me.