Several of our students at The Basket Sampler have expressed an
interest in weaving on gourds. There are some beautful things you
can do with them. Gourds can be painted, carved, burned, twined,
coiled and just about any other basket weaving technique. There is
some prep work involved in getting the gourds ready to weave
on...drying, cleaning, scraping the insides, painting or staining.
THEN you get to weave.
We recently had the opportunity to have Catherine Devine and her
husband Gary come to the shop to teach us a little bit about
weaving on gourds. One class was on coiling, and the other was
coiling with pine needles. I was especially interested in how they
prepared the gourds. They made it look really easy. The classes
were a lot of fun, and I enjoyed learning how to weave something
new.
One of our regular weavers, Sybil Phelps, has taken an interest
and actually started to weave on the gourds. She is doing a
mixture of techniques-coiling, teneriffe, pine needle weaving, and
even some burning. Watch the website for more samples of her work,
and gourds for sale in the near future. Here's a little about
Sybil and her gourds:
SYBIL PHELPS
I cannot remember a time in my life when I was not interested in
fibers. As I young girl,I was always thrilled when my father, a
clothing wholesaler, brought home swatches of fabric samples that I
made into tapestries and clothing for my dolls. My first sewing
machine was given to me while I was still in grade school. I took
sewing lessons and made my own clothing for many years.
As an adult, I have learned many crafts that use fibers. Quilting
has been a favorite and one that I have developed to the point that
I have sold my work at art fairs in Costa Rica where I lived for
over twenty years. While there, I studied basketry with an
accomplished weaver, and since my return to the USA three years
ago, I have been taking basketry classes. Last year, I made a leap
from weaving baskets to weaving gourds, something that had long
interested me. I recently attended two gourd workshops in Michigan
and New York State. I think I have found my true passion; I
continually look forward to creating new gourds. I have collected
gourds from around the country and harvested several from my own
garden. I always seek to maintain the integrity of each individual
gourd. I want each of my creations to reflect nature. When I
travel, I constantly seek out stones, seeds, dried weeds and
flowers that I can incorporate into my art. I recently returned
from a trip to Costa Rica with a suitcase filled with pieces of
coconut shells and unusual seeds. I love to take long walks, and I
always watch for materials that I can use in my projects. I've even
found some "treasures" in downtown Milford.
For the month of March, 2012, Sybil was the featured artist at Main
Street Art in Milford, MI. Her gourds and baskets were displayed
in their window for all to enjoy. Here are a few of them, that
include gourds lined with hand made paper, waxed linen coiling and
buttons and beads that Sybil has acquired from travels around the
world.
