Willow Fest Northwest brings together world-class instructors in an immersive class format to provide a welcoming, in-depth weaving opportunity. You will take one class over three days surrounded by the laughter and joy of other willow enthusiasts.
Dates and times: Friday, November 7, through Sunday, November 9, 2025. 9 am - 6 pm PT, each day.
Location – Sammamish Valley Grange #286, Woodinville, WA
Lodging is not included. Options for you to explore include Airbnb, VRBO, and local hotels. A private home-stay may be an option but not guaranteed. Feel free to contact Erin Cox at WillowFestNW@gmail.com if you have regional/location questions.
This event is sponsored by the Columbia Basin Basketry Guild and the Northwest Basket Weavers, Vi Phillips Basketry Guild for their members.
Please read this important information before registering:
You may take one class over three days; please register for only one class.
If your preferred class is full and you have a second choice, register for the second choice. After you complete your registration, you may send an email to WillowFestNW@gmail.com and request to be added to the waiting list for your first-choice class.
You may cancel your registration until September 2 and receive a $475 refund (we retain a $20 processing fee).
No refunds after September 2.
To register, carefully review the class you want, then scroll to the bottom of that class listing and click, “add to cart.” Follow the prompts.
During your registration, you must complete required questions in a pop-up box. If you skip the required questions, your registration will not go through.
Willow Fest Northwest 2025 is only for members of Columbia Basin Basketry Guild and Northwest Basket Weavers Guild.
Date and time: Friday, November 7, through Sunday, November 9, 2025. 9 am - 6 pm PT, each day
Location: Sammamish Valley Grange #286 (14654 148th Avenue Northeast, Woodinville, WA )
Cost: $495
Skill level prerequisite: You should have some experience handling willow, such as making a willow rod basket within the previous 6-12 months, and you should have reasonably strong hands.
Materials: All are included in your class fee
Instructor: Carol Horvath
Max number of students: 9
Size: H 10" X W 22" X D 22"
Tools: 12" ruler and soft measuring tape, sharp pruners, bodkin, fixed blade knife
Description: Carol learned this traditional basket from Welsh maker Les Llewellyn in 2018. This large, beautiful, strong, and functional basket was originally used for many different agricultural purposes.
Carol will provide students with premade/dried willow rims and the starting 4 ribs. You’ll learn to assemble these using a variation of the typical one strand ribbed basket weaving technique. A variety of willow colors will be available to choose from.
Generous time will be spent learning how to split and hone additional ribs for your basket with the careful use of your fixed-blade knife. You will also trace Carol’s rib forms/jigs to make your own for future baskets that can be made in different sizes to nest into each other for storage.
This is one of Carol’s favorite baskets because it is not only functional and beautiful in and of itself, but there are many variations that are also fun to make. How to make these variations will be discussed.
If you have questions about this class, or when the class fills and you would like to be on the wait list, please email willowfestnw@gmail.com
The last day to register for this class is Tuesday, September 2, 2025.
Important Note: You must be a member of either the Columbia Basin Basketry Guild or the Northwest Basket Weavers Guild to attend this class. If you would like to join Columbia Basin Basketry Guild, click here.
When you click ‘add to cart’ below, a form will pop up, and you must answer every question on the form in order to proceed with checkout.
Date and time: Friday, November 7, through Sunday, November 9, 2025. 9 am - 6 pm PT, each day.
Location: Sammamish Valley Grange #286 (14654 148th Avenue Northeast, Woodinville, WA )
Cost: $495
Skill level prerequisite: This class is for students with experience making stake and strand willow baskets. You will need to be comfortable using a knife to cut scalloms and have experience with 3-rod wale and willow borders. Hand strength is critical for this basket; this is not a small project.
Instructor: Katherine Lewis
Materials: All included in your class fee
Size: H 10"-12" (plus handles) X W 23" X D 15"
Max number of students: 9
Tools: Fixed-blade knife (curved blade if you have one), large awl, rapping iron, best garden shears or side cutters, ruler, weight. Tools will be available to borrow, you do not need to purchase tools to take this class.
Description: Everyone needs a good, sturdy laundry basket and this is a great method of weaving one from willow.
Beginning with a frame base woven on a prepared hoop, this basket is constructed using scallomed-on stakes and English randed sides.
Weaving the base on a pre-prepared hoop is fun–you’ll see that this base style can be used for many sizes and shapes of baskets or as a trivet on its own. After cutting scalloms on the butt ends of our stakes, we’ll tie them to the base.
The sides begin with three-rod waling for strength and setting the stakes into place. The side weaving will use English randing, with choices for how the weave is begun. The top of the basket has more three-rod waling and a 5-rod behind 2 border.
We’ll complete the basket with roped handles (inset handles are an alternate option if desired).
English randing allows you to weave the sides of your basket with larger willows. For those folks growing their own willow, it can be very useful to know ways to use some of the larger size willows that can grow here in the Pacific Northwest.
The last day to register for this class is Tuesday, September 2, 2025.
Important Note: You must be a member of either the Columbia Basin Basketry Guild or the Northwest Basket Weavers Guild to attend this class. If you would like to join Columbia Basin Basketry Guild, click here.
When you click ‘add to cart’ below, a form will pop up, and you must answer every question on the form in order to proceed with checkout.
Date and time: Friday, November 7, through Sunday, November 9, 2025. 9 am - 6 pm PT, each day
Location: Sammamish Valley Grange #286 (14654 148th Avenue Northeast, Woodinville, WA )
Cost: $495
Size: H 15" X W 12" X D 8"
Instructor: Maria Bullock
Max number of students: 9
Materials: All are included in your class fee. Optional $55 for leather straps and hardware, to be paid in class
Skill level prerequisite: This workshop is for intermediate weavers. You need to be very familiar with French rand and 3 rod wale, and have experience with borders. Since this is a bigger basket, we will be using bigger willow, so you need to have strong hands!
Tools: hand snips, awl, weight for the basket, rapping iron, measuring tape
Description: In this workshop, we will start by weaving an oval Catalan base followed by 3 or 4 rod wale. As we weave the French rand, we will stay focused on shaping, creating more open space at the front of the pack, and flatter at the back.
Students will have a choice of adding a different rand like a zig zag or slewing.
We will finish the pack with a 4 rod border on a D-shape opening. We will complete this project with a D-shaped lid that fits the backpack.
If you have questions about this class, or when the class fills and you would like to be on the wait list, please email willowfestnw@gmail.com
The last day to register for this class is Tuesday, September 2, 2025.
Important Note: You must be a member of either the Columbia Basin Basketry Guild or the Northwest Basket Weavers Guild to attend this class. If you would like to join Columbia Basin Basketry Guild, click here.
When you click ‘add to cart’ below, a form will pop up, and you must answer every question on the form in order to proceed with checkout.