learn a little
MAKE A CRAFTY GETAWAY
A Westwind
mural inspired
by the natural
surroundings
Enjoy an artisanal
weekend at
Camp Westwind
By GRETCHEN AMMERMAN
For the TODAY
If your memories of summer camp
are more lanyard making and canoeing
and less waking up with your hand in a
bucket of warm water, Camp Westwind
invites you to relive those halcyon days
with a grown-up campers weekend that
offers cool adult-level craft classes and
free play time on the ruggedly beautiful
coastal property.
Since it was acquired from the
YWCA in 2006, Westwind primarily
runs camps for kids, but the inaugural
Artisans Camp weekend, held Friday,
Sept. 27 through Sunday, Sept. 29, is
the result of a revelation by some of the
staff members.
“We realized that we had some
artists and artisans right here in the
staff and our close community that
had some great skills to share,” said
camp director Laura Chase. “Most of
our instructors have published work
or have impressive portfolios or are
accomplished in their own right. Part of
why I’m so excited about this event is
because of the caliber of those artists.”
The camp will include workshops
on a number of artistic endeavors
like a fused glass art class taught by
Taina Meadow, where students can
make jewelry, bowls or sun catchers;
photography with professional
photographer Stafford Squire, who will
guide people and their cameras around
the Westwind property; watercolor
painting with Graham Klag; Gyotaku
(fish printing) and paper making with
Duncan Berry; and a beach and nature
crafts workshop with Caryn “Indigo”
Corwin where participants can make
candles, sand paintings and sculptures
using things found on the property.
Whether it’s a finished product
or new skills, the workshops are all
designed to give you something to go
home with, even knife making with site
manager Scotty Evens.
“I’m doing everything I can to
guarantee people can walk away with a
usable tool,” he said. “I’ve pre-prepped
parts that take longer to prepare but
we will still go through how it’s done.
We’ll even do a demo of forging with
hot metal and people will get to quench
the blade. Then we’ll get right to work
grinding, sanding and putting the
handle on.”
Mostly self-taught, Evens says he
was attracted to the ancient knife-
making traditions passed down through
the ages.
“I learned the Damascus technique
16 • oregoncoastTODAY.com • facebook.com/oregoncoasttoday • September 13, 2019
Handcrafted
knives by
Scotty Evens
which has a whole history behind it,” he
said. “It’s pre-Viking technology which
the Vikings ended up using.”
The knife made in the class will be a
mix and form and function.
“I don’t make things to sit on the
wall even though they look beautiful,”
Evens said. “I always make a real tool
that’s meant to be used.”
Assistant site manager Angelo
Regalbuto will be teaching a
woodworking class also designed to
send participants home with a beautiful
and usable item.
“Westwind has always had a strong
mentorship ethic,” he said. “I’ve learned
many things about basic electrical
and plumbing but also making the
cutting boards we create as gifts to
show appreciation to outgoing board
members and other people we want to
thank.”
To help you create a hardwood
cutting board attractive enough to
be given as a gift, Regalbuto will also
have parts prepared so that it’s not just
a basic cutting board made from one
piece of wood but a mix of hardwoods
in strips.
“I will still walk people through the
process before they get to work sanding
and finishing,” he said. “We’ll also have
a branding tool so they can get the
Westwind swoosh logo branded on
their finished board if they want; it does
add a little something special.”
The weekend includes lodging in
Westwind’s rustic yet well-appointed
cabins and meals made from scratch
using seasonally available ingredients.
No experience is required for any of
the workshops, but due to the nature of
many of them the weekend is for those
16 and older.
“It’s going to be three days with
full day-long sessions and some of the
workshops have age limits for safety
reasons,” Chase said. “We really felt that
an adults-only policy would provide a
better experience for participants.”
And yes, the four-legged kids must
stay home too. But you’ll be having too
much fun to miss them… much.
“We have 529 acres that people can
play in,” Chase said. “A big part of why
the Westwind experience is so cool is
that visitors get to take part in the other
things that we have to do here like
kayaking and canoeing in the Salmon
River estuary, hiking, tide pooling, fire
building and exploring natural beach
caves. A lot of people that sign up for
events here really look forward to that
aspect of it.”
Registration is $350+ (there are
different fees based on which workshop
you choose) including food and
lodging. Camp Westwind is located
off of Highway 101 just north of
Lincoln City. For more information
or to register, go to westwind.org/
workshops-events/2019-artisan-camp.