April 2026

This page documents a white oak basket which connects me to my maternal ancestors in Middle Tennessee. My great-great-great-great-great Aunt Shug made these baskets, and my family still has one of them. There is a tradition of white oak basketry in Middle Tennessee, and I was able to learn how to make one from Sue Williams, who is the last person still teaching this. It is said that the time it takes to go from tree to basket is 70 hours for a master basket maker.

My Aunt Shug spun her own yarn, wove, made baskets, and more. This work is a big part of an ongoing, life-long effort to be in touch with my ancestors who lived closely to the land. Processing the white oak and weaving this basket was a meditation and integration of this connection, story, and lineage.

I intend to continue this tradition and keep making these baskets, as well as explore what other forms this material could take.