Our home studio and gardens are located on an old indigenous trade route above the Sandy River in so-called Oregon.These trails once connected the many tribes on both sides of the Cascade range before pioneers used them to take and settle the area. We chose to tend a few acres of this wild and cultivated space more than 15 years ago, and acknowledge the many relationships it has had before us.
We belong to the foothills of Mt. Hood, the Columbia River Basin, and the Oregon Coastal bays & forests.
About June
I’m a curious and dedicated maker, grower, and educator guided by how seasonal rhythms and cycles intertwine with our own. Crafting in this way draws me deeper into places where I live, eat and wander. It also allows me to experience the joys and challenges of being rooted in the places I love, exploring the ever-shifting nuances of fibers, textures, flavors and colors that emerge.
My professional life as an educator and program supervisor was grounded in this same ethic. Sharing an understanding that the flora, fauna, rocks, microbes and fungi are my neighbors and part of my extended family is foundational.
Death has also been an inseparable part of my teaching and learning since 2005 and you can learn more about that relationship here. I think it is imperative that we explore how we face and adapt to grief, death and dying in a quickly shifting world, not only as individuals and families, but as a world grappling with climate change, political upheaval and capitalism-driven hardship.
The photo below is of me working on my first willow casket at home in our studio. This is one of the ways I’ve been able to weave my fiber craft into my death and dying work. As a funeral artisan, I am able to advocate for green burial through in this way and it has been such a gift. I give deep thanks to my teachers, to David, my family and community who have supported this work over the years.
About David
David is a trained botanist and wildlife biologist who helped build the outdoor organization with whom we worked for over a decade.
We started collaborating in 2007, after investing in a small CSA farm in Columbia County, Oregon. Our three-year farm adventure ended, however, when we decided to move east to our current home on the mountain. We then turned our creative and practical attention to helping grow a small, scrappy outdoor education organization into a large and thriving one. A very full decade of collaborations there led to relationships and skills we’re still appreciating today, although we left the organization in 2019. This shift in attention has allowed David to explore new projects that include less screen time and meetings, and more time with plants and wild places.
Contact Us
Feel free to reach out ~ june@jacobsoncraftworks.com