Then comes the time to create the box that she will decorate with the quills. Using a piece of PVC pipe, she’ll form the top of the box and then sew the bark pieces together with nylon thread. “I walked around Menards and said ‘what can I use that’s sturdy?’ and so I figured out a little system for myself to attach the top to the sides and I sew the sides and I let it dry,” Cari said. Once the box is assembled, she’ll again soak the quills to make them flexible. “When they soak they become like rubber bands and you can flop them all around and you can do different things with them,” she said. That’s how she’s able to bend them and make them into flowers or critters for her designs. Once they dry, they’ll stiffen up and stay however Cari’s twisted them. Once the design is complete, she’ll bend the quills down on the inside and put a birch bark liner on the inside of the top of the box. Depending on how intricate her work is, or how big the box is, one can take up to 30 or 40 hours to make from start to finish and that’s not including the gathering of bark or quills. “The possibilities are endless with the design,” Cari said. “(Mine) are more floral patterns but I’ve seen and I’ve done just like a medallion style pattern or animals or bugs.” n
Where can you find Cari’s work?
Shop 505 at the Watermark Art Center hosts some of her items.
“Depending on how intricate her work is, or how big the box is, one can take up to 30 or 40 hours to make from start to finish and that’s not including the gathering of bark or quills.” Winter 2021
in Bemidji | 13