NWT Arts

I make beadwork art. I bead earrings, purses, mitts, crow boots, slippers, card holders, head pieces for hats, and more. Beading feels like medicine to me. It keeps me calm and humble. I like to be creative and feel free to express myself through my beadwork.

I first started to bead when I was about 15 years old with my Ama, Rosie Ferdinand. I began with floral beading. My first project was to bead an upper with the help of my Ama. She put the slippers together for me. I put beading aside for a while because of school, but I picked it up again a few years after I had my first baby. As the years went on, I joined a local sewing group, where I got help from the local Elders.

When I first started beading and sewing, I knew I wasn’t able to do it all by myself. I am mostly self-taught, but I wasn’t afraid to ask the Elders whenever I felt I needed help with something I didn’t feel confident enough to do by myself yet. I created beautiful friendships with these Elders. I had an advantage, because my first language is Sahtúot'ı̨nę Yatı̨́. I was able to build the relationships with the Elders and their work by speaking my language while beading and sewing with them.  It’s a connection to my culture through language and beadwork.

I am more motivated when I work on something I haven’t done before. It’s not really fun to me if it’s not challenging! I am inspired by colours and how they change throughout the seasons, especially during the Fall and Summer. I use stroud, canvas, moosehide, caribou hide, rabbit fur and beads to make my pieces. I get inspired by patterns that I find online, which I add my personal touch to. For example, I know that my child likes cute little things like Hello Kitty, Yoshi, Sonic, and Toad — so I started beading some of those more modern designs.

I feel that I am more connected to my culture when I am beading because I like to think that I inherited the gifts from my Grandmas.  My Great-Grandmother Rosa was really good at making moose and caribou hides. My grandma Rosie was one of the best local sewers as well. And when my Ama picked up sewing, I was learning right alongside her.