In this episode, we interview Inuk sewist Laura Pia Churchill! She tells us about life in Nunavut, Inuit sewing traditions, sewing through grief, being an auntie, and lots more.
The transcript for this episode is on this page at the end of the show notes.
Show Notes:
Find Laura Pia Online:
- Instagram:
- TikTok: @pia.churchill
- Threads: @pia.churchill
Some of Laura Pia’s Amazing Makes:
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Fabrics, Notions, and Laura Pia’s Machine:
Fabric Stores Mentioned:
Other Mentions:
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Transcript:
Caroline: We are recording today on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw peoples, including Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish, Musqueam, and K’ómoks first nations.
Hello and welcome to Love To Sew. I’m Caroline, the owner of Blackbird Fabrics and BF Patterns.
Helen: And I’m Helen, the designer behind Helen’s Closet Patterns and Cedar Quilt Co.
Caroline: We’re two sewing buds who love to sew, and it’s all we ever talk about.
Helen: Our guest this week is Inuk sewist Laura Pia Churchill. She tells us about life in Nunavut, the role of sewing in Inuit culture, and the nitty gritty details of making parkas, amautiit, and more.
Caroline: If you love to sew, this is your show.
Hello, Laura. Thank you so much for coming on the show today.
Laura: No worries.
Helen: We’re so excited to chat with you. Can you please introduce yourself to our listeners?
Laura: My name is Laura Pia Churchill. I’m from Kangiqtugaapik, Nunavut, also known as Clyde River, and I’ve been living in Iqaluit for quite some time now, which is the capital city of Nunavut.
Helen: Awesome. And have you always lived in Iqaluit?
Laura: I moved here when I was about 12 years old and in my early twenties I moved back to Clyde, just for a year to teach, and then I came back to Iqaluit. But I’ve traveled abroad for years, as well, and then always came back home.
Caroline: Oh, wonderful. Yeah. We’re so excited to talk to you about your sewing journey. So can we just start off by you telling us how and when you learned to sew?
Laura: For sure. I was around eight years old when I made my first pair of mitts, and this was at my grandparents’ cabin outside of Clyde River. My aunt was teaching me how to make mitts, and it’s a funny story because she was using different coloured materials, like a red one and a blue one, and the mitts that I made didn’t match. And I was so grumpy and I was like, “My aunt is not a good teacher.” And my mom and grandma and everyone found it so funny because I’ve always been such a perfectionist. Even down to my first pair of mitts. I was like, “They’re supposed to match.” But it was a really special experience to learn how to sew, like, in a remote place, at a cabin, just really connected to nature and building relationships with the land and my family and just learning life skills at a young age. Not a lot of people get to do that.
Caroline: Yeah, that’s a really great story. And at that time, were you learning to sew by hand or was it on a machine?
Laura: It was by hand. But we were practicing with, like, quilted material, so, like, we don’t usually use that for mitt liners, but we were just practicing. So, like, we used the scraps we had.
Caroline: So that was your first time sewing. Did you sort of continue that throughout the years? Did you ever take any breaks from it?
Laura: Well, no, I don’t think I’ve taken breaks, other than when I lived abroad, but I started crocheting and hand sewing around the same time, when I was eight. And the first thing I crocheted was, like, a nose patch because my nose would always burn when we’d be on the land. And I was so embarrassed of having a pink nose that I crocheted a little patch and then a strap around my head to cover my nose. And so, like, getting into crocheting, learning how to crochet hats and then hand stitching mitts…yeah, I guess I’ve been sewing since then.
Helen: That’s awesome. And did you have a lot of people in your life at that time who sewed? Was that a big part of your family or your culture?
Laura: Yeah, most women in my family, on my mom’s side, they sew. Like, all of my aunties and cousins, my grandma, my mom, most women around me, had the skill because they had to make warm clothing for everyone. We live in cold climates and, like, it’s just a part of survival for us. And, like, Inuit women are just naturally really good seamstresses.
Helen: Yeah, we’d love to hear a little bit more about your life in Nunavut. How would you describe the climate there?
Laura: It’s really cold in winter, especially where I grew up. It’s further north and it’s more isolated. It’s like a two hour plane ride from Iqaluit and it’s in the mountains. It’s a dry cold. So as long as you layer up, you can keep warm. Whereas, like, when you’re down south where it’s humid and it gets cold, you can feel it in your bones. It feels like a different type of cold. So, like, as long as you dress warm, it doesn’t feel that cold. And when you grow up in this climate, it just feels normal.
Caroline: Mmhmm. And is wearing handmade clothing and accessories, like, common where you live?
Laura: Yeah. Everybody wears homemade clothing. Most families have women in their lives who sew for them. A lot of our clothes were traditionally made from animal skin. Like, we have a lot of seal skin clothing, fox fur, rabbit, polar bear, caribou. So today we use, like, modern fabrics, but we still also use seal skins. And they’re usually commercially tanned. But, like, let’s say you’re making traditional seal skin boots, then those have to be naturally tanned. And so, like, all the materials we’re working with, if they’re traditional, you have to process the skin before you sew it. And so it’s a lot more work.
Helen: Wow. Have you ever gone through that process of tanning a seal skin?
Laura: Yeah, I have. There are so many steps and, because I’m so busy, I found it really hard to follow up with each step. So, like, I’d scrape the fat off and wash it and frame it and let it dry, but then sometimes I’d forget to do the next steps because of my job, or when I had a dog team, or other responsibilities in life. Like, it’s really hard to keep up with our modern lives while keeping our tradition alive and, like, all of our practices.
Caroline: Mmhmm.
Helen: Yeah, no kidding. I could see that, for sure. And we’ve seen so many cool videos on your Instagram of you doing some really amazing things, including fishing and hunting, and you mentioned your dog team. I loved seeing you with your dogs. So have you ever used some of the materials that you’ve gathered through fishing and hunting to make clothing?
Laura: Yes, I have caught my own seals, but not that many. And then I’ve processed those skins. I’ve caught a caribou, but I don’t think the skin was good the time of year I caught it. Other than that, not much. Usually the skins I work with are, like, commercially tanned.
Helen: Okay.
Caroline: Got it.
Laura: But when I had a dog team, I gave a litter of puppies away to this young guy and he traded me for a polar bear skin.
Helen: Ooh!
Laura: And then I made that into really warm pants. And then I would wear them dog sledding.
Caroline: Wow. That’s awesome.
Helen: Wow.
Laura: And, like, that was all hand stitched.
Caroline: Oh, so cool. Yeah. We’d love to get into more specifics about some of the garments and accessories that you sew. Like Helen said, we follow you on Instagram and we actually discovered you because you made this really cool reel about an amautik that you made for your friend who had a baby. And for listeners who don’t know, I wonder if you could just describe what that is and what it looks like.
Laura: An amautik is a traditional Inuit baby carrier. It’s like a parka, but it has a pouch in the back for the baby and then it has a hood. So you can put your baby on your back and then put the hood over and it’s really cozy for the baby. And then, depending on which region you’re from, the front and the back looks different. Like, in Greenland, we call this the akuq, which is the tail piece of the amautik in the back. The one I made is long and it’s my grandmother’s pattern, like, the shape and her style. But in Greenland, Inuit there don’t really use amautiks anymore because they don’t practice the tradition anymore, just through colonization. But it’s making its way back. And Inuit women in Greenland have become really interested in reclaiming it. Another story: I moved to Greenland and I made amautiks for a living because it was, like, the only job I could have to support myself. So, like, when I lived in Greenland briefly, all I would do was make amautiks and sell them. But the point I was getting to was that, in Greenland, traditionally, their akuq, which is the back tail piece, was shorter. And so Inuit here called Greenlandic people “Akukittut” or “Akukitturmiut:” “the place with the short tail of the amautik.”
Helen: Oh, that’s so interesting. I love that.
Laura: Yeah, in Nunavut, we have, in my region, in Kangiqtugaapik, and my grandmother’s pattern is a long one. But then there’s also different styles, like there’s skirts, so it goes all the way around like the bottom. And then I have pictures of my grandma with a square front and a square back. So there’s so many different styles of these amautiks depending on where your family was from and what region they grew up in.
Helen: Huh. That’s so cool. I really love the one that you made from your grandmother’s pattern. It has that long back and it has these higher sides. Is there, like, a function to having those high sides versus having a full skirt?
Laura: To be honest, I never really learned about that, but I feel like it would be more comfortable for, like, moving around, where a skirt is, like, restricting to your legs and, like, back then they had to travel by dog team, be really like mobile, moving around with their kids and sometimes even running beside the sled while the dogs carried a heavy load. So I can only imagine, like, it just made sense. Everything in Inuit culture, the way things were made, had a purpose.
Helen: Yeah, it makes sense when you’re living in such an extreme climate. Everything needs to function. I love the hood and pouch on the amautik. Can you tell us how the baby is supported inside? The pouch is not just sitting in the hood, right?
Laura: No. So it’s, like, where the baby sits is, like, touching your back and then the hood folds over the pouch.
Caroline: Mm.
Helen: Oh, okay.
Laura: So, like, when the hood is open you can see the baby’s head and face and everything all tucked in. They’re usually wrapped in a blanket, so, like, they’re not moving around in there. They’re secure. And then when you put the hood over, it has a top, like, we call it the, the kukukpaq, like, the top piece. And so like there’s room in there and then there’s airflow.
Caroline: Mm. Got it. And the, the pouch for the baby, is that connected to, like, the back of the coat on the inside, or is it sort of just, like, hanging loose there on the inside?
Laura: No, it’s all inside. The pattern is really complicated.
Helen: I bet.
Laura: Yeah. Yeah. When I first started learning, I found it really confusing because, like, there’s so many shapes and, like, yeah, just really odd shapes and you have to piece it all together and, like, we don’t have written patterns like you do down south. I don’t even know how to read those. So, like, how I learned sewing, when I was 10, like, using a sewing machine for the first time, my grandma gifted me a sewing machine for my 10th birthday. And I didn’t really ask anyone to teach me; I just kind of took it upon myself to find this parka in my house. I took it apart and then I traced the pattern and then I just taught myself how to, like, put it together. And so, like, same thing when I feel stuck; if I have like an old amautik or one of the ones I got from my late grandma, then you just kind of take it apart and you see where it was stitched and it’s all very, like, hands-on and practical learning and, like, observing.
Caroline: Mm. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. And you’ve mentioned in your videos that you focus on making amautiit that are for Inuit women who don’t have mothers or grandmothers to make them. I wonder what inspired that commitment for you.
Laura: Well, it’s more like I don’t have much time.
Caroline: Mmhmm.
Laura: Like, I wish I could produce a lot because there is a high demand for them. And I think I could do really well if I just focused on that. But with my high-demanding job, my mortgage, and, like, all of my other responsibilities, being an auntie, a friend, I just don’t have time to, like, make that much. So, like, when I do make one, I just prefer to sell it in my community to, like, someone who really needs one or, like, doesn’t know how to sew, might not have, like, a mother to make one for them. So it’s not that I only make it for people without mothers; I just prefer to sell to someone in need.
Caroline: Yeah. It makes me wonder: how long does it take to make an amautik?
Laura: It shouldn’t take that long. Like, for some women, it doesn’t take them long at all. Especially, like, older Inuit women who are just used to making them. For me, it takes me at least two weeks because I take my time with, like, the textile design and all the details that I put into it. I just really take my time and sometimes I’ll pick it up, sew for like five or six hours straight. And then I’ll take a break and then something in life will distract me. Like I have to get something done, or I have to do this for somebody, or whatever life throws at you. And then I won’t touch it for a few days. And so, like, I really only do it when I have time and also when I have the mental capacity to do my art. Because, like, being an Inuk, like, living in Nunavut, there are so many tragic things that can happen and, like, very traumatic things that have happened in my life that kind of limit me to my capabilities, I guess. Because for me, like, my sewing is my art and it’s my therapy and, like, I can only do it when I’m in a really good space and, like, feel like I can be creative and pour into what I’m making. Because when I don’t feel like that, I just feel like I can’t sew. And, like, this year I lost my mom. So, like, I’ve been grieving and really struggling to get my orders done. Women have ordered amautiks from me, like, women I know, and I’m like, “I’m sorry, I’m still not done.” Or “I started cutting it, but I didn’t sew it.” And I think, like, that’s my biggest challenge right now, is finding that energy to pour into such meaningful projects.
Caroline: Yeah. Yeah. I’m so sorry to hear about the loss of your mom this year. I know that must be so hard, and I’m sure there are some listeners out there that can relate to you with sewing as a therapeutic practice and having to take breaks from it and take your time with it. I think that makes a lot of sense.
Laura: Yeah. Thank you for that.
Caroline: You do mention your family a lot in your sewing posts. It’s so touching. And I wonder, because you’ve recently spoken about sewing as a way of processing grief and hard times: can you share a little bit more about how that’s been a part of your journey?
Laura: Yeah, like, going through my grandmother’s patterns was really special for me. Just using her old things, like her old thimble or her patterns. I feel more connected to her when I am passing on her knowledge and skill and I just, like, wanna make her proud, even if she’s not here anymore. And, like, the same thing with my mom. After she passed, I was home for her funeral and, like, just within the first week or so, my sisters and I went through her things and she had sewing materials. So, like, I started cutting out leather mitts for my nephew using her pattern and her materials she had left behind. And so I think that just helps me feel like I’m putting the things that had her energy and, like, giving it to my nephew is like giving a piece of her to him or, like, it helps me kind of love and remember her while I’m sewing and, like, it motivates me. So like, it just feels more meaningful. Like, this was hers. I wanna put it to good use. I’m gonna sew it even if I don’t want to. I’m gonna do this.
Helen: Oh, I love that. I mean, I’m sure she would be incredibly proud of the work that you’ve been doing, especially the amautiks and using her pattern, figuring out how to make it work. Just from looking at other versions of it, it’s very impressive and I bet she would be really impressed, too.
Laura: Thank you.
Helen: We love that you identify as an auntie, ’cause we are both aunties too, and it’s meaningful to us. So what does the role of an auntie mean to you and how does it kind of influence you creatively in your life?
Laura: It’s a big job. I have so many nieces and nephews. I don’t have any of my own children yet, so, like, I pour all of my love into them. And honestly, any kid or baby that I see, ever. But I have nine nieces and nephews between my siblings and then with all of my friends and their kids. I have, like, over 20 kids in my life. And I have a goddaughter and I have two godsons. And, like, in our culture it’s really important to, like, make things for your godson, which is, we call them angusiaq, or arnaliaq for goddaughter. And so, like, I’ve made my arnaliaq a parka because she’s special. And my godsons, like, I’ve made them snow pants and, like, when I am working on projects for Christmas, I kind of, like, prioritize all the kids and, like, make what I can instead of, like, buying all these toys. But like, I don’t always have enough time to do that but, like, that’s what I hope to do. And being an auntie is just like, yeah, helping your siblings and your friends raise their kids. And making things for them is so special ’cause they’re just such little things and then, when they grow up, like, they’re always gonna have this little keepsake.
Caroline: Mmhmm.
Helen: But you always make them matching mitts, right?
Caroline: Yeah.
Laura: Yeah. And just, like, the thought of keeping them warm, that’s our love language, especially for Inuit.
Caroline: Yeah. I, I was gonna ask if your nieces and nephews ever watch you sew, and if so, what sort of values and stories do you hope they take away from watching you sew?
Laura: Yeah, I think, like, I hope that them watching me sew helps them understand the labour of love. Like, when they receive things from people, like, they can appreciate all the work that was put into it. And yeah, just to understand, like, in such a capitalist world, labour and, like, sewing and making things with your hand is, like, so much more meaningful. And like, I hope that, like, they’d look for those qualities in the women they married, you know, like, my nephews, that they are kept warm.
Caroline: Mm.
Laura: Or, like, they find those skills important.
Caroline: Have you had the opportunity to teach any of your nieces or nephews any sewing?
Laura: A little bit. Most of them are too young, but I’ve definitely tried to teach my niece, who’s the oldest, and yeah, she made a little, like, needle holder. I don’t know if there’s a term for them. Like, just like a, a heart pouch that you can stuff and then stick your needles on.
Caroline: Oh, like a pincushion?
Laura: Yeah, that’s the word.
Caroline: That’s a great first project.
Laura: Yeah.
Caroline: I wonder if we could get a little bit more into some of the, like, nitty gritty details of sewing outerwear and your own personal sewing practice. I think a lot of sewists are intimidated by sewing outerwear. So I wonder if you have any tips for sewing with thick and warm fabrics. Do you have a specific machine that you use or are you just using a regular home sewing machine?
Laura: Well, actually, I had the same sewing machine for a long time from when I was…like, other than the one I got from my grandma when I was 10, I, the next one I got, I was 16 and it was a Husqvarna Viking, and it was really heavy-duty and computerized. But, like, it lasted me 12 years. So I just replaced that one last year with my new Pfaff Creative Ambition 640, the 160 year anniversary. So, like, the Husqvarna one, I think, I find heavy-duty sewing machines work really well for outerwear. And then, using leather needles for, like, working with really thick materials or even, like, commercially tanned skins. Yeah, it’s really hard. Like, you kind of just learn to, like, bunch it and make sure it doesn’t, like, move…and it will! It’s gonna move a lot. And, like, you just have to keep adjusting it. And like, that’s just how I do it, but also by using a lot of pins.
Caroline: Yeah, I imagine it, it becomes almost muscle memory, like, working with specific types of fabrics. You would just sort of get used to your own techniques. One thing, question that comes to mind is: stitch length. Like, when you’re sewing through so many layers, are you using just, like, the default stitch length on your machine? Are you increasing that stitch length because the fabrics are heavier duty?
Laura: For quilted, we use a lot of quilted PrimaSoft for our liners of our parkas and our amautiks. We use anywhere from like, depending on the season, like four ounce to 12 or 15 ounces, you know, on the thickness. And for that one I use, like, three millimeters for the quilted fabric. And then I do a bit smaller for the shell.
Caroline: Mmhmm.
Laura: And, like, we use a lot of Commander. Are you familiar with Commander?
Caroline: No.
Helen: What is that?
Laura: We use it a lot because it’s weather-resistant, it’s pretty wind- and water-resistant. And we use that for the shell of a lot of our parkas and amautiks, like, most of them.
Caroline: Oh, so that’s like the outer fabric.
Laura: Yeah. Yeah. Some people even use Gore-Tex.
Caroline: Do you use any specific feet that help, like, move the fabric through the machine smoothly?
Laura: I just use the regular one that comes with my machine. Like, for the zippers, then yeah, like the zipper footers and stuff. But for parkas and stuff and pockets…but amautiks are really fun because they don’t have zippers or pockets.
Helen: Oh, how does it close in the front?
Laura: You just pull it over. It’s like a pullover.
Helen: Oh, right. Cool.
Laura: And then it has this string that you tie to tighten the waist, which keeps the baby from falling out the back.
Caroline: Right. Yeah.
Helen: Very important. Key part.
Caroline: Yeah.
Laura: It’s also, the back, where it connects to, to the back piece and the pouch, like, the pouch is pleated.
Helen: When you’re working with so many layers, like, you have your outer layer, and then you’re talking about the warming layers in the inside, and then you have some kind of lining, I imagine. What, what do you typically use for the lining?
Laura: Quilted holofill.
Helen: Oh, cool. Does that add extra warmth as well?
Laura: Yeah, so like, we get this in different ounces depending on the season. So, like, for spring I’d use, like, a six ounce quilted holofill. And then they have different, like, types, like PrimaSoft, like a really soft one, or like, in different colours and patterns. And there’s floral ones. What’s really big for Inuit who sew amautiks in the summertime are the double quilted floral fabrics.
Caroline: Mmhmm.
Laura: So, like, it’s one layer for the summer, it’s really floral and pretty and it’s, like, lightweight, but still, like, a little warm, but it doesn’t have a shell. Yeah, it’s just like a summer amautik.
Helen: Oh, and it probably speeds up the sewing process too, since it’s only one layer.
Laura: Yeah, for sure. Yeah.
Helen: Wow. That sounds really pretty. Where do you guys get all of your fabrics? Is there a supply store in Iqaluit?
Laura: Yeah. We have a store here called Miqsuqta, it means “Let’s sew,” and it’s owned by my best friend’s aunt who is…
Helen: Cool.
Laura: A local. So we have a locally-owned fabric store, which is really nice because she speaks Inuktitut and she can help, like, elders and unilingual people that come in to buy fabrics. You know, she can answer their questions. Before that, we didn’t have, like, a locally-owned fabric store and, like, it made such a big difference for me because it’s new, like, within the last few years or so. We used to have this place called Bath and Electronics and it was a really cool store. They had lots of fabrics. But we also have our grocery store that used to sell, like, some fabrics but it was, like, overpriced. And we also order online. We order a lot from Brador Fabrics.
Caroline: I’ve heard of them. Cool.
Laura: So like, I think they have a lot of business here because they sell a lot of the quilted stuff and the Commander that we like. We use a lot of trimmings, like bias tape and ricrac. Like, we use that for the textile design of our parkas and amautiks.
Helen: Yeah. We love the use of your trims. That black amautik that you made with the white ricrac is so striking. Is that something that you came up with, to add that extra detail?
Laura: Well, I like working with colours and like matching them. Like, it’s one of the funnest parts for me, is like, picking like the base colour of the amautik and then going through my baskets of all of my ricracs and trimmings and bias tape and, like, just piecing together, oh, this colour would look cute with this one, or this doesn’t go with this one. Or like, this colour would pop. But also, like, I like to keep mine neutral, like not too, like, all over the place. So I dunno. I think I’m very particular about, like, how I put my colours together.
Helen: Your design sense really does show. Everything really pops. It’s like you said, there’s a good contrast and it just makes visual sense that it’s not overwhelming. It’s really beautiful.
Laura: Thank you.
Caroline: Yeah. Some of your garments have really cool braided belts that tie around the waist, and we were wondering what those are made of.
Laura: So it’s just yarn. I have, like, a bunch of yarn at home that I use for, like, crocheting hats. And then I also use them for braiding the rope for the amautik and then matching the colours of the yarn to the amautik and the colours I chose. So, like, it’s just like a four braid. You braid it. I usually start with, in the middle. I braid one end, because it’s really long and it gets tangled, and then I braid the other end. And like, just long enough so it can wrap around the waist and then tie. So it’s really simple, but it’s just a four braid. Like, I put up like six pieces of yarn in one, like, piece, and you just adjust the thickness by adding more strings.
Helen: Right.
Caroline: Mm.
Helen: Yeah. They’re beautiful. And the amautiks have a fur-lined hood, or at least the ones we saw you make do. Do you add that on by hand or do you sew that on with your machine?
Laura: No, like, furs, fox fur is really complicated to sew with a machine. Like, we typically hand sew when it comes to fox fur.
Helen: Mmhmm.
Laura: We use a lot of it for, like, around our hoods of our parkas and amautiks. And usually when you wanna wash your parka or amautik, we unstitch, like, we take it off and then sew it again after washing, like, the parka. So, yeah, like, when I cut the fox part, I usually look at the way the fur is, like, the direction of the fur. That’s really important when working with fur, is, like, the direction of it. And then finding opposite pieces and then to make the shape that you want in the direction of the fur that you want. And then, like, flipping it.
Caroline: Mm.
Laura: Sewing it onto the amautik, it’s always, like, the last thing you do when everything’s done. Along with, like, the braided rope. But usually the fur is last. And then it’s really long for the amautik because the hood is so, like, wide. Yeah, it takes a while just to sew it all around. And then we pin in some areas so that it doesn’t flap over.
Caroline: Right. And you were talking about direction. Does the direction need to go down, like, sort of, down your body?
Laura: Yeah.
Caroline: Okay. That’s so interesting. Thank you so much for sharing about that.
Laura: No problem.
Helen: Do you have a favourite part of making an amautik? Is there a part of the process that you really love?
Laura: I think the beginning, for me, like, designing it, the textile design is my favourite, ’cause that’s when you have to get creative. Yeah, the beginning’s always the easiest because you’re so motivated. And then, for me, like, finishing it is so like, ah, there’s so much to do. And, like, all those annoying little details, you know. And then there’s also the front piece. If you see the pictures of the amautiks, there’s, like, where the rope goes through so that it can support the chest. So like there’s a, like a V piece in the front and then you put the rope through so that it can, it brings the chest piece down a bit. And so you can breathe.
Helen: Yeah, ’cause otherwise the weight of the child would probably pull the garment onto your neck. Yeah.
Laura: Yeah. So, like, that part is really fun, too. It’s, like, one of the last things I do, as well. Just matching it to, like, the rest of the, the design of the amautik. And then there’s certain parts of the amautik where you sew an additional piece to keep it from ripping. It’s like, they’re sewn to be strong, to withstand, like, the weight of the baby in the back.
Caroline: Mm. Yeah. That makes so much sense that it would need reinforcement in some areas.
Helen: Well, Laura, I know we’ve mentioned your awesome social media already a bit in this episode, but we wanted to ask you a little bit about it. How has it been sharing your work on Instagram and celebrating and preserving Inuit culture over there with your videos?
Laura: It’s been really fun. I have a lot of fun just making videos and editing them and I think I’ve always been, like, interested in sharing my culture. I know a lot of, like, young people look up to me and I really wanted to share, like, healthy living for Inuit and just trying to inspire people to keep our culture and traditions alive. I really wanted young people to find pride in our culture and just to see, like, another Inuk doing it shows that, like, young Inuit can also do it. And like, if they didn’t learn how to sew in their families, like, they can get into it and ask around in their communities, ask someone to teach them. And really just showing pride in my culture and having fun with it.
Caroline: Yeah, it really comes through. What has the response been like from others in your community or even from people discovering Inuit sewing traditions for the first time?
Laura: Yeah, it’s been interesting. I get a lot of questions just about, like, life in the north and, like, if I sell amautiks. I’ve gotten a lot of requests but I haven’t been able to keep up. And yeah, it’s funny, in town, just people I know will see me and be like, “I saw your TikTok!” Or just going to the grocery store, and they’re like, “Go, Fisherwoman!” So it’s quite funny. Yeah, even at work, like, my coworkers, like, older Inuit women, and they’re like, “Did you make a TikTok?” Yeah. I’m not really good at TikTok, I do more reels, but it’s the same thing for them.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Yeah, for me, too, I also am an elder millennial.
Laura: Yeah, but also, like, it’s been a process for my grief, honestly. I journal and then I make videos and I put them together and then I voiceover, like, from my journals and it’s just really personal. Like, sometimes I feel it’s too personal. But the first video that kind of went viral, I actually made a country food dish. It was crowberries with caribou fat, like, whipped caribou fat. And that video got, like, a million views and it was really awkward timing because I filmed and posted it the day before my mom passed away. And then I was grieving my mom and then suddenly getting, like, a huge amount of followers, like, randomly. And I didn’t really know what to do with it at the time. ‘Cause I had, like, gotten into making videos a bit and I made, like, Inuk version of Nara Smith, you know, like dressing up all glam and then making dishes, but using country food and, like, those were a hit. Yeah. So I was having fun with the reels and, like, making them but, like, when I actually started to get, like, followers, I found it to be a really awkward time because I wasn’t consistent at all. I didn’t have the energy to make videos, you know, while I was grieving and going through a hard time. And, like, now it’s more like, when I feel like I am doing well or in a good place and I can share positively, now I feel like there’s been some time and I’m finding more stability in my life and, like, I can focus on it again. It’s just, like, one thing I struggle with is consistency, because I’m so busy and because there’s a lot going on in my life.
Caroline: Mm. Yeah.
Helen: That’s totally understandable. It’s really hard to balance. And people are just following you because they’re excited about what you’re doing and they wanna see more, obviously, but you don’t owe them anything, you know? You can make whatever content you want. And in your case, you know, sharing your culture and your personal stories, like, that’s something you do wanna take your time with and make sure that you’re only sharing when you feel like it.
Laura: Yeah. Exactly. And that’s what I’ve been doing, really.
Helen: Yeah, well, we love everything that you do over there, especially the sewing content, so please keep that coming.
Laura: Thank you. It’s tough in the summertime for sewing content because, like, it’s warm right now. I don’t need to make warm clothing!
Caroline: Yeah.
Laura: I just have these orders that are more stressful than anything. Like, I find when I have an order, like, it just adds more stress than, like, creating for fun and then selling it, you know? I prefer that way. Like, I don’t really like taking orders. I prefer, like, sewing as much as I can and then, like, posting it for sale and then someone will buy it. And I’ve had a lot of customers, like, international, which was really cool. Like, women in Alaska have bought my amautiks and then I’ve followed them on social media and, like, seen their babies in them. And then women in Greenland and women in Northern Quebec, which is another Inuit region. So, like, it’s been really cool, like, connecting with other Inuit in other regions and then seeing the photos with the babies and it is so special.
Helen: Oh, I can only imagine. It must be amazing.
Laura: Yeah.
Helen: So for those of us out there who wanna support Inuit makers and communities, where is a good place to start?
Laura: I feel like if you don’t live here, where they’re made a lot, it’s hard to get them. I’m gonna be honest. Like, Facebook sell and swap. People sell them a lot on Facebook. And, like, where I post mine when I do have them is like on Instagram, on my artist page. And it’s @ajapiadesigns. But other women I know who make them, there’s @amautiga on Instagram, which is A-M-A-U-T-I-G-A. My friend Ujarak makes them and she posts them online for sale and I think she makes a lot more than I do, but a lot of the summer ones. I know other seamstresses and, like, I only know of them being sold on Facebook or Instagram. There’s not, like, a platform where you can go to order them. That would be cool. Maybe that’s what I should work on.
Helen: Add it to the list.
Laura: Yeah. Yeah. I tried to set up Shopify before, but I just didn’t have the technical skills.
Helen: Yeah, That’s fair. It’s, it’s tough to set up an online shop, yeah. We know all about that. And then it’s a lot to manage, too. Like, at the end of the day, you still have to make the garment, so…
Laura: Yeah.
Helen: Yeah. If your preference is to make it and then sell it, like, you can do that.
Caroline: Mmhmm.
Laura: I’ve had so many ideas, like, where I want to utilize the skill of Inuit women. Like when I lived in Clyde, my aunt, like, she’s not really on social media but, like, she makes a lot of, like, hats or mitts or like, just something she makes, I would post them on my Instagram for her. So like, just having that platform where, like, artists can bring you whatever they made and then someone takes a picture, posts it online, you know, like, marketing. And also, like, it would be really cool to have, like, a sewing space that can fit a lot of women. Not like factory, but like a creative space. And like, me and my friends have talked about this. It would be so cool if, like, we had a space where women could be creative and produce a lot of really amazing Inuit-made crafts.
Helen: Mm. That would be amazing.
Laura: Then we could, like, find a way to, like, market and sell it, you know?
Helen: Yeah. Like, come together and have it all in one place. And you could share machines and materials and stuff, too. That would be really fun.
Laura: Yeah. So many ideas.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Yes. I feel the ideas percolating.
Laura: Not enough time.
Helen: Yeah.
Caroline: Well, I know a lot of our listeners are gonna want to follow along and support the work that you’re doing. So where can our listeners find you online?
Laura: Mostly on Instagram, and it’s @pia.churchill, so P-I-A dot C-H-U-R-C-H-I-L-L, and that’s where you can find me online. Don’t follow my TikTok because I don’t post on it.
Caroline: Alright. Instagram only. Yeah.
Laura: Yeah.
Caroline: That sounds great. And we’ll link up a lot of the things we talked about in the show notes and the materials, and we will try to find links for those so that folks can go to our show notes and check those out. But yeah, thank you so much, Laura, for coming on the show. It was such a pleasure chatting with you.
Laura: Thank you, ladies. I really enjoyed this interview and answering all of your questions and just sharing how we sew in the north.
Helen: Yeah. It was so fun to hear about. Thank you.
Caroline: Bye.
Helen: Bye.
Laura: Bye.
Caroline: That’s it for today’s episode of Love to Sew. You can find me, Caroline, at Blackbird Fabrics and BF patterns and Helen at Helen’s Closet Patterns and Cedar Quilt Co. And we’re recording in beautiful British Columbia, Canada.
Helen: You can support Love to Sew and get access to bonus content by subscribing on Patreon or Apple Podcasts. You even get access to the back catalog of bonus episodes. That’s over 75 hours of Love to Wew. So go to patreon.com/lovetosew or check out our podcast page on Apple Podcasts for more info.
Caroline: You can head to lovetosewpodcast.com to find our show notes. They’re filled with links and pictures from this episode. And if you’d like to get in touch with us, leave us a message at 1-844-SEW-WHAT. That’s 1-844-739-9428. Or send us an email at hello@lovetosewpodcast.com.
Helen: Thanks to our amazing podcast team. Lisa Ruiz is our creative assistant and Jordan Moore of The Pod Cabin is our editor. And thank you for listening. We will talk to you next week.
Caroline: Bye bye.
Helen: Bye.
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