In this workshop, prolific seamstress and craftsperson Blanche Winters of Makkovik, Nunatsiavut, introduced workshop attendees to the basics of embroidery. It took place on Tuesday, April 21st 12:00pm EST / 1:00pm in Labrador.

The workshop took place online using Zoom. This workshop, like all De-ICE-olation workshops, was free. This workshop was also open to all! 

Materials: embroidery floss, needle, scissors, and fabric or duffel etc. You may want to use an embroidery hoop as well. 

The Inuit Futures project is proud to partner with the Inuit Art Foundation to share this event as a part of Inuit Futures’ De-ICE-olation online Inuit artist workshop series. We’re happy to use our platform to host a series of online gatherings to help us stay connected, alone together!

Blanche Winters, one of the parka designers featured in Canada Goose’s 2020 Collection Project Atigi (https://www.canadagoose.com/ca/en/project-atigi.html) has been teaching sewing at her local school for more than 17 years. Her pupils range from kindergarteners to grade nine students, who, by the time they leave her class, are able to make a parka themselves. Sewing professionally runs in her family. Her mother, respected elder Nellie Winters, raised 11 children, supporting them as a seamstress and passing on her skills and knowledge to her children, and their children too. As Blanche notes on the Project Atigi website, Blanche says sewing is both her career and her passion. “I enjoy every minute of it. I can’t wait to get out of school, make my cup of tea and start again.” It even keeps her awake at night: “I’ll lie in bed thinking about designs,” she says. On the side, Blanche has a thriving business making parkas for people who find her via word of mouth or social media. “Between August and Christmas, I’ll probably make 60 or 70,” she says.