My First Moccasins

I spent the past weekend at the Mille Lacs Indian Museum near Onamia, Minnesota. I was there for a two day moccasin workshop. I came home with a pair of Ojibwe pucker-toe style moccasins. They are shown the picture at the left. Cute, don’t you think? This is not the first pair of moccasins that I have ever made but it is the first pair of this style. They are the traditional style of the Anishinaabe (Ojibwe).

There are dozens of moccasin styles. I only know a couple. And, there are dozens of ways to adorn them such as with flaps, fringes, different kinds of fabric or leather and of course beadwork, etc. It is another whole art form. The moccasins that I made are very plain, of course. But I will be making a few more pairs only with some adornments.

You may wish to look at some of my other handiwork at my etsy store, Sirocco's Trading Post. Just click on the link.

A Minnesota Winter Storm

Yesterday (Sunday) a strong storm passed through Northern Minnesota and dropped nearly a foot of snow here on the ole homestead. I spent most of today (Monday) running the snow blower clearing paths.

I cleared the driveway and a large area for parking. I cleared a path to the big garage 100 yards away and another path to my little studio. I cleared a path to the wood pile, a path to the bird feeders and a path to the deer feeder. I also had to do a path to the mail box. The whole place is becoming a labyrinth of paths. Oh well, it’s better than wearing snowshoes. The image on the left is a photo of the deck from inside the house.

I sometimes wonder what it was like for my Native American ancestors who lived here 200 years ago. They lived in teepees or wigwams with just an open fire in the middle of the structure and some animal skins to keep warm. It must have been a hard life.

On the other hand, a few days ago I found myself stuck in traffic just barely creeping along. I was on my way to the appliance store to get a replacement heating element for the kitchen oven. It had burned out. Frustrated, I was thinking, “wouldn’t it be nice if we could just live the simple life of 200 years ago.”

Well, so much for my ramblings. Instead, let’s talk about jewelry. I came across some boxes of vintage fashion jewelry and I have begun adding some to the Sirocco’s Curios store. This item is a fine Trifari goldtone necklace. Take a look. I will be adding many more items over the next few days so keep coming back.