Grateful on so many levels

Written By Sew Yup'ik

To say that I am grateful is an understatement. I feel very fortunate to have been able to see a portion of the amazing Yup’ik collection of handmade items by master artists from around the state and The Yukon Kuskokwim Area.

My focus while visiting The Alaska Native Heritage Center was to view piluguk (hard sole bottom books), teggumiaqs (dance fans), nasqerrun (headdress), traditional necklaces, and other skin sewn items. Since I have hit restart on my skin sewing journey I have been focusing piluguk because that was my first big sewing project I wanted to complete. I completed my first piluguk at the end of March thanks to a project funded by The CIRI Foundation.

My visit to The Alaska Native Heritage Center was made possible thanks to The CIRI Foundation along with Museums Alaska and of course a big Quyana to the staff at The Alaska Native Heritage Center for being so kind and gracious .

With each beautiful handmade item I felt an a sense of peace. Viewing the Yup’ik collection of handmade clothing wear brought me so much joy and also sparked the connection again to start hand sewing again. I lost that spark after my brother passed on March 28th, 2023. After completing my first pair of piluguk I was on cloud 9 and that feeling was replaced with grief and immense sadness. I have been slowly making my way back to skin sewing and sewing but now it has become more important because it is healing my soul.

Skin sewing has brought me closer to my grandmother Narull’aq and aunt Tun’aq. I have felt more connected to them since I started getting serious of skin sewing and it has been an amazing feeling. To be able to create with guidance of my grandmother’s handmade clothing wear has been an honor. And my visit to The Alaska Native Heritage Center brought on that same sense of feeling.

These opportunities have allowed me to grow as an artist in so many ways and for that I am forever grateful. I know going forward I will pave the way for my skin sewing journey and I can’t wait to share that with my children, grand children and future generations to follow.

I hope that I can lead by example and show that anything is possible if you put your mind to it. Follow your dreams and stay true to yourself. And as always remember where you came from.

Quyana Cakneq again to The CIRI Foundation, The Alaska Native Heritage Center, Museums Alaska. And most importantly quyana to our ancestors who have walked this earth before us and led by example.

Sew Yup'ik

My name is Nicolette Corbett, but many know me as Nikki of Sew Yup’ik. I’m a Yup’ik artist, teacher, mother, and advocate from Bethel, Alaska, now living on the Kenai Peninsula. My work is grounded in ancestral knowledge by my three grandmothers, each of whom inspired me with their creativity, resilience, and love for our culture.

For over a decade, I’ve been traveling across Alaska teaching traditional Yup’ik sewing arts—especially qaspeq making and nasqurrun (headdress) sewing—as a way to reconnect our people to our roots and begin the process of generational healing. Each stitch is a form of resistance, a celebration, and a reclaiming of our cultural identity.

Through Sew Yup’ik, I offer workshops, tutorials, and handmade items rooted in Yup’ik tradition, with the intention to uplift, heal, and empower Indigenous communities. I believe that culture is medicine—and that by reviving our traditional practices, we help restore our wellbeing, identity, and belonging.

Quyana for being here. Whether you're joining a workshop, purchasing a handmade piece, or simply exploring—welcome to Sew Yup’ik.

https://www.sewyupik.com
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