Author: Colleen

Collectible Bead Charts

Bead charts are visual guides that depict different types of beads that crafters use for beadwork and jewelry making. These charts typically showcase various bead shapes, sizes, colors, and materials.  They can provide a reference for crafters interested in creating jewelry or art pieces with antique beads.

We have been collecting old bead charts for years. Many of these cards provide us with dates and the locations where the beads were manufactured.  When you are trying to match old beads for your projects, these charts make invaluable resources.  You can also use these cards to date antique beadwork.  Beaded items can only be as old as the newest bead used to create it.

Continue reading Antique & Vintage Bead Charts

Native Americans of Maine

How did the indigenous tribes of the northeast coast of the United States interact with the earliest explorers and later ‘Americans’ who came to their lands?  Learn more about their experiences in these two books available at The Wandering Bull, LLC!

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The Legend and the History  –  The Dance and the Regalia

This article about the Native American Gourd Dance was written by Paul R. Burke in 1989.  We are presenting it here in its original format with his permission.  Paul discusses the history of the Dance and relates several legends related to its origins.  He further discusses how the dance has been done in more recent times and describes known variations of it.  Though its origins are unclear, the dance may have originated with the Southern Plains Tribes like the Kiowa, Comanche and Cheyenne.

Get Ready to do The Gourd Dance

Accessories that are used for this dance include a wearable Blanket, Rattles (often made with real gourds) and and Bandoliers.  You will find Wool Fabric and Trade Silver Brooches  at WanderingBull.com that you can use to make your own Blanket.  Check our Accessories section for one of a kind Bandoliers.

View our selection of Rattles.  You may also like our article Gourd Dance Blankets

Check out our YouTube Video on How to Apply Trade Silver Brooches

Continue reading The Gourd Dance

Native American culture has a rich history of using beads for both ceremonial and decorative purposes. Seed beads, in particular, have been an integral part of Native American culture for centuries. In this article, you will read about a variety of beads and their use by Native American crafters.

Continue reading Beads Used by Native American Crafters

The First Peoples of the Northeast

How long have people lived in northeastern America?  European colonists and early archaeologists tended to deny any lengthy habitation by Native Americans anywhere on the continent, but especially in the northeast.  Today we have a much better understanding of the arrival and subsequent population of this area.  Learn more about the history and research of indigenous peoples in the Northeast in these three books available at The Wandering Bull, LLC!

Continue reading The First Peoples of the Northeast

Reproduction Comanche Outfit Based on one Worn by Quanah Parker

Quanah Parker was born in 1845 to a Comanche Indian Chief, Peta Nocona, and his white captive wife, Cynthia Anne Parker.  Quanah became a strong and respected leader among the Comanches and other Southern Plains Native American tribes.  He led the fight against European settlers in his territory. He also led his people in negotiations with whites when he realized that continuing to fight would only lead to the annihilation of his people.

In the 1980s, crafter Sam Cahoun created this reproduction of an outfit worn by Quanah Parker. The outfit consists of a Braintanned Leather Shirt, Braintanned Leather Leggings, a Breechcloth, a Bone Hairpipe Breastplate, and a Pair of Otter Hair Ties. You can see in the historical photos that Quanah would have also worn Moccasins and a Blanket and carried other accessories. Continue reading Reproduction Comanche Outfit

George Catlin and Native American Smoking Pipes

George Catlin was born in 1796. He taught himself how to paint and became an accomplished artist. In his early years, he painted portraits and created lithographs of sites in New York. Following his first trip into Native American territory in 1830 he became one of the first people to document Native American smoking pipes and their uses.  He provided commentary on the varieties of pipes and the specific decorations associated with various tribes. Continue reading George Catlin and Native American Smoking Pipes

Roach Spreaders – History

Native American men in North America wear one traditional style of headdress called a ‘Roach’. Natives have made Roaches from Whitetail Deer hair, Moose hair, Turkey Beards, Porcupine Hair, Horsehair or a combination of these. Native Americans have worn some form of Roach headdresses starting before the contact period. Early colonial writings mention these headdresses several times. These early writers sometimes referred to roaches as ‘crowns’ or ‘coronets’.

When wearing a roach, men can also wear a Roach Spreader inside to spread the hair. This way they can achieve a balanced shape for the roach. In order to facilitate wearing a roach, Native American men braid one section of their hair. Continue reading Roach Spreaders – History

Women’s Hoods

Much has been written about the peaked caps – also known as hoods – that are worn by the Wabanaki people.  Bruce Bourque and Laureen LaBar present illustrations of several of these hoods in their book “Uncommon Threads: Wabanaki Textiles, Clothing, and Costume”.  But what are they?

First, we need to understand that Wabanaki Hoods were worn by both men and women.  In this article, we will explore the women’s peaked hood.

Continue reading Women’s Hoods

Eastern Woodlands Jewelry

Native Americans of the Eastern Woodlands used many materials to create jewelry and accessories to wear and trade.   In the pre-contact period, Native Americans in the Northeast used shells, bones, stones, feathers, leather, fur and metals like copper to make necklaces, bracelets, earrings, headdresses  and sashes.  Some of these materials were fashioned into beads and pendants that were strung on leather or fiber laces. Others were simply attached to the clothing or body part that was to be adorned.

Continue reading Eastern Woodlands Jewelry & Accessories

Native American Ribbon Shirts – Origins

Native American Ribbon Shirts are Regalia items that are worn by Native American people of many tribes and traditions.  The shirts developed from European Trade Shirts that were usually made of cotton or linen fabric. Silk ribbons were another of the trade goods brought to North America by the Europeans. The bright colors of the ribbons made them very popular among Native Americans.  In the 1800s calico fabric became available and Native Americans also made clothing from that colorful patterned cloth. Continue reading Native American Ribbon Shirts

Native American Dance Shawls

Native American Dance Shawls are a regalia item you will always see at Powwows. Whether simple or fancy, most women wear them or carry them on their arms.  Many Powwow circles do not allow women into the circle if they are not wearing or carrying a shawl.

Dance Shawls are not a pre-contact clothing item.  They were likely adapted from women’s blankets. They are made of fabric with fringe or ribbons decorating the edges.  Fancy Shawls feature beadwork or fabric or ribbon applique along with colorful fringe.

Continue reading Native American Dance Shawls

Identifying Antique Moccasins

This pair of antique moccasins was crafted in the early 20th century.  The crafter was probably a Northeastern Algonquin from the eastern part of Canada.  Their origin is determined by the construction and decoration of the moccasins.

The moccasins themselves are constructed with Braintanned Deerskin.  Native Americans tanned their own deerhides using the brain of the animal to soften the hide.  After it was soaked and worked, it was smoked to preserve it.  Until Europeans brought commercial tanning methods to North America, all animal leather was braintanned.  The moccasins were sewn together with cotton thread instead of real animal sinew, so they were created in the historical period. Continue reading Antique Moccasins: Montaignais Naskapi

Catlinite History

Catlinite is also known as Pipestone. It is a red stone that is easy to carve because it doesn’t have a lot of quartz in it. It can be worked with carving tools and knives.  Its red color comes from iron in the soil.  The name Catlinite first came into use after the painter, George Catlin, visited the stone quarries in 1835.  George Catlin recorded a legend about the origin of using Catlinite to make pipes, where the Great Spirit told the tribes that this stone must only be used to make pipes. Continue reading Catlinite History

Bone Hairpipe History – Not Just Bone!

Bone Hairpipe history is long in North America.  Thousands of years before Bone Hairpipe became popular, tube shaped beads, often tapered at both ends, were used as decorative elements by the Native Americans of North America.  Some of the earliest tube beads were made from conch shells and were highly valued. Tube beads were also made from bird bones and copper during the prehistoric period. Continue reading Bone Hairpipe History

What are Jingle Cones?

Jingle Cones are metal discs that are rolled to create a cone shape, with one end narrower than the other. They have been traditionally used by Native Americans to sew on women’s dresses that are worn for the Jingle Dress Dance.  These metal cones make a jingling sound when the dancer moves. Continue reading Jingle Cones