Where does one get unicorn hide to make mukluks?

That’s a secret that Alley Yupput isn’t giving up.

The Cree Anishinaabe two-spirit artist who lives in Thunder Bay, Ont., recently completed a pair of unicorn mukluks for one lucky toddler. 

This is the first pair of unicorn mukluks Yupput has made, but Yupput has been making moccasins, mukluks, mitts and other traditional crafts for 20 years. 

“I was with my grandparents until I was about 13 and I got a lot of first hand knowledge,” said Yupput. 

“I spent a lot of my time with my grandmother when I was growing up, just watching the kind of crafts that she made.”

The unicorn mukluks were a custom order that a lady had placed last year, but Yupput had a broken arm and needed to take time off from crafting until it healed. 

Yupput came up with the design.

“I usually try to be a little bit more creative with people who want custom pairs, I get them to shoot me a few images or sketches of how they want something to look,” Yupput said.

“I don’t reproduce works that are off the internet — I go to make 100 per cent my own design.”

Google searches of unicorn images and other unicorn- inspired crafts gave Yupput an idea of how to design the mukluks. 

The artist added some ears, fur tufts for hair and some flower buttons to accentuate the design. 

“There weren’t a lot of mukluks that resembled a unicorn, so I kind of came up with this design and I thought, ‘OK well this works.'”

Yupput can usually complete an adult pair of mukluks in about two days and said it takes about the same amount of time for baby-sized pairs.

“Making baby mukluks is always a challenge because I do have large hands,” Yupput said. 

“So when you’re trying to work with something that would fit in the palm of your hand, it is quite a challenge.”

Yupput is taking a break from mukluk and moccasin work to focus on garments like jingle dresses, ribbon skirts and ribbon skirts until the fall. 

The artist offered some advice for Indigenous crafters who are just starting out. 

“Don’t give up,” Yupput said.

“Sewing and beading takes a lot of patience and practice. If you’re going to start a project, just make sure that you finish them because you don’t want something sitting around for a really long time.

“Don’t get discouraged and keep at it. We all started at the same place.”

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