Jodi Beniuk is a Metis of the Red River Metis, a beader, and a quilter. She is the founder of Denim and Sage Handmade, which offers Metis beaded earrings and custom-made moccasins from Alberta, Canada.
Her grambear inspired her to do the work she does today. Even before she enrolled in grade school, Jodi was taught to embroider, and when she was about 8 or 9, her grambear taught her to use a sewing machine and to bead.
In 2014, Jodi graduated from the University of Victoria with a Women’s Studies and Indigenous Studies degree and a Social Justice Studies diploma. Currently, she is completing her Master’s Degree in Business Administration with a specialization in Social Enterprise Leadership.
She has worked in municipal government in rural Alberta. She has an equine therapy business that promotes reciprocal relationships by offering pulse electromagnetic field therapy, massage, kinesiology taping, and myofascial release services to horses.
Jodi Beniuk has published an article titled “All My Relations: Reclaiming the Stories of Our Indigenous Grandmothers,” which narrates the story of her grambear and Jodi’s beading journey in the Atlantis: Critical Studies in Gender, Culture, & Social Justice journal.
Brand Name For Love
Denim and Sage offers handmade Metis beaded earrings, custom-made moccasins, and quilted goods. They also accommodate custom orders and constantly seek new inspiration and ideas.
The brand derives its name from Jodi’s personal experience with and love for pets. It was from her grandfather that she learned to care for foals and horses, as he gifted her first best friend, Friday, a newborn foal in her childhood.
During the time she planned to pursue a degree in Native Studies, her grandfather was diagnosed with cancer. She moved to her grandparent’s farm because she wanted to spend time with the people who meant the world to her. She bought Denim the day after she moved back. She then got another foal, who chose her before she did and named her Sage.
Jodi shares a deep-rooted trust and friendship with her two best friends, and thus it seemed fitting to name the shop after the two things that mean the world to her. Hence she branded her Indigenous business Denim and Sage.
All Denim and Sage products are made in rural Alberta, Canada, with shipping worldwide. To learn more about their products and stories, visit their website at https://denimandsage.ca/.
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