Originally from Iqaluit, NU, and currently based in St. John’s, NL, Neevee Padluq is a seamstress and founder of Neevee’s Coats, a fashion design business that specializes in arctic outerwear. Padluq has been making parkas since 2018 and also has a practice creating wearable accessories out of sealskin.
In 2012 Padluq completed sewing courses in the Inuit Studies program at Nunavut Arctic College in Iqaluit. This sparked her interest in sewing and parka making. Using a pattern passed down from her mother, Padluq made her first parka in 2018. Her parkas come in a variety of colours—from blues, greens, purples, yellows, and red—and often feature fox fur trim around the hood. She creates them in a variety of sizes, making them inclusive for all. She also practises making summer coats.
Padluq’s grandmother, Jeannie Padluq, was a seamstress and noted as one of her biggest artistic inspirations. “She was always my mentor; I always looked up to her…she taught me how to hand stitch,”[1] Padluq says. In addition to making parkas, Padluq makes sealskin mittens, hats, purses and headbands. She also notes her admiration for Elders and seamstresses in the North who have been practicing since they were young. One story that stands out for Padluq is one that she heard on the local radio, by Elder Alicee Jomie, who started by making inujanguaqs (Inuit dolls) at nine years old.
In addition to creating her own work, Padluq shares her skills and knowledge through teaching workshops at First Light, a community-based non-profit in St. John’s, on working with sealskin. “I want the future generation to keep learning how to sew and make parkas. It’s so important to keep our culture alive,” she says. In 2024, Padluq attended Indigenous Fashion Arts Festival in Toronto, ON, with Inuit Futures and was inspired by seeing the types of work she makes on the runway. “I felt really touched and emotional to see the parkas on the runway,” Padluq says. Today, she continues her parka-making practice and aims to attend events and tradeshows in St. John’s and elsewhere.