IDENTITY: KNOWLEDGE

Gut Stitching

Illustrations by Aaron Elmore

Top: Inupiaq and St. Lawrence Island Yupik gut garments often use a running stitch or stab stitch in their construction. Visually, both stitches look like a dashed line. The difference is in how the needle is used: a running stitch can make multiple stitches at a time, while a stab stitch makes each one separately. This construction is common in northern Alaska. While this seam regional style is less waterproof than the other styles, the northern region is drier and has less rain.

Middle: Yup’ik, Cup’ik, and Cup’ig gut parkas usually feature a piece of beach grass on each side of the seam as reinforcement. As a bonus, this material also swells when wet. The stitch that holds the grass is a stab stitch, and looks like a dashed line. This construction is common in Western Alaska.

Bottom: Unangax̂ gut parkas often include a piece of esophagus in the seam as reinforcement. Sometimes this extra “welting” is also painted. Unangax̂ parkas use a double-couched stitch. One thread of the stitch is a stab stitch, like a dashed line, and the other loops back-and-forth over the seam edge to protect it. The stab stitch catches the loops on each side of the seam. This stitch is often also used along the North Pacific coast by Unangax̂, Alutiiq/Sugpiaq, and Athabascan skin sewers. It is also seen as a decorative stitch on Inupiaq parkas.

Gut Parka Construction

Gut parkas don’t have waterproof stitches, they have waterproof seams. Garment construction and waterproof qualities rely on harmonious interaction of seams and stitches.

The “stitch” is what happens with the thread or sinew that joins the seam.

The “seam” is the way the edges of the gut are folded and come together.

If a garment needs to be fully waterproof against rain, additional reinforcement might be needed in the seam to allow the stitches to be pulled tight without ripping the gut. If the hole made by the needle is smaller than the diameter of the thread or sinew, waterproofness is also enhanced. Gut parkas intended as raincoats are worn dampened, and the materials will swell.

Gut is also known for being warm and windproof.

In some cultures, the sound of dry gut is said to be heard in the spirit world. When wet, gut parkas are quiet, allowing hunters to get close to animals.