406 Qi Ko Lu

Qi Ko Lu, short for my daughters Inupiat names, Qiayaan, Koopak, and Aaluk. Recently, I started making earrings out of baleen. Baleen is the tooth from a bowhead whale in which my family still sustainably and culturally harvest. My grandfather made baleen boats and baskets to sell in the 1980s. In the summer of 2022, one of my grandfather’s boats landed back in my hands on Highway 135 in the middle of road construction! An unbelievable coincidence. My uncle said this was a sign for me to work with baleen. November of 2025, I decided this was the time to work with the baleen. Baleen is beautiful with all of its own design. These earrings are truly one of a kind, and each have their own story to share. Stop by and say hi, I’ll tell you the rest of the story!