Sask. small business makes final list for national 'Tales of Triumph' contest
A Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan business is one of 15 finalists in Canada Post’s Tales of Triumph contest.
Kaila Lefort, who creates and markets Indigenous beadwork jewelry, told CTV News she felt honoured to be on the list.
“It's a very vulnerable thing to submit an application about something you're so passionate about. It's your small business, right,” the Mahikan Designs owner said.
“I think it's great that Canada Post is recognizing small businesses and trying to help out as much as they can. This year, there are lots of really good contestants on the finalist panel. And I think each and every one of them would be well deserving to win.”
Lefort’s goal is to share her Indigenous culture and art with the world.
She said she sketches out every design and creates it all by hand.
“I always can picture things that I want to make,” she said, saying she often sees things online that inspire her.
“I don't copy anything. I always make things my own. But I'll take three different designs and say I like this piece of that one. I like this part of this one and this one and try and combine them all.”
One goal she has for any piece she creates is to design something that can be worn every day.
“I try to keep my pieces wearable, so they're not too large, that people feel comfortable to wear them like every day.”
She also uses unique materials in her designs.
“I do use porcupine quills and deer antlers, just cut up deer antlers on my pieces. I take the porcupine quills and I harvest those myself and I prep them. And for the deer antlers we find the antlers ourselves,” she said.
She said that beading was something she learned from her mother and sister.
“From there, I kind of just kept practicing and trying different designs,” Lefort said.
“I kind of looked online at different videos and self-taught that way too.”
While she is happy with the business, Lefort said there were still some things she’d like to improve.
“I think my beading has definitely improved, but it's not exactly where I want it to be. So there's always room for improvement. So I'm still working on it.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.