Svetlana Svetlana Tusida describes a sewing pouch

"There are handbags like this in various sizes. Small padko are sewn by girls who are just learning how to sew. Once they’ve made a padko, they show it to their older relatives. Our grandmothers always said that you should never hide your sewing work. You should show it to the adults. They will then give you advice. If you’ve done something wrong, an adult will correct you. Someone who keeps their sewing to themselves will never become a skilled craftswoman. That’s why, when a Nenets girl begins to sew, she surrounds herself with adult relatives.

There are many types of padko — made from cloth, suede, or decorated with pieces of reindeer leg skin and reindeer hooves. Padko are used to store all kinds of things. Younger girls fill them with toys and pieces of fur suitable for sewing. Older girls use them to store their sewing tools, processed reindeer leg hides, felt, and other sewing supplies. In the photo, we see a medium-sized padko. The visible side is the decorated one. It is made of reindeer leg skin and hooves from newborn reindeer calves. It was likely a pouch for storing finished sewing projects. It displays Nenets ornaments — of which there are three types: ‘heads,’ ‘little tents,’ and ‘rabbit ears.’ These designs are easy to make and don’t take much time to cut. They are sewn quickly.

To make something, reindeer sinew is needed. Among the Nenets, women use sinew for sewing — and preparing it is hard work. First, it has to be properly processed, dried, and moistened. Only then can it be turned into threads for sewing. The prepared threads are stored in a special wrapping. If not stored properly, freshly twisted sinew dries out. Dried sinew threads break easily. And if the sinew thread breaks, you can't sew with it anymore. If a craftswoman wants to do things properly, she must first prepare good-quality fur — and she must carefully prepare the sinew threads.

The woman who made the padko in the photo was a skilled craftswoman. She must have made good sinew threads — and that’s how such a beautiful padko came into being."

Recorded by Svetlana Tusida, 2024.