Qimniq, Klengenberg’s wife, was an Inupiaq from Point Hope Alaska. Prior to the family’s permanent move to the Inuinnait region in 1916, Qimniq had of course been sewing clothing for the family following the Inupiat traditions of design and construction. She taught this sewing tradition to her eldest daughter Etna, and when the family moved into Inuinnait territory the two continued producing Inupiat style clothing.

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Shortly after their move Etna had a Inupiat style parka sewn for a woman named Manigogina in the tree river area. Women in the area began to use the pattern, and this parka style became very popular among Inuinnait. As the parka required more skins than traditional Inuinnait patterns, and as the “Mother Hubbard” cotton cover for the inner parka required store-bought cloth, ownership of such a parka was a mark of affluence. The Inupiat style clothing patterns came to completely replace the traditional Inuinnait styles, and are today considered traditional dress.

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