Tansi! Thank you so much for stopping by Denim and Sage. My name is Jodi Beniuk. I am a Metis (of the Red River Metis) beader and quilter. My grambear is the inspiration for my work today. She first taught me how to embroider before I was in grade school. When I was about 8 or 9 she taught me how to use a sewing machine and to bead! If you don't see something you like here, but are interested in something custom, please send me a message. I can accommodate custom orders and am always looking for new inspiration and ideas.

Outside of beading and quilting, I am completing my Masters Degree in Business Administration with a specialization in Social Enterprise Leadership. I work in municipal government in rural Alberta. I also have an equine therapy business promoting reciprocal relationships by offering pulse electromagnetic field therapy, massage, kinesiology taping and myofascial release services to horses (currently on hold until I finish my MBA).

If you want to know more about my family, the story about grambear and my beading journey, I was published in the Atlantis: Critical Studies in Gender, Culture, & Social Justice. My article was called "All My Relations: Reclaiming the Stories of our Indigenous Grandmothers."

 https://journals.msvu.ca/index.php/atlantis/article/view/161-172%20PDF

The Story Behind the Name:

It all started when I was 3 years old. My grandfather was riding his horse while camping 'out west' as we called it. He found a wild newborn foal (baby horse) that was abandoned by its mom. He carried the foal back on his lap in the saddle and gave it to me to take care of. I learned how to bottle feed her and she became my first love; my first best friend. Her name was Friday. She used to follow me around the yard like a dog, and when I began school, she would stand by the barn waiting for me to get off the school bus. I would rush off the bus and run to go see her. Horses have always been a huge part of my life thanks to my grandfather sharing that love.

In 2014 I graduated from the University of Victoria with a Women's Studies and Indigenous Studies degree, along with a Social Justice Studies diploma (currently working on my MBA in Social Enterprise Leadership). I had plans to attend graduate school in Native Studies, but my grandfather fell ill with cancer. Wanting to spend time with the two people who meant the world to me, I moved back to my grandparents farm. The day after I moved back, I bought Denim.

Denim was a 5 year old gelding (now he's 11!) who was super spooky, bucked me off a few times and wasn't exactly trustworthy. I worked with him over the past 6 years with 2 different trainers to restart him, do obstacle work and some cow work. After coming off of him a few times and a concussion later, he finally gave me his trust. It was one of the most powerful things I experienced. Today, he is my trusted friend who I know can handle anything. He is confident in his ability to work through things, and not just panic.

At the same time that I moved back to the farm, I bottle fed a calf for my grandfather. Long story short, he gave the calf to me and after getting knocked down by it in the barn and slamming my head on the cement, I decided I was out of the cattle business. So I traded him for one of the foals that were born from his mares.

My grandfather always says Sage chose me long before I chose her. I walked out into the pasture to look at all the foals several times, not exactly sure which one I wanted. This one foal with a big white star (imagine a beacon light!) just kept following me. She was quiet, extremely curious and super friendly. I just couldn't get rid of her. So eventually she won me over and when I told my grandfather that I will take her, he just laughed and said she chose me. Insert Sage (or Sageepoo or Sagey). Sagey is now 6 years old. I began riding her as a 3 year old. She has so much confidence she actually gets irritated when she can't figure something out. The beautiful thing about raising her from a foal is that I could build up her confidence and trust. She will literally do anything I ask. If there is a situation that makes me a bit nervous, she is the one I choose to ride because I know she will calm me down. My horse trainer said if there was ever a horse meant for me, it was Sagey. She's the kind of horse you just have to look at out in the field and she will come walking to you to visit.

So, it only seemed fitting to name the shop after the two things that mean the world to me: Denim and Sage.