About me
Aang aang!
My name is Anna, and I am Unangax̂ (Aleut), with family from Unalaska in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.
My grandmother and great-grandmother were among the many Unangax̂ people forcibly relocated during World War II. They never relocated back to their home on the island. I grew up with glimpses of our culture from my grandmother, elders, annual Pacific Northwest Aleut Counsel (PNAC) picnics, and PNAC Christmas parties, but much of it felt distant.
For years, I carried a sense of disconnection. I knew I came from a people with strength, beauty, and resilience, but was unsure how to access that identity.
That changed when I began beading. When I was young I was gifted a set of beads by my grandmother, and was taught the basics of beading by my mother. I began beading as an occasional hobby, among my other hobbies of knitting and crocheting.
After a trip to Anchorage in 2022, what started as an occasional hobby slowly became a cultural practice; a way to listen, remember, and heal. Beading became my way of reconnecting with the strength of the women before me, of honoring my roots and my grandmother, and of finding peace through the rhythm of thread and design.
Through Anna Tiffany Designs, I share contemporary Unangax̂ jewelry made with intention, calm, and cultural remembrance. Each piece carries both ancestral strength and personal healing, created to bring beauty, connection, and stillness into the lives of others.
Qagaasakung for being here!
-Anna
My name is Anna, and I am Unangax̂ (Aleut), with family from Unalaska in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.
My grandmother and great-grandmother were among the many Unangax̂ people forcibly relocated during World War II. They never relocated back to their home on the island. I grew up with glimpses of our culture from my grandmother, elders, annual Pacific Northwest Aleut Counsel (PNAC) picnics, and PNAC Christmas parties, but much of it felt distant.
For years, I carried a sense of disconnection. I knew I came from a people with strength, beauty, and resilience, but was unsure how to access that identity.
That changed when I began beading. When I was young I was gifted a set of beads by my grandmother, and was taught the basics of beading by my mother. I began beading as an occasional hobby, among my other hobbies of knitting and crocheting.
After a trip to Anchorage in 2022, what started as an occasional hobby slowly became a cultural practice; a way to listen, remember, and heal. Beading became my way of reconnecting with the strength of the women before me, of honoring my roots and my grandmother, and of finding peace through the rhythm of thread and design.
Through Anna Tiffany Designs, I share contemporary Unangax̂ jewelry made with intention, calm, and cultural remembrance. Each piece carries both ancestral strength and personal healing, created to bring beauty, connection, and stillness into the lives of others.
Qagaasakung for being here!
-Anna