The tanning business stems from a dream I had several years ago. In my dream, I saw the tanning business as a way of bringing back an art form or way of life that was as important to the survival of our people as wood was for fire, the rivers were for water, and the winds are for the air we breath. If it was not for the Buffalo that were so abundant hundreds of years ago, my relatives would not have been able to live, and I would not be here today. Tanning is what I would like to pass on to my children and the next generations. The Gillettes strive to preserve the essence that the Buffalo once represented to the Native people of this land.
Corn oil is a second major ingredient.
Corn was as important to the Three Affiliated Tribes of Fort Berthhold as the Buffalo. As agriculture tribes, corn along with beans, squash, pumpkins, and sunflowers, were the cultivated staples of life to the Arikara, Hidatsa, and Mandan. It is hand made, hand cut, and hand wrapped with tender loving care that takes a minimum of 14 days from start to final wrapping. The villages of the Mandan, Arikara, and the Hidatsa were centers of trade many years ago. Because the three tribes were more agricultural and stayed in the area of the Missouri River, there were many tribes who would trade with our tribes on a regular basis.