of contemporary Inuit fashion as its own style within the larger indigenous American fashion movement. Traditional outfit The most basic version of the traditional Inuit outfit consisted of a hooded parka, pants, mittens, inner footwear, and outer boots, all made of animal hide and fur. These garments were fairly lightweight despite their insulating properties: a complete outfit weighed no more than around depending on the number of layers and the size of the wearer. Extra layers could be added as required for the weather or activity, which generally cycled with the changing of the seasons. Although the basic outfit framework was largely the same across Inuit groups (as well as other indigenous Arctic peoples, including the Alaska Natives and those of Siberia and the Russian Far East), their wide geographic range gave rise to a broad variety of styles for basic garments, often specific to the place of origin. The range of distinguishing features on the parka alone was significant, as described by Inuit clothing expert Betty Kobayashi Issenman in her comprehensive study on Inuit clothing Sinews of Survival: "a hood or lack thereof, and hood shape; width and configuration of shoulders; presence of flaps front and back, and their shape; in women's clothing the size and shape of "the baby pouch; length and outline of the lower edge; and fringes, ruffs, and decorative inserts." Group or familial affinity was indicated by aesthetic features such as variations in the patterns made by different colours of fur, the cut of the garment, and the length of fur. In some cases, the styling of a garment could indicate biographical details such as the individual's age, marital status, and specific kin group. The vocabulary for describing individual garments in the Inuit languages is correspondingly extensive, which Issenman noted in Sinews of Survival: The concept of Inuit clothing encompasses the traditional wear of a geographically broad range of Inuit cultures from Alaska to Greenland. For the sake of consistency, this article uses Canadian Inuktitut terminology, unless otherwise noted. Upper body garments Traditional Inuit culture divided labour by gender, and men and women wore garments tailored to accommodate their distinct roles. The outer layer worn by men was called the , and the inner layer was called the . These garments had no front opening, and were donned by pulling them over the head. Men's parkas usually had straight-cut bottom hems with slits and loose