Iqaluit (Dec 15/03) - Suzanne Evaloardjuk was looking for a new career when she started her path as an artist.

Her artwork has now taken her into the world of jewelry making. She incorporates traditional animals into her works.

"It was quite a thing to jump into art and jewelry making," she said.

"I was tired of working in an office and I wanted to do something different."

Evaloardjuk took her first jewelry making course in 1997 in Iqaluit. Since then she has never looked back.

Her studio is in her home. The room isn't very big but Evaloardjuk said it has everything she needs. Most of the jewelry she makes are orders she receives from people.

"I like working at home because it makes my work more personal," she said.

Most of the pieces represent a part of the North. Her work features everything from Northern animals, like polar bears and Arctic Char, to people in traditional clothing.

"I get a lot of my inspiration from the traditional life," she said.

"I like using animals. I can identify all my pieces with something in my life," she added.

A tidy environment

Her studio is surprisingly clean. Evaloardjuk jokes that because it's so small, it isn't very hard to clean.

She added she doesn't need much room to do her work. Everything in her room is miniature, from little files to little pliers. The small tools are needed to work on the intricate designs on things like rings and broaches.

Every drawer in the room is full of tools. One drawer is dedicated specifically to hammers of every kind.

"Talk about a girl with tools," she said. "I have them all."

Evaloardjuk said the best part about her art work is that it's very therapeutic for her. In her home studio she can get away and become lost in her work.

"I only want to spend a few hours in my studio. When I finish I realize that the entire day is gone," she said.

"Making jewelry really gets your brain working. You have to be able to solve problems and even create new ideas," she added.

"You have to have a lot of patience with this. It doesn't take much to make a mistake."