By james art 
Wyoming artist Candace Toledo’s designs have been showcased at homecoming dances, on the powwow circuit, in movies and even on stage at New York’s legendary Carnegie Hall.
Her clothing line, Whiteplume Creations, represents her personal creativity along with her Navajo heritage and various indigenous cultures and Northern influences.
“A lot of love goes into my designs,” said Toledo, who lives in Arapahoe. “There’s a connection whenever I make my creations, and that’s important to me.”
Raised by her grandmother Alice Henry in New Mexico, Toledo was surrounded by art from an early age.
“I get a lot of creativity from my grandmother. She also taught me a lot about patience,” she said. “My grandmother’s income was as a carpet weaver and that’s how she supported the family. I learned from her how to connect your creativity with your culture, profession and values.”
Toledo learned to design and weave rugs from her grandmother. Toledo then went on to learn how to make beaded jewelry, but when her daughter, Zaria, needed dresses for powwows and hoop dances, Toledo discovered she also had a passion for sewing.
She found her niche and became a self-taught seamstress, providing dresses for people outside of her family. She is grateful for the help she has found along the way on this new artistic journey.
“If I’m struggling with something or confused about a fit or cut, I love the fact that I can always turn to another seamstress for help,” she said. “Then sometimes I just go along with it to see how it’s going to look.”
Toledo calls his designs “freestyle” because each piece is unique.
“I just go with the flow when I’m creating,” she said. “I’ll just lay out a random design and sew it on. Sometimes I am not satisfied with it and will add more to the design. It’s like painting, but in this case we’re working with appliqués and ribbon.”
Presented nationally
Toledo’s original designs were worn all over the United States and even in Canada.
Musician Abraham Thomas wore one of Toledo’s original shirts when he played Carnegie Hall in New York in 2022.
“It was a geometric design, I wanted something that stood out for him on stage,” she said. “The beaded necklace she is wearing is also made by me. It was a set for his performance. He left it up to me to look good and this is what I came up with.
All the clothes and jewelry she creates have a story to tell and are a personal expression that is uniquely her own, even when they are for the big screen.
“I made a jingle dress for a short film that aired on Disney+ and another one for a film we did in Calgary, Canada,” she said.
The jingle dresses she creates are lined with rows and rows of metal cones and suspended from the dress to create a melody as the dancers move. These cones were originally made from a rolled up snuff box lid, but are now specially made by bead makers.
The jingle dance is performed throughout Indian country and began nearly 100 years ago. The granddaughter of an Ojibwe medicine man fell ill and nearly died. As the man slept, he dreamed again and again of four women dressed in jingling dresses and dancing. The women taught the man how to make this healing dress, what songs to play and how to play the choro.
Toledo also creates dresses and shirts with ribbons, loafers, jewelry, men’s ties, modern dresses and is open to most requests, such as one customer who requested a wedding dress.
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Grandma Alice Henry, 95, is the inspiration for Candace Toledo’s art. She taught Toledo how to weave and create designs (Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
Zariah Whiteplume in a series of jingle dresses designed and made by her mother, Candace. (Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
Zariah Whiteplume, daughter of Candace and Philip Whiteplume. He is currently a full-time student majoring in Engineering. She continues to participate in powwows when she can and hoop dances when requested. (Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
Zariah Whiteplume in a series of jingle dresses designed and made by her mother, Candace. (Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
Musician Abraham Thomas wore an original Whiteplume Creations designed by Candace Toledo when he performed at Carnegie Hall in New York in 2022. She freestyled the design. ((Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
The Minister of the Interior, Deb Haaland, wore a ribbon dress by Whiteplume Creations when she attended a ceremony with the President. Candice Toledo was extremely honored that Haaland chose to wear one of her dresses. (Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
Bridal dress, left, prom dress, center, and homecoming dress designed by Candice Toledo. (Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
Shirt, left, men’s ties and shirt appliqué. (Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
Jordan Dresser poses in an original Whiteplume Creation. Candice Toledo made him a custom shirt for his campaign a few years ago. (Courtesy of Candice Toledo) -
Beaded loafers created by Candice Toledo of Whiteplume Creations. Also, other beadwork. (Courtesy of Candice Toledo)
Contemporary designs
Toledo said it’s always an honor to be asked to create an outfit for someone, especially for a special event. One of her original artistic clothing creations was a traditional Navajo shirt.
“My first sewing project was to cut velvet,” she said, explaining the difficulty of working with this fabric. “I was making a graduation shirt for my nephew. It is a great honor because of my nephew’s important achievements for graduation and I wanted everything to be perfect.”
Another dress she agreed to make was for her niece’s homecoming. This dress had a corset and a limited amount of fabric to work with, but Toledo was up for the challenge.
She created the corset wedding dress and made it into a fabric designed by Kira Murillo, a tattoo artist and designer. Satin fabric is difficult to work with, Toledo said.
“I’ve always wanted to try creating other different dresses and projects because I just want to do something unique,” she said, “just to see if I can do it.”
As Toledo prepares for her next clothing challenge, she’s excited to see where sewing takes her.
“There’s a lot of work that goes into it, like painting and designing,” Toledo said. “You want to make sure it fits well and has that elegance.”
Toledo’s hope is to share with others a connection to Native American culture through her outfits and her own personal interpretation, whether it’s through movies, special events or a powwow competition.
Jackie Dorothy can be reached at [email protected].