Retired Designs

Every Eighth Generation product tells a story! Below are some of our retired designs that will not be restocked but that have incredible messages to share.
 
Defend Wool Blanket, designed in partnership with NDN Collective and Votan (Nahua, Maya). Launched on International Women's Day 2021, this blanket pays homage to the power of women as well as the collective voice that united all Indigenous people during the Standing Rock pipeline protests. Limited quantities are available on NDN Collective's website here.
 
The Education Sovereignty Blanket, featuring a blue, four-pointed star in the center bordered by red, turquoise, and yellow bands

Education Sovereignty Wool Blanket, designed in partnership by the National Indian Education Association (NIEA). This classic design celebrates fifty years of NIEA's championing the education and development of our Native children. Formed by Native educators in 1969 to encourage a national conversation on Native education, the NIEA is a cornerstone of education sovereignty and Native culture development. Their 2022 theme—Education Sovereignty—is a rallying cry for all those who wish to ensure Native children have access to their cultural heritage and learnings. 

 

Remembering the Children Wool Blanket, designed by Travis Harden (Oohenumpa Lakota and Winnebago Ho Chunk) in collaboration with the volunteers, family members, descendants, matriarchs, and elders of the Rapid City Indian Boarding School Project in South Dakota. An untold number of Native and Indigenous children were stolen from us, sent to hundreds of boarding schools throughout the US and Canada in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Many of these children never returned home. Our Remembering the Children Wool Blanket (Wakȟáŋyeža Wičhákiksuyapi) honors their experiences and memories: we do not forget you. 

This authentic Native wool blanket is It reflects the Rapid City Boarding School Project’s commitment to the Native community’s children past and present, and to honoring the healing, strength, resiliency, hopes, and dreams of future generations impacted by the residential school system. 100% of proceeds of this limited-edition blanket supported the Rapid City Children's Memorial.

 
Guardians Wool Blanket, designed by Louie Gong (Nooksack). The Guardians design is an excellent example of Louie's trend-setting merger of cultural themes. The primary design consists of two Chinese Guardian Lions (aka Fu Dogs) created using a mix of Northwest Coast and Coast Salish design elements.
 
The Return Wool Blanket designed in partnership with Tanka Fund and Sonja Holy Eagle (Oglala Lakota). This powerful design celebrates the return of the buffalo and the renewal of reservation economies and features Sonja's distinctive "winter count," the buffalo's companion and returning herald, a magpie, and a buffalo. When this blanket is wrapped around a person, the large buffalo comes together to symbolize a complete restoration of the buffalo in tribal communities.
 
Medicine Circle Wool Blanket in blue, yellow, red, and turquoise.
Medicine Circle Wool Blanket designed by Louie Gong (Nooksack) for Seattle Indian Health Board. “For the Love of Native People” is more than a slogan, it’s the driving force behind the incredible work done by the people at Seattle Indian Health Board, who have centered Indigenous knowledge within healthcare for the community for almost 50 years. On field of striking blue rows of human figures stand shoulder-to-shoulder, representing the network of healthcare providers, professionals, and advocates that care for our Indigenous community in Seattle. Dentalium, a shell that has been a valuable part of Indigenous trading in America for millennia, create two semi-circles: when the blanket is wrapped around a person, the semi-circles join to form a complete circle, covering the wearer with wishes for health and good medicine.

 
Turtle Wool Blanket designed in partnership with the American Indian Graduate Center (AIGC) and AIGC's alumni Brittany Gene (Diné), Maka Monture (Tlingit and Mohawk), and Janelle Cronin (Navajo). This limited-edition blanket honors the organization’s 50-year legacy of AIGC funding Native students from over 500 tribes in 50 states. 
 
Warrior Up Wool Blanket, a collaboration with Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples and designed with Kateri Masten (Yurok) and Chisa Oros (Zuni/Yoeme). One of the nation’s oldest Native philanthropic organizations, Seventh Generation Fund's blanket highlights the mighty Yellowhammer Flicker, a powerful medicine being that links Earth and Sky with each new day.
 
Family Floral Limited Edition Throw Blanket, designed by Kira Murillo (Shoshone Bannock). This blanket was the first of Eighth Generation’s full-sized Gold Label blankets, a historic collection of Native-made and designed wool blankets created from start to finish in our Seattle studio. Kira’s inaugural blanket design showcases the striking combination of floral and geometric elements that are often reflected in her tribal community’s artwork and regalia. As a tattoo artist, Kira incorporates these elements in bold blocks of color in a style not often seen in the tattoo industry. Representing growth and interconnection, Family Floral speaks to the many directions that life can go, the steps we take to achieve our goals, and the continual expansion of our families, communities, and knowledge. “I’m excited to share this blanket with the world,” says Kira. 
 

New Phase Limited Edition Throw Blanket, designed by Jared Yazzie (Diné/Navajo). The second in our Gold Label series of full-sized blankets, New Phase is a story of transition. In Diné artist Jared Yazzie’s  contemporary wool throw blanket, the tradition of Navajo chief blankets is continued while adding new layers of meaning. The New Phase Wool Throw Blanket is a tribute to people beginning or finishing a new phase of life. In the first phase of the design, elements of traditional Navajo rug weaving, including straight lines and blocks of customary colors in black, red, and off-white, are incorporated. From there, Jared added patterns in the center of the blanket to be reflected in the four corners, as well as included a cross pattern: these signify the four directions and the four sacred mountains in the Diné culture. Finally, intricate patterns and fine details are added, which enhance the traditional design.  

 

Walk In Beauty Limited Edition Throw Blanket, designed by Ahsaki LaFrance-Chachere (Diné/Navajo and African American). The third in our Gold Label series of full-sized blankets made in Seattle, Walk In Beauty is a celebration of individual beauty. An entrepreneur, businesswoman, and artist, Ahsaki blends traditional Navajo and West African symbols in this blanket in honor of her own blended heritage. "The center of the blanket is my favorite Diné rug design—the Dazzling Diamond Eye," says Ahsaki. "This complex design expresses the talent of Diné weavers. Our weavers carry our stories and teachings, and each design and tool they use has deeper meaning. The border pattern is from my favorite African print—the West African Mud Cloth or “bògòlanfini.” Traditional bògòlanfini are made of cotton fabrics dyed with fermented mud, and are believed to have the power to absorb pain and deflect anything negative or dangerous.”  

 
Sacred Sisters Special Edition Silk Scarf, designed by Starr Warner (Diné). Eighth Generation teamed up with the National Indigenous Women's Resource Center (NIWRC) to donate 100% of the proceeds to their organization NIWRC.

 
Slapoo Takes Back the City Limited Edition Giclee Print, designed by Louie Gong (Nooksack). In all parts of the Northwest, there are dark stories of a ten-foot tall witch: sometimes she is called Slapoo. She travels down from her camp high in the mountains to collect naughty children and those that forget to listen to their elders. In this print, Louie explores the story of Slapoo in the context of a rapidly changing urban environment (Seattle). In the rush to capitalize on this growth, what values are the business and political forces driving this development forgetting?

 
Sister Eagle and Father Coyote Limited Edition Giclee Print, designed by Louie Gong (Nooksack). These pieces are meant to generate dialogue around the betrayal of trust between Indigenous communities and the churches responsible for their welfare and “development”. Is this a predator-prey relationship, or is there genuine care for the lamb—as is typically portrayed in religious imagery?