You can make a difference at any age, and 13-year-old beading artist Nolen Roibal is proving it. The youngster turned a skill he learned in a summer program into a business offering earrings, bracelets, and dream catchers.
Roibal discovered beading around three and a half years ago through an APS Native education summer program.
He started with friendship bracelets and soon expanded into earrings, bracelets, dream catchers, turning his creativity into a source of income. Roibal now sells his pieces, creates gifts, and showcases his work at craft shows.
“I just want them to know that no matter how young you are, you can always discover something that you didn’t know that was going to change your life,” he said in an interview.
“Now I sell my stuff, I make stuff as like gifts, I participate in craft shows, and I just made a life out of it,” Roibal added.
Roibal is the youngest beading artist selling his work at Pueblo Collective Enterprise, a Native woman-owned storefront. The shop features handmade work from artists in New Mexico’s pueblos.
At Pueblo Collective Enterprise, artists take part in running the store. They share stories behind their work with customers and keep 100% of the sale price.
Inside the Store
Owner Stephanie Garcia said having a brick-and-mortar location gives customers a chance to learn the history and traditions of each pueblo. She said every pueblo has its own story, from its people settled there to how family traditions and generations grew within the community.
Garcia said the store connects customers directly with the artists who make the pieces they buy. The selection includes jewelry, moccasins, and traditional clothing sewn on-site.
Elana Olivas, a full-time nurse and seamstress from Zuni Pueblo, said the store gives artists a space to share skills and learn from one another. It also provides children a place to discover their creativity and take their first steps as artists.
Olivas said the Bernalillo store makes traditional items more accessible to Native Americans across the area and metro.
“Very important. That’s your identity,” she said. “When you go back home, that is your identity. The traditional clothing, the traditional dresses, the belts, the kilts, those are very important for your tradition or for who you are when you go back home.”
For Roibal, beading has become both a tradition and an opportunity for him.
“I do enjoy beading a little bit more than robotics just because it’s easier, it’s faster, and I can make money off of it,” Roibal said.
