( CNN ) -- Growing up in rural North Dakota , about 13 miles from the Canadian border and a 90-minute drive from the nearest McDonald 's , Jessica Metcalfe relied on magazines for her pop culture fix . The young Turtle Mountain Chippewa never saw anyone in the pages of Seventeen who looked like her . But as an adult , she 's working to change that , promoting the work of Native American fashion designers and artists . She began with the 2009 launch of Beyond Buckskin , a blog that highlights Native designers and discusses their place in media and pop culture . Even Metcalfe was surprised by its initial success -- by the size of its audience , the positive feedback , the readers asking , `` Where can I buy that ? '' The blog expanded to include an online boutique last year , placing Metcalfe at the center of a growing movement to reclaim what fashion labels `` Native American . '' She 's surrounded by a group of passionate Native designers , artists , stylists , photographers and bloggers who have already proven that by raising their voices they can hold companies accountable . Instead of just reacting to controversies , Metcalfe and her cohorts want to promote authentic examples of modern Native fashion . Their work reflects the diversity of North America 's indigenous communities , from the southeastern United States to Canada 's Pacific Northwest , but their message is clear : True Native fashion is more than what 's for sale at Urban Outfitters or Forever 21 . Related : Native Americans fight cultural caricatures . When blogger Adrienne Keene of Native Appropriations outed Paul Frank last year for holding a powwow-themed party , the company not only apologized but invited Keene and Metcalfe to speak at an upcoming industry panel on cultural appropriation . The company is also working with Metcalfe to develop collections featuring four Native designers . Whenever a celebrity dons a feather and long braids for a photo shoot , or a fashion brand releases a gaudy collection of `` totem pole print '' tracksuits , bloggers like Metcalfe and Keene are slammed with questions about why they 're offensive . Metcalfe says they should be showing better examples -- tasteful , appropriate use of Native iconography , and talented Native designers . It 's the work of Taos designer Patricia Michaels , the first Native American to appear on `` Project Runway ; '' the art of Virgil Ortiz , a Cochiti Pueblo artist and designer who collaborated with Donna Karan ; the sexy couture gowns of Bethany Yellowtail and other designers who appeared in the first Beyond Buckskin Lookbook launched earlier this month to spotlight Native-made fashion from couture to street wear . `` Creativity is our tradition and there 's a lot of talent in Indian Country waiting to be exposed , '' Metcalfe said . Part of the work is advancing mainstream America 's perception of Native fashion , going beyond headdresses , fringed jackets and , yes , buckskin . On a practical level , it 's about finding places to market and sell Native-made goods , Metcalfe said . The clothing and jewelry is n't only intended for Natives . It 's meant to appeal to wide audiences , even if people do n't know the significance of a pattern or design . `` These are not your stereotypical Native American designs . They 're very contemporary , which is the point : to present new visions of what Native American fashion means , '' said Shelby Tisdale , the vice president of curatorial and exhibitions at Los Angeles ' Autry National Center , a Native American history museum . `` They incorporate designs that have a lot of meaning to them , but to the average viewer they might just look like a dragonfly or zigzag lines , and that 's OK. '' Metcalfe was a guest curator for a show about Native couture at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture in Santa Fe , New Mexico , while Tisdale was the museum 's director . Metcalfe was completing her dissertation about modern Native American fashion . `` She 's done a fabulous job of researching Native fashion 's roots , but now she 's taking it into the 21st century , '' Tisdale said . `` She 's moved it into the digital age , which not might seem like a big deal , but it 's new and forward thinking for Indian Country . '' The work occurs beyond Metcalfe 's website . They 're using fashion shows , pop-up boutiques and speaking engagements to spread their message . In March , Metcalfe was in Las Vegas , Santa Fe and Portland for events promoting Native fashion . Keene joined her for a talk this week , aptly named `` More Than Just Trend , '' at Reed College -- one of many stops they make on college campuses . Related : Atlanta Braves reject `` screaming Indian '' logo . Earlier this year , Metcalfe staged a three-day photo shoot of the latest looks in Native fashion , from couture to street wear , with fashion photographer Anthony Thosh Collins and L.A.-based designer Bethany Yellowtail . The result was the Beyond Buckskin Lookbook , which Metcalfe says is the first compilation of modern Native fashion produced exclusively by Natives . They launched the book in March at the Reservation Economic Summit in Las Vegas , an annual gathering of tribal leaders , state and local elected officials and top CEOs from Indian Country . `` The lookbook is a brilliant indigenous response to the rip-offs being marketed in mainstream media , '' said Valerie Taliman , a citizen of the Navajo Nation and West Coast editor of Indian Country Today Media Network , the largest Native-operated media organization in the country . `` Here , you have a collection of 17 Native artists with all Native models , photographers , graphics artists and business management -- the whole package on their intellectual and cultural terms . '' So , instead of jewelry that 's all turquoise and silver , metalsmith Kristen Dorsey creates pieces she says honors the aesthetic traditions of the Chickasaw people . She works with copper , using the same relief sculpture techniques as her ancestors . Her signature `` serpent cuffs '' resemble reptile scales , referring to a deity from southeastern Native American spirituality . The cuffs are adorned with black freshwater pearls harvested from the Mississippi River watershed , a nod to where her tribe lived before the Trail of Tears . Each cuff starts at $ 700 . `` If you have a family or tribal connection it becomes very personal , '' Dorsey said . `` It 's more than making jewelry ; it becomes working for a culture that you want to pass on to future generations . '' Then there 's Jamie Okuma , who contributed two skirts and a jacket to the lookbook . She began working with beads and sewing as a child on the La Jolla Luiseno Reservation in California , and at 22 , became the youngest artist to earn best in show at New Mexico 's Santa Fe Market , the largest crafts fair in Indian Country . She makes elaborately beaded high heels , colorful jackets and dresses that evoke the patterns of the LuiseÃ±o and Shoshone-Bannock . `` Clothing is wearable art and I want to use my skills to create something beautiful that reflects the cultural heritage of my tribe , '' Okuma said . Okuma said anyone who wants to interpret Native patterns and motifs should be allowed to do so , but they should do it in a respectful way . `` As long as they understand the importance of the symbols or patterns being utilized and they do so in a tasteful way , why not ? '' Okuma said . Still , on major store shelves , Native fashion is still most likely to be `` Navajo-inspired '' prints , feathered headdresses or fake turquoise jewelry . The lookbook represents authentic , modern Native imagery , designer and co-creator Bethany Yellowtail said . `` It 's disheartening to see Native American fashion as cheap knockoffs , '' Yellowtail said . `` To change that , we have to be the voice for what Native American fashion is , instead of just complaining about it . '' Growing up on the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation , Yellowtail 's aunties taught her how to bead and make shawls in the tradition of her people , the Crow and Cheyenne who share the vast tribal territory . Thanks to a high school teacher who encouraged Yellowtail and helped her find a design school , she moved to California , where she broke into a career as a pattern maker . Five years after arriving in Los Angeles , she now divides her creative efforts between a full-time job designing for mass market retail brands and her own line , which is inspired by her love for Native culture and high-end couture , she said . Yellowtail wants to inspire other Natives to follow their passion and show the rest of the world that Native Americans are a thriving , modern people that have plenty to contribute , especially in the fashion world . `` When I was in high school I never imagined that I could be a mover and shaker in the fashion industry as a Native woman , '' she said . `` But now that I 'm a part of the industry , there 's this window of opportunity for me to be a voice for our communities . '' Follow Emanuella Grinberg on Twitter .
New generation of designers create authentic examples of modern Native fashion . Beyond Buckskin blog is at heart of movement to promote Native fashion . First Beyond Buckskin " book features leading designers and artists from Indian Country . Editor : Look ##out is a ` ` indigenous response to the rip - offs being marketed in mainstream media ''