Seal Skin Trapper Hat with Sea Otter Fur Flaps, quilted lining, and elastic drawstring.

Additional Information:

* Item is made to order. Your order can be expected within 2-weeks from purchase (during peak times, please allow 45-90 days, unless in-stock.) We will follow up with a more specific timeframe for your project. All items are handmade with care and take time to prepare.

* Shipping:

Under no circumstances can we ship out of the United States due to the 1972 MMPA act of protected marine mammals. All packages are sent via USPS. Please contact before buying for faster shipping.

* Refunds and Exchanges:

Every package includes insurance through USPS. If lost, a claim can be filed. If you are not happy with your item, it can be exchanged or refunded within 14 days of receipt.

* Alaska Sea Otter Hunting and Handcrafting:

Sea Otter Fur has played a significant role in the cultural history of Alaskan Natives and thus, today only Alaskan Natives as legally allowed to harvest, craft, and sell these goods.

About the Artist: Robert Miller

Robert Miller, the owner of Sitka-based Sea Fur Sewing, makes fur hats, mitts, and other items that not only keep people warm but also give them a part of Tlingit culture.

Miller, a Sitka native, started his business when he decided he wanted to become closer to his Tlingit culture. As his interest grew, in 2013 Miller, an avid hunter, one day launched his boat off Sitka and he wound up diving into the icy waters to catch three sea otters. When he returned to dry land with his catch, he saw a fellow Alaskan skinning an otter.

A fish biologist by profession, Miller, was captivated by the idea of using otter skins and sealskins to create hats and mitts, and he decided he could create a business out of his efforts.

Today, Sea Fur Sewing is the epitome of a personal success story. No longer flailing in the early years where orders were few and far between, Robert Miller now enjoys success. Beginning with Iditarod champion, Lance Mackey, he has earned the respect of Alaska’s greatest dog mushers, who proudly wear his beautiful and functional furs. 

He has connected with TV shows, such as Life Below Zero, and was recently interviewed in Field and Stream magazine. To say that Robert Miller, Tlingit Native Alaskan, and Americans have honored his ancestors well is to know and understand his story. It is to see him connecting the ancient ways of his people to the modern challenges of our present world. 

Whereas his ancestors hunted for food and clothing, Robert Miller does the same only now under the broader umbrella of conservation such as the building of the fish passes and the culling of the overabundance of sea otters in Southeast Alaska, where the ecosystem has somehow gotten off balance. But he also maintains the essence of the ancient ways with his dedication to subsistence for the elders in his community, who still rely on the land for much of their nourishment.

Just this year he has given away over 1600 pounds of seal meat and fat to Sitka elders, fresh meat from the sea that he personally vacuum seals and delivers to those who need and want it. He is a conscientious hunter who even went back with a flashlight near dark after a harvested seal slipped from his grasp into the water, just to retrieve the meat so the seal’s life would not have been given in vain. Fortunately, after looking for 45 minutes he found it and was able to salvage the meat.

Robert Miller is that rare mix of intelligent workers and wilderness explorers. Many would agree that he lives the best of both worlds. He is also a humble believer in the concept that we are all in this together— humans, animals, the earth, and each other. He is the American dream come true and he has done so without compromising the ancient heritage from which he rose. A life sprung from the ancient Tlingit ways.