How the Rebel Tuilik came to be

A few years ago I tried to order tuiliks from Brooks in Canada, the go-to brand for traditional paddling gear. I even got some friends in on it so the order was five tuiliks. Then months of radio silence and ghosted messages. Fine. If I couldn't buy one, I'd make one.

I had some sewing experience. As a teenager I hijacked my sister's Husqvarna to make clothes I couldn't find in the shops, and later I tinkered with kayak jackets and gear. So how hard could it be? Turns out, very. I bought an industrial blind-stitch machine, because of course you do, and a pile of neoprene, and learned as I went. Instructions are for people with patience.

Those first months were rough

Neoprene doesn't behave like normal fabric, and blind-stitch machines don't forgive. Especially not if you put your fingers where they shouldn't be. But after a lot of trial, mostly error, and late nights getting high on glue fumes, I started to get the hang of it.

The fumes thing is mostly a joke, but the stuff really stinks, and the glue sticks to every finger, table, tool and piece of clothing. At least if you're as clumsy as I am. You smear contact glue on both edges of the neoprene, which is thin in my case, wait, then do the Hail Mary and press them together. There's no cmd+Z. Get it wrong and you're smoked, cutting that scarce and expensive neoprene all over again. As a privateer you can't buy big batches, so it gets expensive fast. Oh well.

My first real success, a tuilik that actually worked, was for my daughter. It fit, it sealed, and it didn't feel like wearing a rubber tent. Not that my daughter is overly critical, but she actually liked it a lot! I designed the neoprene print in a burst of creativity, which helped :)

Before that I'd spent months making smaller stuff to learn the craft: pogies, mitts, hoods, anything to practise taming that stubborn machine and the sticky-icky glue. Every piece taught me something, and some of the experiments may become products sooner or later. Probably later. I also have a pair of sealskin mitts, sewn by an Inuit lady, as inspiration. I wonder what product you could make of those...

Product meeting

By September 2024 things started to move. My pal and future partner in crime Stefan convinced me that serial production is actually a thing. So we went to Poland to meet Jacek and his family at Stormmride, a small but seriously skilled neoprene company. They got it straight away: simple gear for people who actually paddle.

After a few agonising months the first professional prototypes arrived. We tested them hard all winter: pool sessions, the dock with ice along the edges, and every sliver of open water we could find. They held up fine, but of course we found things to change.

By spring we had a refined version. In May 2025 we launched the Rebel Tuilik under our RUGD brand. What's RUGD, you ask? Rugged kayaking gear and my building blog, basically.

So what's different about this tuilik?

Material and fit. The neoprene is high quality and very stretchy, so it moves with you. Because of that, most people can go one size smaller than they'd wear from other brands. You get a lighter tuilik that fits better, doesn't feel like a sleeping bag and is just as warm. And it's so stretchy it fits most cockpits. Ocean and keyhole.

Feedback

Honestly, we didn't expect that reaction. The first batches sold out almost right away and we couldn't keep up. Big thanks to everyone who took a chance on us early.

It hasn't all been smooth sailing. Delayed shipments, surprise taxes (looking at you, Trump-era import nonsense), and the odd night of sewing by hand just to get an order out the door. Small business, baby.

Oh that lovely fate

In late June a paddler named Marie, who is XS petite, had opinions about our S tuilik. It was way too big for her. She showed me, I took some photos.

By August we had a batch of XS tuiliks, a size the market had pretty much ignored. They were gone in a few weeks! Smaller paddling nerds clearly need gear that fits too.

At the Swedish Nationals in early September we put up some prizes, and Marie won an XS in the lottery! No setup, no cheating. Pretty convenient, and she's well worth it :)

Rebel steps in

During spring and summer '25 Stefan worked closely with Johan Wirsén, the designer of Rebel Kayaks. More about that elsewhere on this site. Out of that trust and friendship Johan took us to Rebel Kayaks HQ, and we made a deal to put the Rebel brand on the tuiliks. So there you have it, the Rebel Tuilik was born. We're proud they noticed us, and now the collaboration is growing into things like this website. Coincidentally I'm a web developer ;)

Stuff stuff stuff

Coming up: an avataq, an akuilisaq, new mitts, pogies and a headband to protect your ears on cold sessions. I know, you shouldn't reveal your secrets and bla bla bla, but we're in this together!

Looking back

All this started with one ghosted order and a stubborn idea: if nobody else will make it, I will. There are still details to iron out, literally and figuratively, but I think we're onto something. And I still have glue on my fingers.

Thanks for coming along for the ride, and for helping make the Rebel Tuilik happen.

//Tibor

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