A kamleika was an integral part of the Aleuts’ fishing and hunting clothes. Traditional kamleikas were sewn from transversely arranged intestinal strips of predominantly marine animals. The sleeve was an extension of the back and front pieces, while the hood was sewn separately. A cord woven from sinews was passed through the hood at the facial cutout to tighten it.

The seams on kamleikas were always inserted. First, a very frequent basting stitch was made, followed by blanket stitching. The sinew threads, which the Aleuts used for sewing, bulged when exposed to moisture, making the stitches on the clothes completely impermeable to water. For splitting sinews as well as grass, a nail on the index finger was specially grown. It was used to split the tendons of sea animals into thin fibers.

While in the kayak, the hunter had to wear tsuki, a special belt, which looked like a short and wide skirt. It was also sewn from transversely arranged strips made of intestines of marine animals. The tsuki fit tightly around the hunter’s figure, and a strap or sinew cord passed over the left shoulder.

The strongest kamleikas were made of sea lion intestines, and the most beautiful ones were made of bear guts. Such kamleikas were not durable. Metropolitan Innokenty (his secular name was Ivan Yevseevich Popov-Veniaminov) (1797 –1879), wrote,

Kamleikas were also made of sea lion throats, but only rarely: such garments were expensive, although they were very durable. They were made, among other things, from the film taken from the liver and tongue of a fresh whale. Kamleikas, along with all other clothes, were made by Aleut women. It took them up to two months to complete their handwork.

For sewing, needles made from gull leg bones were used. The bones were split with a wide iron knife, then sanded on a porous volcanic stone until they were turned into needles. The Aleut needles had no eyelets: the thread was tied on the notch made at the blunt end.