A few months ago, I was in search of some cool weather gear.  I found a fur vest that I added to my collection that made me feel like a little Eskimo. This vest got me thinking about fur, shearling, and anything fuzzy. I started my next sketching frenzy of boots inspired by Nordic and Native American influences.

I have always been curious of Nordic countries and cultures.  I envision beautiful landscapes, extreme cold weather, long dark nights, hearty food, strong cocktails, and lots of layered clothing.

 I was inspired by the idea of a Nordic girl who is feminine, edgy, and stylish. She likes her hiking and snow boots but would like to find a variety of interpretations of these looks.  My idea was to keep the hiker and snow boot elements, but add fashion details such as fur, shearling, rusching, buckles, wide shafts, color blocking, etc. . .

During the sketch process, it occurred to me that we always assume shearling as a possible lining. I thought it interesting to use shearling material as part of the upper, especially as a nice alternative to fur.

I am also inspired by Native American footwear. I especially love moccasins with hand crafted details. Being inspired by both Nordic and Native American arts, I thought it might be interesting to combine both of these cultural elements. I saw a common thread of survival and basic necessities.  In these sketches, I combined some hiker concepts with shearling lining and added the use of stitch details, bead work, and moccasin influences for an interesting and different look.

Photo Source: 1.) Editorial Images from Jean Francois Campos 2.) Black Picket Fences Tumbler  3.) Native American photos

Fur swatch: Pistolesi SRL

Products: Shearling Bag, Pete & Greta fur vest

All sketches & marker renderings by me.