Continuing Navajo history, one pair of moccasins at a time

This blog was originally posted on the Grand Canyon Trust blog on November 28, 2018

Photo by Jake Hoyngowa

Growing up, Brent David Toadlena watched his paternal grandmother making moccasins in her hogan near Chinle, Arizona, on the Navajo Nation. Today, he lives in the small mountain community of Shash Bito' — Bear Spring — his maternal grandmother's home base, near the Chuska Mountains and Canyon de Chelly.

“I was intrigued by them,” Brent says of the traditional deer-hide moccasins. “I started making them myself in high school.”

JAKE HOYUNGOWA

Brent’s artistic talents eventually landed him a coveted spot at the renowned Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. After a career as a school counselor and making art on the side, he ended up back home. With his grandmother gone, people in the community started coming to Brent for moccasins.

“The reputation came from my grandmother,” Brent acknowledges. “I felt like it was my duty to provide this service to the local community.”

Today, he tans his own deer hides, repairs and refurbishes moccasins, and creates new custom-made moccasins with traditional materials including hand-tanned buckskin and vegetable dyes, using traditional sewing techniques. He makes them one pair at a time, completing one to two pairs a day.

“You can walk into a store and buy mass-produced commercial moccasins, but it’s hard to find Navajo moccasins handmade by Navajo artists,” explains Brent, who has demonstrated his art at the Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock and elsewhere.

Photo by Jake Hoyungowa

A custom touch

Through his small, home-based business, Ashkii Bida’ Moccasins and Art, (Ashkii Bida’ is Brent’s nickname back home, where he’s known for being the uncle to a particularly spirited nephew), Brent offers custom-fit moccasins at a range of price points. Unlike the generic sizes commercial off-the-shelf moccasins are found in, Brent traces his customer’s feet and makes the moccasins to fit.

Brent’s moccasins range from simple, functional, ankle-high models in rich red suede that take about two hours to create and retail for $100 a pair to wrap-around leggings made of hand-tanned deer hides. A pair like this can cost up to $700 depending on the amount of labor and the cost of materials required.

More than a family tradition

“I’m continuing Navajo history,” Brent says. “The love and compassion I show through my art, I show to my customers. I’m offering a strong cultural connection. There are Navajo teachings attached to these moccasins. I’m creating happy Native feet by creating moccasins made just for them.”

Through his Facebook page, Brent has expanded his customer base outside of the local community. Now, as one of 10 entrepreneurs selected for mentoring and advising through the Native American Business Incubator Network (NABIN) in 2018, at a recent Create and Elevate event he was paired up with graphic designer Vanessa Bowen of Bowen Creative who helped him design a logo and brand his business, assets that are paying dividends now as he launches a new website.

He also got some ideas about other ways to market his business.

“What about sharing customer stories?” NABIN mentor and owner of Avalon Accounting, LLC Kristina Haskell, suggested “When do you get moccasins? When you get married, when you have your ceremonies. Lots of tribes wear moccasins.”

Photo by Jake Hoyngowa

How busy do you want to be?

“How big do you want to get?” pressed entrepreneur and real estate developer Chris Billy, who was also on hand to help entrepreneurs ask the hard questions about building their businesses. “What about having people trace their own feet and upload the images to your website to place the order? What about hiring helpers who can do some of the prep work to free up your time?”

While Brent ponders just how busy he wants to be, and weighs the possibility of bringing on part-time help, perhaps opening the door for another young person to learn the ancient art and trade of moccasin-making, the web designer NABIN hooked him up with is putting the finishing touches on a new website for Ashkii Bida’, so that customers across the reservation and beyond can get a better look at his wares. Brent, as a NABIN member, is part of a network of small, local, sustainable businesses owners who are changing the face of the Navajo Nation economy.

Are your feet itching to get into a pair of Brent’s moccasins? Check out his website or put your order in via Facebook ›