The history of Horsefeathers goes way back to 1989, when Stewart Carlson and Joel DeVille, two Canadian High School students in BC, started printing their own designs onto T-shirts and hoodies. It was around this time that snowboarding was gaining popularity in Canada and skateboarding was making its comeback. Nevertheless, neither of these sports was anywhere near being accepted by the general public. In the small town where they lived, skateboarding was the choice sport of some five individuals and snowboarding of another ten. Their ideas, music and choice in clothing made them stick out. The idea to create Horsefeathers, their own clothing brand, was yet another way to protest against the local jocks and rednecks. Horsefeathers united the few that stood apart against all those, who scoffed at the idea of baggy clothing or anything linked to skateboarding and snowboarding. But, it wasn’t just about the clothes, it was about making a statement.
Due to a lack of cash and High School graduation of key designers in ’92, the whole thing was put on the back shelf. The only action Horsefeathers saw in the next two years was the piling up of unused designs.
Things didn’t get going again till ’94, this time in the Czech Republic. Having all the designs and logos that piled up over the two years to draw from, it didn’t take long before Horsefeathers had its first line of streetwear. Although, there ended up being only several T-shirt prints, one pant model and one shorts model, it was obvious that there would be much more to come. In the following years, thanks to the enormous quantity of filed ideas waiting to be used, Horsefeathers was able to produce a much larger and elaborate assortment of clothing.
The clothing we make today, whether it’s street or snowboard wear, hardly compares to the first attempts.
The one aspect that has stayed the same is our mission: by using our best ideas and those of the people around us, Horsefeathers continues to create clothing that is an inseparable part of skateboarding and snowboarding.
That’s why it’s important to support those, who consider riding as something more than a bit of weekend fun and want to always be one step ahead. Even they play an important role in the creation and improvement of future designs. Thanks to teamwork we have progressed from our first T-shirt prints to the company we are today.