Michael Ridge

The lil guy could hardly take it #deforestation

Buckskin pants and ponies. Today i take the time to wash my buckskins . Buckskin material is not meant to get wet often and can result in stiff carboard like material. Thats why inuse ivory soap to wash them. You could even tan deer skins with just ivory soap. Its a good way. #buckskinclothes #horsenomad #braintanning #deerskin

Did you know? #procupine are pretty neat critters. I don’t hunt them but I have eaten porcupine and they can be delicious. The majority of porcupine that I’ve found we on the side of the road not moving. So when I come across that I take the opportunity to make an extremely rare and obscure item. #hairbrush #tail #wildlife

Worn thin but still walking. Layered with miles. Repaired with stories. Wearing worn moccasins beyond their lifespan. I tanned thes hides in 2024 winter and made these in spring of last year. By this time I’ve repaired them at least 4 times with 4layers now exposed in the sole. #moccasins #traditionalcraft #braintan

Buckskin pants on their last leg. About 3 seasons of horseback travels is all they can handle before repairs become a regular thing. I carry scrap bucking, pleant of thread, needles as well as extra buttons. Gear repair is a regular occurrence and on down days I occupy my time and my hands to maintain the finer details of my camp. Tending to our belongings is necessary otherwise they could compile and all fall apart at the wrong time!! Ask me how I know.. #buckskin #pants

Buckskin is my favorite fabric and material. My pants are the best ive ever made and worn. Washing them takes a bit of time. Ivory soap cleans them and keeps em supple and gently scrubbing with a bristle brush cleans them very thorough. Washing My pants is not so fun in the winter. #buckskin #leather #customclothes #handmade

Making buckskin in wintercamp like usual, there are a lot of methods and techniques for every step in hide tanning. The ways I share are a mixture of techniques I’ve picked up along the way from a multitude of tanners. I’m good at this process and can tan hides casually throughout winter. The next step is to prepare the hides for smoke but my next video will be on the various methods of pulling the hide to leather. #buckskin #leather #deerskin #CapCut

expert lvl saddle tramping. I work hard to do a good job. There’s a lot of pressure to be an example of such a fringe and obscure life. Much of my skills are highly scrutinized in different arenas. Nothing I learned and live was taught in a formal academic setting. It’s very much the world is your teacher. #saddletramp #horseshoe #horsebackriding

Buckskin moccasin repair AGAIN.. why does it seems like all I do is repair my holy soles. This is not a normal thing.. it makes more sense to make a brand new pair. They would look nice and clean but I’m partial to the holy sole and never ending layer of repair look. It’s just increases the difficulty everytime though.. #moccasins #buckskin #leathercraft

I camp through winter. Setting up a tipi is somthing i have to slightly re-learn every season because i havent done it that much. Just once a year. Although im very good at getting it done all by my lonesome but it takes a while. This year itll be extra lodging and storage. I don’t actually own many belongings but now that i have the yurt i have alot of bulk so ill be looking to aquire a cargo trailer at some point. #wintercamp #tipi #camp #yurt #winterfashion

My mornings look like this pretty much every day in my #wintercamp It’s extra peacable when the weather is calm with sunny days. Ill be sure to re make this style of video when the weather is hectic and circumstances are more extreme. After my morning routine i chip away at whatever tasks there is to complete. Today i have more wood to split and deer hides to scrape. I also have smaller tasks and crafts like cleaning, organizing and crafting. 100% of my effort is m for my own endeavors. #forevercamping #saddletramp #bestofbothworlds #alone #mypeace

Replying to @Squints life I don’t sell the things I make. Glow-in-the-dark beadwork. Porcupine tail hairbrush. Hand-painted buckskin hoodie. Fully beaded backpack. Moccasins that know the shape of my life. None of this is merch. None of this is hobby. This is continuity. #notforsale #buckskin #leather #craft #beadwork

Sharing my life’s journey traveling Americas wildlands out west RDR meets Modern america. Its a whole different take on life resembling both past and future in a total blend of modern and traditional skills from tipi living and tanning buckskin to wild food harvest and horseback riding. Follow the journey as we strive for earth before it becomes mars. #rdr2 #america #wildhorses #forevercamping

Porcupine tail hairbrush fully beaded with backlit candy glow in The dark beadwork pattern in entirely flat peyote stitch. For those of you who dont know.. this beadwork i do is unecssearily rediculous. I put way more work into my personal projects than anyone who sells their work. And i refuse to sell my work. This hairbrush is the first i ever made in 2016. I decided to tear it all apart and redo the project. Perfect example of traditional with a modern twist #beadwork #hairbrush #porcupine #glowinthedark #crafting

Living free is subtley outlawed through policy. Acess to whats left of natures functioning ecosystems is incrementally restricted while its being dismantled. Our world is relevant beyond people and invention. I squeeze my way through the ambiguity of the fringes and have earned myself a front row seat at the dissapearing outback. #saddletramp #horsenomad #horseback

The best containment method for #workinghorses on the go. How i contain my horses is also how i feed them. This is how my horses can work fulltime and still maintain their figure. This is a brief overview of how its done but there are do’s and dont’s to this method which i can go further into if folks are interested. There is no 100% safe method. Horses can hurt themselves even in their own home paddock. During the day ill picket them a fair distance away from camp and at noght i tie them close to camp in case i need to respond to an issue. Because of this im also a shallow sleeper and can wake in a moments notice. #horsebackriding #horsecampingadventures

Just finished making a set of rawhide containers made from my first horse with buckskin soft tops and a wild dogbane hemp drawstring. In 2018 I had to make the tough decision to put down my first horse due irrecoverable lung issues. He was a beautiful blue roan and I saved some of his hide so he can continue to travel on the journey he started me out on. #rawhide #horsenomad #wildcrafting #buckskin #CapCut

Slow pokes over here.. moseying on through Idaho this season. Traveling down the weiser river trail #trailhorse #packer #traveler

Wild fiber is very valuable. This native plant is straight medicinal to wear and work with as well as just overall necessary for functional river systems out west. Every seed will be planted within its historic range in an effort to casually restore critical habitat #plants #nativeplants #dogbane #restoration #fiberartist

Ever wonder why official documents feel like another language? That’s because they are. Words that look familiar can flip their meaning behind closed doors. Let’s just say… it’s not by accident. #LanguageMatters #FinePrint #DecodeTheSystem