Four Winds is a small company with a big goal: To create a product of such beauty, quality and usefulness that it will be a favorite of yours for years to come. With our strikingly original designs and the best materials available, we are dedicated to transcending fine craft to make functional art with a Western accent and Moorish flair. In an age when so much in our lives is evermore high-tech and mass produced we are proud to be offering original, authentically handmade work.

Based in Tucson, Arizona, Four Winds was founded in 1984 by Joel and Sinde West. Joel has been a leather craftsman since 1965, beginning as an apprentice with legendary Lew Davis in Tucson. He later had his own workshops in Boulder, Colorado and Ibiza, Spain where he discovered the Hispano-Moorish roots of American Western culture. While exploring nearby Morocco, Joel encountered the master leathersmiths with whom we would later collaborate to create Four Winds. In 1984, after several years back in Arizona, he and Sinde returned to that area. Inspired by the Moorish influence in the American West and its ancestral origins, still vibrant in Morocco, it was natural to again design and produce fine leatherwork. Seeking out the most highly skilled artisans, they established their workshop in Marrakech, a center of Moroccan arts. Having now worked so long with the same craftsmen and women, we have developed a strong team, bonded by mutual respect and affection. For over two decades Four Winds has been creating unique styles combining a deep sense of tradition and cultural integrity with the emphasis always on quality.

Joel designs and creates the patterns for each new style. Then, working with the artisans, he develops the prototype, modifying details until it is “right” and production can proceed. We also design and make nearly all our buckles, conchos, medallions and other hardware, using antiqued nickel-silver and elements of cowhorn, bone and wood. Joel considers each piece his personal creation, overseeing all final finishing and quality control at our workshop in Tucson to be sure each piece has reached its full potential before being shipped to you. Sinde prides herself on efficiency and customer service and both will do whatever it takes to be sure you become and remain a Four Winds fan.