09/10/2025
NY kind of sash! just exquisite đź’ś
"In 2014, when Jules Daugherty (Cherokee Nation) was crowned Miss Cherokee, Don Stroud (Cherokee Nation/Muscogee) and the Cherokee Nation Color Guard presented her with a feather cape made by [Lisa] Rutherford. Stroud was familiar with feather capes since his sister Virginia Stroud (Keetoowah Cherokee/Muscogee, 1951–2024) wore one when she was Miss Cherokee in 1969. Daugherty notes that Rutherford’s cape “ignited a passion,” prompting her to analyze the statements found in de Soto’s journals and other historical documents. Daugherty developed her own distinctive style, shape, and approach that she says is informed by historical Eastern Band Cherokee fishing nets and traps. Her body of work, now featured prominently on the runways of Indigenous fashion shows, encompasses an array of forms, ranging from conventional turkey feathers to vibrant hues of dyed hot pink feathers— an homage to the Cherokee preference for “brightness and bling.” Incredibly, Daugherty’s sustained commitment to the medium has resulted in the creation of 55 feather capes to date, establishing her as one of the most prolific feather cape artists in recent memory."
Read more about feather capes and mantles and the people who make them in "To Carry the Wind: The Revitalization of Feather Mantles, Capes, and Cultural Memory" in our Summer 2025 issue.
Pictured: Jules Daugherty (Cherokee Nation), "Woman’s Cape," 2025, goose feathers, twined netting. Image courtesy of the artist.
