Heat your feet

Form meets function. These what you need to survive on the ice. These ‘boots’ are made by Joanna Kunnuk. Some would call her a seamstress; I think of her as an engineer. I’m wearing two layers of warm booties under this fur, one with a legging that comes up over my knees. (I’ve never had colder knees than riding on a snowmobile up here.) The third layer is where the fur comes in. This is wolverine fur, except for a little piece at the back of each calf. Joanna ran out of wolverine, so she used polar bear. Yes, polar bear fur is white, but not after you colour it with hair dye to make it match. The fourth layer is the leather booties you see here in black and white. They are separate and made of store bought leather. Note the laces that secure the boot around the foot and calf; those are from hockey skates.

Cold? I don’t think so.