Use Southwestern Painted Hides To Create An Amazing Rustic Focal Point

Native Indians love to produce painted hides depicting traditional events of life itself. Tribesmen and women paint different elements according to their particular environments. Women traditionally create abstract designs, and men create pictures that really describe the tough lifestyle that they endure. 

The raw materials used to create painted hides are provided by many different animals including elk, deer and buffalo.  Rawhide is often selected for utilitarian purposes, while if the product is to be used for clothing, a softer or more supple selection is needed. 

Before creating the artwork, the artist must first find a hide that is either in its natural state or tanned. While tanned hides are suitable for various purposes due to their flexibility, painted hides can be sourced for a number of daily uses such as clothing and ceremonial robes. 

Collectors of Indian memorabilia love to purchase painted hides for decorating their homes in western or southwestern style. The rustic style of a painted hide is very appealing, and generates great interest to visitors due to their character and presence. For those who are intent on creating a western or southwestern feel, painted hides made from cow skins are a highly sought after accent piece.

There are several ways to use a painted hide in your decorating. Because they are often quite large, hides are used by decorators as area rugs or mounted wall hangings. A beautifully painted hide can also lay over the bed in a guest room, or hang as a main focal point in a southwest living room.   

The variety of painted scenes are endless, and give you flexibility in creating the look you want. Cowboy scenes and traditional Native American figures and symbols are very popular, and come in a variety of colors to match any color palette. Create great southwest style by adding rustic accent pieces such as southwestern painted hides to your rustic home decor.

See our entire Southwest & Western Painted Hides, Furs and Skins gallery.