Nooks Design began with a visit to a Kelowna, BC thrift store on a cold December day where wool sweaters were going to be discarded due to moth holes; it seemed like a perfect opportunity to take the wool and make it into something new and beautiful.
Our daughter Anouk was turning one and about to take her first steps, and we were in need of some footwear to keep her warm but also to help her gain the confidence she needed to put one foot in front of the other and begin exploring on her own. The combination of the soft and breathable wool from the upcycled sweater and a leather sole made from an upcycled leather purse provided the slip-resistant and stylish solution we were looking for. And so was born the name Nooks (“Anouk’s booties”). The demand grew organically from parents who recognized them as being the solution that they had been looking for.
One year after the launch of the business, a line of children’s clothing was designed and brought into production, starting with custom dresses and skirts. The diversification of the product line made it necessary to rebrand from Nooks Footwear into Nooks Design in mid-2014.
Our small team works to develop new and fresh patterns every season, always with the inspiration of using timeless designs. To keep up with the growing demand for our footwear, we partnered with a Fair Trade-certified team based in Nepal in 2017 to help cut and sew the booties you find on our website. In 2018, our team more than doubled as we expanded our product offering to include embroidery on the woven uppers of our footwear.
