Sierra Shores doesn’t like to be idle. A horsewoman that grew up riding in California, she loves all things Western. Today, she rides her reined cow horses, has cattle, and spends most of her time devoted to the craft of Western upholstery. Her creations grace antique chairs, sofas and more, showcasing not only the craftsmanship in the stitching but also in the revitalized wood of each piece.
As her love and knowledge of Western upholstery grew, so did a following of women (and a few men) who sought out her advice to learn the craft themselves. Shore was building a career in healthcare—she didn’t plan to foster a small group of crafters into a worldwide movement to empower women makers and showcase this art. But now, her work and her willingness to share knowledge is reaching across continents and providing buyers with authentic, quality furniture from her business and makers who have learned from her upholstery workshops.
Drawn to the Art
Growing up with horses ensured Sierra loved and knew the Western lifestyle. But it was her grandmother’s love of antiques that rubbed off on her and inspired her to begin her upholstery journey.
“It started with my love for antiques, but now it’s creating the pieces that save those antiques,” says Shores, who lives and works in Red Bluff, Calif. “I was working in healthcare and was doing Western home décor on the side. I would create things with horseshoes or my old split reins—just come home, worn out, and take my mind of healthcare by creating and tinkering around.”
Shores was driving home from work one day and spotted an antique couch. She decided to start upholstering, and despite never having done the work before, she was determined to figure it out.
Over the next decade, that is just what she did. Shores took classes in the North Bay area of northern California, learning about upholstery. But those classes lacked the nuances specific to Western décor.
“I wanted to know how to use hair-on hide, leather, Pendleton [textiles], fabrics with texture, and more,” she explains. “A lot of upholsterers don’t use leather because it’s different than a regular fabric. You have to understand how to manipulate it to do what you want, and there’s also a learning curve with the thickness and stretch. There were all these things I had to figure out.”
Shores had to learn to apply upholstery techniques to the unique Western style materials. She realized there was a lack of educational content available to teach other upholsterers to work with those materials, so she started answering questions for others.
Creating a Curriculum
Shores didn’t originally plan to teach others her craft. Yet her work was speaking to others, including Art of the Cowgirl founder, the late Tammy Pate. Pate asked Shores to present a workshop at the event, which was held in Queen Creek, Ariz.
Before tackling such a big workshop, the first-time educator decided to offer a smaller seminar to test her teaching skills.
“My first workshop sold out in 10 minutes,” Shores says. “I had no idea there was an interest. The second workshop, same thing. People were messaging about other opportunities, and one gal came to me and asked if I would teach online. To this day, I am grateful to her for getting this other ball rolling. I would never have considered online teaching because I didn’t think I had time for it, but she asked me to consider it for those around the country that wanted to learn Western upholstery.”
Thinking a handful of people would be interested, Shores did a mini-launch of a membership-based learning group on her Facebook page.
“I woke up in the morning, and there were almost 200 members that joined the site to learn upholstery,” she recalls. “I instantly panicked! I had no content to share with these people. We did weekly live meetups on a Zoom call, and they would join and ask questions while I upholstered on Zoom. I still can’t believe the direction it took. In addition to the membership group, I offer online courses now.”
Australian crafter and owner of Roamin the West, Melanie “Mel” Hogan was an early follower, and she jumped at the chance to join Shores’ membership-based group focused on learning and sharing the creative process. Hogan has also joined Shores as a part-time worker, aiding in creating a learning curriculum.
“If I hadn’t connected with Sierra, and if it wasn’t for her generosity and openness to help and support me, I would not have my current business,” Hogan says. “It’s become a great working relationship and friendship. I think people are drawn to it, as it connects them to their roots and history. It’s a love for the Western style and the creativity of restoring heirloom and antique pieces that we love. Sierra’s influence has created a very supportive, positive and safe place for everyone.”
More Than Materials
The growth of The Rusted Roan as a company and learning community has been rapid. Today, Sierra splits her time between creating her own designs, aiding others in the online community, and creating curriculum, not to mention teaching in-person workshops. The workshops are morphing into more retreat-like gatherings, bringing in more than just what is needed to upholster.
“It’s not an artist retreat, per se, but a retreat for upholstering and creating different art,” says Shores. “We have one coming up where we will upholster for five days and create decorative sugar cookies. We have a photographer showing these women how to take good photos of their pieces, and we are doing a beef tallow-making class and still upholstering. It’s turning into community and encouraging other women. I can’t come up with a word for what this is becoming, but it’s bigger than upholstery.”
Laura Teague of The Cross Bell Ranch in Osage County, Okla., hosted two such retreats with Sierra. Teague says it’s something to see Sierra instill confidence in first-time upholsterers while also working with experienced makers at the same event.
“Women have a desire to be self-made, and when they are around other women that are self-made and willing to share themselves, and their knowledge, it’s an exciting experience for people,” says Teague. “Plus, they leave with a project that they complete themselves. There is self-honor in that, and there is so much good that happens.”
Shores says she doesn’t have much downtime, but when she does think of the future of her Western upholstery business, she sees it helping to promote Western artists as much as selling her own creations, whether it’s the art prints on the materials or leathermakers collaborating on a piece. No matter what, it will blend Shores’ loves—the Western lifestyle and creating.
“A lot of this is keeping Western traditions alive through Western upholstery,” she says. “There are all these different décor fads, but leather never goes out of style. It’s crazy to think that me making something with horseshoes has become this worldwide art collective. Before, it was a creative outlet for me. I always wanted to try new things, experiment, and see if things worked. Now, it’s seeing what other people can create with the skills I help them grow.”
Find The Rusted Roan
SHOP: Shop Shores’ available upholstered pieces at therustedroan.com/shop.
LEARN: There are three ways to learn: online membership groups, online tutorials, and in-person workshops. All are available at therustedroan.com.
CONNECT: Follow on Facebook and Instagram.
CONTACT: sierra@therustedroan.com
This article about Sierra Shores appeared in the August 2025 issue of Western Life Today magazine. Click here to subscribe!
