From her childhood bedroom just outside the Quad Cities, Peeters sews leather appliques, drawing inspiration from the homemade costumes of Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn, as well as her firsthand experience with the fast fashion crisis in southern Africa.
Until about six months ago, Peeters pursued a career in public health, including a Peace Corps position in Mozambique. She describes the impact of global clothing waste, particularly in African countries situated along the coast.
"A lot of African countries [...] are kind of the last stop for a lot of clothing waste globally. Pallets of clothes were dumped off in these countries because they didn't sell elsewhere. It really undermines local economy in a lot of ways."
In opposition to fast fashion and its negative effects she had encountered first hand, Peeters decided to build on her sewing skills taught by her grandmother and aunt. Her inclination towards western wear was also inspired by her family.
“It just kind of happened naturally, that the more I explored [fashion], the more I started to dig into like my dad's side of the family who really were all farmers. I have a great uncle who I loved growing up and they were more Western. His kids rodeo, they always had horses and at family reunions, he would always wear pearl snap shirts and a bolo tie and sometimes a cowboy hat,” Peeters said. “The more I thought about personal identity and a sense of place, and then this feeling of frustration, I just started taking some of those elements and incorporating them into what I was doing and really then Western wear just started to happen and pushing outside of this idea of my great uncle's pearl snaps to make it feel like something that was more me.”
Operating solely through Instagram, Snake Farm Creative, in its two-year existence, has designed multiple outfits for country music star Miranda Lambert. Peeters collaborates with Lambert’s stylist Tiffany Gifford, who found her through Instagram. "Whenever they want a piece for [Lambert], Tiffany and I will go through what they're looking for. Typically it's centered around specific events or a specific place, which really informs the design itself," Peeters said.
“And then from there, we've pinned down the the motif, what colors typically we're working with from like the base color of the garment and then adding in those applique colors afterwards to fit to fit the setting. So, it's fun, it's a really dynamic process, but at the same time, I feel really grateful that for the most part, they give me a lot of creative control and a lot of full reign.”
One Snake Farm Creative piece made its way onto the Hinterland stage this past summer. Read Connolly, a member of Zach Bryan’s band, wore a custom David Byrne-inspired suit designed by Peeters to honor Connolly’s late father for a show in Philadelphia. "It's really humbling to do pieces for anyone in general, let alone for people who are out there doing really incredible things."
Operating from her childhood bedroom, Peeters aims to move into her own studio space soon.
"It's important to remember that you can work inside your own limitations and still do something really big [...] If there's something you've been considering doing, just do what you can with what you've got, and go for it because you never know what could come of it."
Custom Western wear designs and bolo ties by Snake Farm Creative are available for purchase on Peeters' Instagram page, @snakefarmcreative.
