Nate Wald braided his first set of reins in the spring of 1989 and has been braiding steadily ever since. Nate is passionate about his family, his work, and his goals. A quote from western artist harlie Russell is reflective of Nate's personal philosophy, "To have talent is no credit to its owner; any man that can make a living doing what he likes is lucky, and I am that. Any time I cash in now, I win." The Wald family cattle ranch, located in Lodge Grass, Montana, is the center hub of a lifestyle dedicated to the value found in a day's work well done. Nate, his wife TJ and family all share in these values. It is a way of life nearly gone, but for Nate, it's a way of life worth keeping a hold of.

    Nate is constantly striving to improve the quality of his work with each new piece he braids. A trademark of Wald's gear is its usability. He pays close attention to lengths and dimensions. "I never lose sight of the fact that I'm making gear, I feel strongly that a person should be able to take the fanciest piece of gear I make and use it." Every piece of Wald rawhide gear is designed to be used. Much of this stems from Nate's work on the ranch starting his colts and making them into traditional bridle horses. "I want to make the finest, most beautiful, unique gear I can produce without losing tradition, functionality, or straight, clean work." Always, for Nate Wald, the number of plaits, colored interweaves, or buttons is no substitute for straight clean work.

    Although Nate considers himself to be largely self-taught, a number of men have been influential in his development among them Ed DuBeau, Bryan Neubert, and Bill Dorrance. In addition to his membership in the Traditional Cowboy Arts Association, Nate's work has been included in the Trappings of Texas show in Alpine, Texas, The Gathering of Gear Exhibit in Elko, Nevada, and the permanent collection of gear at Elko's Western Folklife Center.