The Night’s Watch Cloaks Began as Rugs
The shaggy cloaks worn by the Night’s Watch were made, in large part, from inexpensive sheepskin-style rugs bought at IKEA. Costume designer Michele Clapton and her team cut the rugs into wearable shapes, then dyed and distressed them to give them a rough, weather-beaten look.
A rug makes an unexpectedly useful starting point for a cloak: its thick pile reads clearly on camera, even in wide shots, and suggests warmth and weight without requiring a costly luxury fabric. The costume team could also alter each piece, making the black-clad Watch look like a group outfitted from whatever it could find rather than a polished army in matching uniforms.
Why the Rough Texture Matters
The cloaks help tell the story before a character speaks. Their bulky, uneven surfaces make the Watch seem suited to a cold frontier, while the darkened, worn finish implies years of hard use. That visual shorthand matters in a crowded fantasy world: viewers can recognize the order’s members at a glance, and their clothing feels connected to the harsh life they lead.
The transformation is the memorable part: a familiar household rug, cut and treated by a costume workshop, becomes a signature piece of Westeros’s most forbidding uniform.
