I am rolling a Nord in light armor, who will eventually get dragon scale and use Nordic weapons (I love the way the battle axe looks). I dislike most of the light armor sets, but I do like the look of leather armor. Is leather armor viable with smithing, light armor perks, and alchemy until I get to dragon scale?

With smithing, ANY armor is viable.

Yep..Provided you have all the major perks in Smithing,Light Armor and Alchemy...You can improve Leather Armor to have a rating of up to 700 points of Armor.

Awesome. I wanted to wear it until I get dragonscale, but I wasn't sure if that was even feasible. I love the way it looks. I am not making my Nord wear Elven armor, and glass is too . . . flashy for him.

EDIT: I'll probably add the Lord Stone for added protection.