Life of a Maker, C and B Leather: Custom Hand Made Leather Goods

Leather Wedding Gifts

Creativity, Leather Carving, Life of a Maker

Spring and Summer are traditionally the height of wedding season and custom leather wedding gifts are not uncommon. So this month I wanted to look back on some of the special wedding items that I’ve made over the years

A couple of years ago I was asked to make a wedding guest book with a carved floral design and the couples initials. This cover was designed to go around a guest register that slipped into it.

Custom Leather Wedding Guest book with floral carved design — A hand carved leather wedding guest book personalized for the couple.

On another occasion I was contacted by a bride to be who wanted something special for her wedding shoes. Or I should say boots because they were a pair of boots with a tall heel, and she wanted to customize them with a floral carving design on the heels.

Floral Carved Leather Heels added to a boot. — A fcarved leather loral design added to an existing boot for a bride to be.

This is a tricky kind of project because the leather and carving design has to be created to fit the specific heels. This meant I had to have the actual boots in hand in order to determine the size of the leather overlay that would go around the heel. Once I knew the correct size then could I design the artwork that would be carved into the leather.

One advantage of this: Since the heels are mirror images of each other I only needed to design the carving pattern for one heel and I could use that design as a mirror image for the other heel just by flipping it over. This gave the boots the symmetry they should have.

On another occasion I was asked to make a carved picture frame for the happy couple. This was a wedding gift to them and eventually held one of their favorite wedding day pictures.

A carved leather picture frame designed to hold a wedding picture. — Custom leather picture frame designed to hold a wedding picture.

Leather Wedding Gifts

If you need your own pair of customized boots for your wedding or any other special leather wedding gift for an upcoming wedding, contact us and let me know what you are looking for, Custom leather items usually take time to make so giving me ample time to make them is a good idea. But I will do what I can to meet your schedule and make something unique that matches your vision.

Custom Leather Wedding Gifts

Life of a Maker

June is traditionally the height of wedding season and custom leather wedding gifts are not uncommon. So this month I wanted to look back on a special wedding item that I made last year.

I was contacted by a bride to be who wanted something special for her wedding shoes. Or I should say boots because they were a pair of boots with a tall heel, and she wanted to customize them with a floral carving design on the heels.

This is a tricky kind of project because the leather and carving design has to be created to fit the specific heels. This means I had to have the actual boots in hand in order to determine the size of the leather overlay that would go around the heel. Once I knew the correct size only then could I design the artwork that would be carved into the leather.

Making custom leather wedding gifts is not completely new to me. I’ve made wedding guest books, photo albums and even a floral carved leather photo frame for a portrait of the happy couple. But this was the first time I’ve ever modified boots or made any kind of foot wear, so it was a particularly unique challenge for me. The bride to be was thrilled with the finished product and I was very honored to make these for her.

Custom Leather Wedding Gifts

If you need your own pair of customized boots for your wedding or any other special wedding gift for an upcoming wedding, contact us and let me know what you are looking for, Custom leather items usually take time to make so giving me ample time to make them is a good idea. But I will do what I can to meet your schedule and make something unique that matches your vision.

Intentional Spending in 2025

Business, Life of a Maker

I’ve seen a lot written lately about the No Buy 2025 trend on social media. While I understand the sentiment I think the concept is hard to hold firmly to. After all most of us need to buy food and I hope most of you will continue to purchase some essentials like toothpaste and deodorant! And then there is coffee….

I think a better idea is to “Intentionally Spend” throughout 2025. Intentional Spending involves making educated purchases for stuff you really need and that is made with quality in mind by a local business or artisan whenever possible. It also involves shopping at locally owned business and supporting your local small business as opposed to the big box or on line retailers. Intentional spending in 2025 can have a huge impact on your wallet and your local small businesses and local economy.

Hand Sewing Leather — Hand Stitching a Leather Wallet with a traditional saddle stitch.

By purchasing quality items, you get a product that will last longer or be better suited to your needs. Let’s face it, while the things sold at major retailers may be very affordable they are often made so they don’t cost much to produce. That means quality materials or craftsmanship are sacrificed in order to keep the price down. When you purchase something made with quality materials and crafted with care, you get a product that will last much longer than what you will get from the big box retailer. In the long run that saves you money because you don’t have to repeatedly replace it.

Why support your local craftsman or artisan?

Unique and High-Quality Products: Handmade items are often made with more care, attention to detail, and higher quality materials than mass-produced goods.

Supporting the Local Economy: When you buy from small businesses, you’re putting money back into your community, supporting local jobs and helping the local economy thrive.

Sustainability: Small-batch, handmade items are often more sustainable and environmentally friendly than mass-produced goods.

Personal Connection: You often have the opportunity to connect with the maker directly, learn about their process, and appreciate the artistry behind their work.

Preserving Craftsmanship: Supporting handmade businesses helps preserve traditional crafts and skills for future generations.

Investing in Dreams: When you buy from a small business, you’re often supporting someone’s passion and helping them achieve their dreams.

By practicing Intentional Spending in 2025 you can make a difference in your spending habits and end up with smarter, more long lasting products that contribute to your local economy! You will also be supporting the dreams and creativity of your local craftspeople and artisans and helping their businesses survive.

If you have any questions or want to discuss my products or processes, feel free to contact me here.

Thankful For My Customers and My Craft

Business, Creativity, Life of a Maker

Thanksgiving is upon us and I have much to be thankful for. I have been able to make many cool and unique leather items this year for very appreciative customers. I’m very thankful for people that value my work and allow me to make one of a kind works of functional art!

A custom leatherwork notebook with floral carving. — My World Leather Debut entry, a custom made leather notebook cover.

I’m thankful that carving and making in leather has become a business that I can succeed in. So many people have come to me over the years to make items for special occasions in their lives, be it weddings, special gifts or just unique items they couldn’t find. I’m thankful that this work has allowed me to express the creative fire within me and I’m grateful for the endless sources of inspiration that surround me – nature, people, music, etc. I’m thankful for these inspirations and their ability to keep my work fresh.

I’m thankful for leathercraft!

I’m also thankful for the journey of creating art itself – the messiness, the breakthroughs, the moments of frustration and the ultimate satisfaction of bringing an idea to life and creating something special and unique for my customers. Most of all I’m deeply grateful for the people who connect with my work, who appreciate my efforts, and who support my artistic journey through purchases, encouragement, and kind words. Their engagement validates my passion. And this goes beyond my customers. I’m grateful to my family, friends and mentors for their encouragement. They’ve helped me navigate the ups and downs of this creative business and kept me going when things got tough.

I’m grateful for the wonderful year I’ve had making these unique items and I’m looking forward to many more making all sorts of new and unique items for people. If you are looking for your own unique leather item, contact me to get the process started. I’m eagerly looking forward to my next projects!

Custom Leather work is busier than ever!

Life of a Maker

Hi all and Happy First Day of Summer! It’s been a busy first half of the year here in the shop and its hard to believe so much of 2024 has already gone by!

Carved leather money clip wallet with Celtic knot design — Money clip with Celtic knot design

I want to thank all our fantastic customers for the business this year! I’ve been able to make many cool custom leather work projects so far this year, recreating old wallets, making notebooks and belts. And there are some really cool projects coming soon like a recreation of a customer’s favorite handbag that has now worn out. A chef’s knife roll. Some really cool wallets. There are so many cool things that I am very thankful for the opportunity to make, plus some projects I am doing just to expand my own skills and products. I’m particularly excited about some projects that will go beyond the traditional western style floral designs I typically make. I’m looking to expand into different styles of artwork so I hope you will be seeing some different artwork appearing on these pages and on my social media accounts.

If you are interested in having some custom leather work made for you, just let me know here. I would be happy to talk to you about what you need and what you envision, and I love making your vision into a real leather item that will last you for years to come.

Custom Leather Notebooks

Life of a Maker

While going through some of my old pictures on my computer I ran across images of this notebook I made twelve years ago. I had forgotten I had even made a notebook like this.

Hand Carved Leather Notebook with oak leaf designs in the corners. — Custom Leather Notebook With Oak Leaf Designs

This was a custom leather notebook made to order. I really like oak leaf carvings and I don’t get to make them as often as I should. Oak leaves are traditionally a symbol of strength and they used to be very common decorations for stone buildings, furniture and yes leather carving.

I’ve made many different carvings using oak leaves, from wallets to notebooks, but one thing I’ve never made is an oak leaf carved belt. If you’re out there reading this and that sounds like a cool idea to you, contact me and let me know. I would be happy to make someone a oak leaf belt and would probably give you a discount to do it too just because I think it would be a cool project.

Custom Leather Notebooks

Custom leather notebooks used to be my speciality and it’s what I started out making for people. My very first custom orders were for custom leather notebooks like the on shown above. These notebooks were almost always laced around the edges like the one shown here because at the time I didn’t know how to hand sew leather. But I also liked the look and I still make some projects like this. Most of the notebooks had western floral designs on them but every once in a while I would get to make a Celtic knot or oak leaf design like this one.

Close up of oak leaf carving on leather.

If you have a need for a custom leather notebook, leather journal or wedding guest book, please let me know. I’m always happy to make leather notebooks and journals for people. Let me know what ideas you have for your design and I will do everything I can to make your idea come to life.

Celebrating Quality Full Grain Leather on World Leather Day!

Life of a Maker

April 26th is know as World Leather Day, a day to celebrate the quality, beauty and versatility of full grain leather. Leather can be a sound choice as a more sustainable up cycled product that is more environmentally friendly than some alternatives like plastics.

Leather is one of the oldest products that man has made and it’s still very useful to this day. From clothing to boots to wallets, full grain leather still has many key uses in modern society. It is a versatile and durable product that outperforms and outlasts many modern materials like plastics or synthetic fibers. By replacing plastics and other synthetic polymer based fibers leather can help keep micro-plastics out of the environment and the food chain. Also full grain quality leather can be repaired to extend it’s lifetime or it can be recycled or up cycled into other products, further reducing it’s environmental impact.

All leather is actually a byproduct of the meat industry. Leather starts off as an animal hide that would be discarded in a landfill if it wasn’t converted to a useful product. While the tanning process does produce waste chemicals the industry has made great strides on minimizing their waste and treating their contaminated water runoff to mitigate environmental impacts. The tanning industry has made great strides in reducing their carbon and environmental footprint in recent years.

Full Grain Leather’s Impact

Whether it’s a leather garment, a leather boot or a carved leather notebook like the one shown above, the environmental impact that genuine full grain leather can have on the world should not be dismissed. There is still a wide variety of uses for leather in our modern world and it’s a material that should be embraced. Here on World Leather Day we celebrate this most versatile of materials and how it continues to improve and enhance our daily lives.

Custom Leather Belts

Life of a Maker

I was at my local library yesterday and ran across a book called “Art of the Buckle” by Jim Arndt and Mary Emmerling. It’s a pictorial book depicting various kinds of custom and handmade belt buckles. Many are silver with mounted stones like turquoise.

This book caught my eye because of the silver and turquoise work but also when I opened it I ended up in a section of hand engraved silver work for Ranger belt sets. The artistry was definitely eye catching and in ways it was inspiring too. It definitely made me want to build a Ranger style belt for myself!

Custom leather belts have long been a part of the customer leather work we do here at C and B Leather. I’ve made floral carved belts, geometric stamped designs and even belts with tooled mountain scenes. Since my early days, making belts for customers has been a part of my work. Looking at a book like this is inspiring because I look at the various buckle designs and wonder ‘what kind of belt would I make to match this buckle’? The artwork on these buckles can definitely make me think about leather art designs for custom belts that I never would have thought of before.

If you are interested in a custom belt contact us to get the process started. We take your measurements and make a belt specifically for you. You can also choose from our existing floral or geometric designs or present us with your design ideas and we’ll do our best to make them come to life. For more information about what goes into making custom leather belts check out this blog post for more details.

If you are interested in getting a copy of this book you can get in on Amazon here. Please note I am also an Amazon Associate and I earn commissions on qualifying purchases.

Jesse Smith Master Saddle Maker

Leather Carving, Life of a Maker

I didn’t want all of February to get by without making a post. So today I want to take advantage of leap day to post about a very talented saddle maker and one of my main influences, Jesse Smith.

The video below was filed more than a decade ago but Jesse is still at work making saddles and other leather goods. Jesse is a master saddle maker who has made hundreds of saddles over his career and is responsible for training dozens and dozens of aspiring saddle makers over the years.

While I am not a saddle maker (I would love to make one someday though!) Jesse did teach me much of the basics of floral carving when I was starting out and I learned the style of floral carving I make, called the Northwest Style of floral carving, from him. I owe a lot of my style and success to Jesse.

Veg tan leather carving — Floral carving in leather.

This is an example of my own carving in the Northwest Style of floral carving.

In many ways saddle making is the pinnacle of leather work. It involves all the techniques for solid construction of a working leather item and must withstand the elements. It can incorporate the highest forms of leather art in the carvings and decorations that adorn the saddle. It also is an important piece of safety equipment as both the rider’s and the horse’s health and safety can depend on how well it functions. It really brings all the skills and techniques of leather work into one project.

Jesse has spent a lifetime developing his skills and knowledge, and he has always been happy to share that knowledge with others. He has been a teacher for many years and has influenced some of the best makers in our field. I am very thankful to have had him as a teacher and to call him a friend.

Custom Leather Wallets Special Ending Soon!

Life of a Maker

Just a quick reminder that our special offer on custom leather wallets will end this Saturday, Jan 27th at midnight. You can still get a 15% discount if you contact us before then and get your order in place, and we will guarantee to have the wallet finish in time for Valentine’s Day.

Leather Clutch Wallet made from blue embossed crocodile — Blue leather clutch wallet.

You can order a customized leather wallet and get a discount on it too! Just contact us now to get the process started.

THERE ARE LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE in our order books for this event. Spots in promotions like this tend to fill up quickly so let us know as soon as you can what you would like to have made for the special someone in your life. And if you need any ideas be sure to visit our wallet page in our shop to check out some pre-made items we have in stock.

We can make you many different styles of clutch wallets, bifold wallets and other custom leather wallets. Talk to us today about the special artwork or personalization you would like for your loved one and we will do everything we can to make it happen!

Custom Leather Wallets 15% off!

Now through January 27th! Offer valid on new custom orders only. Preexisting custom orders and Etsy shop listing are excluded. Get your order in today by contacting us!