Artifact Bags

Chris Hughes of Artifact Bag Co. makes great bags in his Omaha-based workshop, which is one awe-inspiring workshop filled with great machines. His bags are incredible too. Hard-wearing, well-made and tough as nails. Initially his version of a lunch bag got a lot of press and attention, but I think his briefcase and carry tote are much more impressive, but I guess a lunch bag is a stand out piece and of course a lot of good makers are making totes.

The reason why I follow Artifact bags isn't exactly because of the products- They're great no doubt about it and definitely worth looking if you're in the market for one, however I'm pretty set in terms of bags. But I really enjoy his blog. Now it hasn't been properly updated for some time, but previously you could follow his hunt for the right machinery for his workshop. It's just so crazy what you can find in a country that has had a lot of industry, like the US. I mean, I couldn't find much like it here in Denmark, even if I tried. And believe me, I try.

There's a video too. Enjoy.

Oak Street Bootmakers - Trench Boot

I remember when Oak Street Bootmakers hit the menswear scene. People went crazy for the vibram soled oxfords. It was crazy. But from what I've seen, it's totally understandable, as the quality is definitely up there, so is the vision of the brand.

It has become obvious that George Vlagos is going for something a bit different than moccasins and loafers with the release of the field boot for instance. However their most recent release, the Trench boot, really hones the brand name.

 Made in the USA (of course) of quality materials in a timeless design in one of the nicest leathers around (Horween's Chromexcel leather in the colour "Natural"). What's not to like? Nothing, I guess, but personally I would never consider wearing a pair of boots that didn't have a rubber sole. In my mind I'm thinking about how nice they would look, if they were equipped with a rugged, English Ridgeway sole. But that's probably just me and my OCD, but make no mistake this boot looks like one of the best boot options around.

Crafts - Market Tote

It seemed like a natural progression to start making a bag out of leather. I've made a lot of smaller accessories for some time now, but never anything as big as a bag. Mostly due to the fact that I don't own a working leather sewing machine and only sew by hand, which means, that besides cutting the leather and constructing the bag, I would also have to make a couple of thousands stitches by hand - one at the time. As you probably can imagine this is a rather time consuming project. 

However it seemed like a perfect opportunity when a friend of mine came by some time ago and started talking about the need of a "big leather bag", which I turned into "huge leather tote" in my head. As I finally had a couple of days off, I jumped at the opportunity and made that "huge leather tote", that she requested.

There is nothing revolutionary about the design, and that was never the intention. However I think I managed to add some details, that makes the bag stand apart. First of all it's completely hand sewn and besides that the handles are folded and sewn together and it's not just riveted unto the bag, but both sewn and riveted and it has an internal pocket, which is left open for easy access.

As I have tried to illustrate with these pictures, it can contain quite a lot of stuff, and will definitely hold enough stuff for a weekend trip. It was constructed as a one piece construction for durability and simplicity.

The interior is very simple. One pocket without any closing mechanism for easy access.

I couldn't resist the urge to put my name on bag. As you can't punch the football leather, I had to put in a small tag of the same vegetable tanned leather as used on the handles.

As this was a bag intended for a very special person I wanted to monogram it. I decided to use some mil-spec brass stencils, that I had bought from the US some time ago, but never really used before. Of course it's rather reminiscent of naval stencils on marine army wear, but it makes sense in this case, if you happen to know my friend, so I really like this personal detail.

Stitching came out quite nicely. I used a braided nylon thread from Barbour Coats. The thread was only glazed, so I waxed the thread myself using beeswax and paraffin. A rather nice, but also time-consuming, procedure. Unfortunately I can really tell that I need to work on my edge coating skills.

The handles caused some cussing, as it really took some effort to get them right, but in the end they are also, what I like the most about the bag.

There is no padding/backing added to them, but they are made of a 3/4 mm thick vegetable tanned leather, so if they were to collapse a bit, that wouldn't matter. I wanted them to soften with wear making them more comfortable. To add to the comfort I rounded all edges and burnished them with beeswax.

For extra durability I decided to secure the handles using both rivets and stitching.

From experience I know, that solid copper rivets age really well and on top of that they go really well with natural vegetable tanned leather. Perfect combination.

Burnished edges

All the copper rivets were backed using the same leather as the body.

I just can't enough of that grain and from working with this leather I've been thinking about finding some nice pebble grain leather, like the one that a lot of shoemakers use. But I'm yet to find a good source for it.

Most of all I can't wait to see the bag in some time. I put a lot of effort into to this bag and without sounding  like a big cliché I also managed to put in some blood, sweat and tears. I really hope, that it wears well and that it will give the owner a lot of pleasure in the years to come.

Crafts - Rune's iPad Sleeve

Last summer one of my best friend's, Rune, came by to give leatherworking a go. He spent hours burnishing the edges on the belt, that he made and it was a joy seeing someone so consumed of this one thing. It was just him and the leather - everything else seized to exist for some time. Just before leaving he told me about an idea of making a sleeve for his iPad and so we did, when he came to visit from Copenhagen this weekend.

Rune made the sleeve himself - almost at least. I tried to help, but it was mostly in terms of design. The details he picked himself and of course he decided to use the most extravagant solutions. He picked the football leather from Horween and the fattest, thickest and most greasy thread, that I have in my arsenal; a thread called Nyltex. Nyltex is not a braided or twisted thread  - it just consists of of multiple strains, which makes it hard to get an even stitch, as the thread becomes either twisted or totally flat. Normally a thread, that I would use on very thick leathers and honestly I usually avoid it because it's so hard to get nice, even stitches, which is what I always strive towards.

The design is a fairly simple envelope design, but it's very functional and we added a couple of nice details.

I'm amazed by the surface of this leather. Especially this irregular pattern, that runs across the sleeve. It looks a bit like small flowers. Very beautiful.

The stitches turned out quite well considering the fact, that Rune has very limited experience with stitches, but he took it slow and was very thorough. 

Edges were finished in black using Edge kote by Fiebings. A product that I very rarely use, but it turned out quite good. It's impossible burnishing the edges of this leather.

A button stud makes for the closing mechanism. Very simple. Plus I got to use my antique leather buttonholer, which is always a joy.

The stud button doesn't come in contact with the iPad itself, so there is no danger of scratching the darn thing. And again, that texture is just something else.

I'm very interested in seeing, how this sleeve ages. The key wallet, that I made for my brother in law some time ago, has aged quite nicely, so my feelings towards this leather is becoming more and more positive, although it isn't the easiest to handstitch. 

Eastland Made in Maine - Part Deux

I caved. I went back to get the other pair of Eastland Made in Maine shoes, that I had been eyeing for some time. My older mocs (mostly Quoddy and Yuketen) are all quite worn out, and they are my go-to summer kickers, so I felt it was an investment worth making. 

They fit me perfectly and the construction of the shoe feels very solid and very sturdy. The leather choice isn't that interesting per se, but this Chromexcel from Horween feels a bit different from the other Chromexcel footwear I have. It's more waxy, more greasy and bit thicker as well. I'm sure, it'll wear in very nicely. But the colour however is a bit more interesting than the more regular colours you often see, although it's not crazy like some of the more recent moccasin, we've also been seeing.

Another nice feature is the leather mid sole. It's not an original feature, as far as I know, when comparing to bluchers in old LL Bean catalogs for instance. but it is a feature I quite enjoy.

Nice grain on the leather. It has a bit more character than regular Chromexcel, though still very subtle.

Perfect stitching.

I wouldn't mind adding more Eastlands to my shoe collection. They very well-made.

Now this post wouldn't be complete without a video. I hope I haven't posted this one before. It's hard to keep track. This video shows the Rancourt factory, where I'm quite sure, that Eastland's Made in Maine collection is made. It'll make you appreciate your shoes more.