Leather work started by chance. Gini and I have always done things together. When she was sick and homebound, I asked her, “What she thought of me learning to sew?” She has always loved sewing, and it was my chance to share in her love. We started making bags, then bucket bags, thinking they would be nicer with leather bottoms. This started me down the road of making wallets and small items. I remember telling Gini that stamping and especially carving were too hard for me and I would never do it.
That didn’t last; it started with basket stamping and then simple carving. My work was horrible. That just drove me harder to not give up. I sought out teachers who could guide me. I was very fortunate to have one of the top people in the country mentor me, along with one other who
was also top in the world for figure carving. I was told, “keep pounding leather to get better.” It is true.

I enjoy pushing myself in new areas of the craft, yet hate making something more than once. My favorite type of leatherwork is pictorial carving. As a photographer since the early 80’s, I don’t care for coloring; I prefer tooling and antiquing, leaving the tooling and antiquing carry it the same as a black-and-white photo.

 

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