Custom Leather Work

Leather Works by Willow could create custom leather work for over 200 years and still not be able to acurately predict what you, a total stranger will want on your custom tooled leather wallet. Luckily, I don't have to guess what you want, you could just tell me! Working on commissioned pieces is my favorite way to challenge myself as a leather crafter.  So whether you want a custom leather notebook, leather journals, knife sheaths, leather bags, or a bifold wallet, I can help you create the perfect one of kind item. 

If you haven't commissioned art from an artist I would first ask that you read my Working With an Artist blog. It helps put you in the mind frame of what a productive and beneficial artist-patron relationship looks like.  So think about what custom leather good you need, what type of look or design you want, and what you can realistically can afford and lets start planning!

Custom Geek Messenger Bag with Firefly class spaceship, Serenity, The Winchester Brother's ride, Baby, a Weeping Angel hidding behind Hogwart's Womping Willow as well as Hogwart's Sorting Hat, and the always bigger on the inside, TARDIS, all tooled on Veg Tan Leather and painted with arcylics.

This Custom Geek Messenger Bag was comissioned by a friend of mine, and is one of the funnest custom leather work projects that I have created. You can tell by the long description that this bag had many different influences that all reflect the passions of one individual, making this handmade leather bag worthy of the term "custom."

How to commission from a leather maker:

I can hear you asking in your mind, "How do I get started?"

1) Be Outlandish
If you've got an item in mind try to describe it in as much detail as possible. Does it have pockets? Does it need to fit in a pocket? Should it be bright blue? Do you need exact measurements met? Is this for you or a loved one? What actives do you plan on using your custom leather good for?

2) Budget!
No one likes to talk about how much money they make, unless your on the Forbes's Billionaire's List. But having a figure in mind, when discussing what should go on your custom tooled leather wallet, can help. Don't have all the money up front, that's not a problem! You can always pay over multiple pay periods.

3) Sign a Contract
If talking about money didn't make you sweat, me telling you to sign a legal binding contract with someone you're going to fork over cash too will. Now I am not saying this to scare you away, but to let you know that when you sign a contact it's a big deal, for both parties. You should never work with a leather maker or any other creative that doesn't do contracts. What if the artist goes over budget? What if they gave you a bi-fold wallet, but you said that you wanted a tri-fold? Easiest way to protect the final product, sign that contract.

Captian America Belt & Harness

Captian America Belt and Harness collage of both the belt and harness on a mannequin on the front and back, as well as a close up of the side pockets on the mannequin.

Captian America Belt laid out on my work table.

Captian America Belt standing up on my work table, you can see that I've even included a layer of black leather lining.

I've done this Captain America Civil War harness and belt commission more than once, and I can tell you doing something a second time is a great exercise in following patterns that I've created as well as making adjustments for specific individuals. If there is anything that you see on my website that you just can't live without, I can't wait to make it!

​More on Capt' to come...

The Captain America Civil War belt with pouches and harness are a tailored, custom fit. All of the hardware represented has to be specfically crafted for the piece, including the harness bracket by coolestartist on Etsy, (https://www.etsy.com/shop/COOLESTARTIST) and the 3d printed faux buckle designed and printed by Renraku Props. In the photos represented here, all of the "metal" bits and triglides are made with leather using a water hardening process and then painted to appear metal.

Recreating movie magic can be challenging, and requires as much attention to detail as possible. It requires a special dedication to the end result, full of passion and love for the character or cosplay you intend to represent. I admit that the majority of my cosplays took hundreds of hours to complete, and blood, sweat, and tears were often shed in the wake of my glorious end results. However, the results speak volumes and somehow the time spent laboring over them fades away in the end.

I always start with multiple references for what I am creating, usually photographs of the character in costume, and always as many angles for reference as possible. Finding shots of the backsides of cosplay characters can be frustrating and sometimes you have to painstakingly pause a movie or TV Show multiple times to try and sketch the item or take photographs of the paused image. These are often blurry and can be troublesome to refer back to, so there's also things like Pintrest, hoping someone has gone before you in the endeavour and you can use there research as reference. However you do it, get good reference images to use as you work, and your details will astound onlookers.

I create a pattern before I begin constructing anything, usually with paper bags or cardboard. You can use newspaper, packing paper, muslin, or whatever material you have handy and don't mind tossing if you make a mistake. Some people prefer to use the saran wrap and duct tape combo and have someone draw the design directly onto the area, whatever works for you. Making the pattern is probably the most important part of creating your movie magic, and usually the most difficult and time consuming to get it just right. Spending the time to create a pattern can make your item fit so much better, it wastes less materials, and if you ever have to replicate the process you'll already have your starting point.

Hibiscus Flip-Flops

Leather flip-flops with hibiscus flowers tooled design.

Close-Up of the hibiscus flowers.

Close-Up of the side of the flip-flop showing the layer of cork, aka the sole of the flop.

An overview of the flip-flops and the unique hibiscus flowers.

These Hibiscus Flip-flops were Willow's first attempt at making flip-flops and were custom ordered by her girlfriend Erin. The design for the flowers Willow found through a Google search, but the decision to color the flops was all Erin. The top fork of the sandals was repurposed from an old pair that Willow had lying about.

There are a lot of things that if I were to do flip-flops again I’d do differently. For one thing, I thought that adding an extra layer of leather rather than a cushy foam layer would be a better choice. Synthetic materials don't break down as easily as organic matter, and I like to keep my leather products as close to organic as I can. But after Erin wore these for a couple of days, she assured me that I should put a layer of foam into the flip-flop. In future builds, I am going to keep the bottom layer of cork because it just makes my flip-flop so corky. 

Tail Knot Dragon Wall Art

Tail Knot Dragon is a modern Celtic knot design at the dragon's tail and a small infinity knot on the ax that the dragon is holding.

Close-Up of the modern Celtic knot that is the dragon's tail.

Close-Up of the ax that dragon is holding and the brassy frame flowered vine design.

Close-Up of the dragon's wings and the surrounding texturing.

Tail Knot Dragon Wall Art is a modern Celtic knot design that I got from the book Great Book of Celtic Patterns by Lora S. Irish. Animals and intricate knotwork are key elements to Celtic art. Many of the early designs of animals are so stylized that our modern eye can’t decipher which creature we are looking at. For the Tail Knot Dragon, we can see a fantastical dragon holding an elaborate ax with an interlocking Celtic knot pattern.

Back in the 17th and 18th centuries, the rich would hire craftsmen to decorate their walls with lavishly designed leather wallpaper or wrought leather. In today’s society, most people prefer bare walls or a more minimal designed wallpaper. Yet most walls aren’t bare, the moment you go into anyone’s house you’ll see all types of art hanging on the walls, posters, shelves with kink-knacks, family portraits, canvas art,  or sculptures. The Tail Knot Dragon Wall Art is a modern piece of art with a historical twist.