A great school day with Mozzie!

Down to the last bunch.

🏈 Mozzie and I have been watching Monday Night Football on Tuesday nights.

How’s this for personalized? Will be a gift from wife to husband, featuring the signatures of his mom and dad. Such a great gift!

🍪 😋

Love the movement captured in this photo.

Ended up following me inside, went for a monitored tour, sniffing every corner from the basement up to the second floor.

I’m not a pet or cat guy per se, but their company is nice. Maybe I consider making his visits ok? He’s my neighbor’s cat.

Taking photos outside and look who joined me :-)

Guess this counts as a Caturday post!? 🐈‍⬛

Cutting.

Doesn’t take much for me to squirrel. Made a sheepskin tissue pouch.

Finally at the bench. Warming up.

Hanging with these two tonight.

☀️ 🍵 Vitamin D and tea before round 2.

Working on a very custom rush job that came in this evening.

Had some time for a cigar today!

Quick Sunday morning addition.

back of the napkin scribbles vol 3

Bringing this one back.

Making an extremely custom leather oven mitt.

Day is still young.

A useful travel pouch.

📣🎉 Quick post to announce The Galileo Passport Case - available now! Website can be found at https://thegalileocase.com.

Lots of words, photos, and video to help show exactly what it is, how it looks, how it feels, and how it will be a good companion for your upcoming trip!

Always test in dev before promoting to prod.

Get yours.

Final touches in progress today for the Galileo website…hoping to officially announce availability later today or tomorrow!

Prototypes.

I am so incredibly grateful for the type of work I get to earn an income from. This is going to be a fun delivery to make!

Finished the calfskin wallet (a standard in my portfolio called The Armando). Hand dyed in chocolate. Hand stitched. As I was making it I had the thought that this would pair well as a set with The Galileo passport case!

Finishing a calfskin wallet today.

Got the walkthrough video recorded for the Galileo passport case. Website in progress. Logo by @ningkantida coming along really well. All primary photos taken. Need to get some “lifestyle” shots. This one escalated quickly but I’m very happy with how everything has come together!

Hand-dipped (many, many times) glow in the dark bookmark tips on The Jefferson.

Finished the hand-dyed calfskin Galileo passport case tonight. Photos of the finished product to follow later, hopefully with some nice natural light.

Pricing of everything finalized as-well. Available soon!

second look: the Galileo passport case

I have been using the Galileo passport case since making it (which has only been a week now, I think), just so I can use it day to day, feel what it feels like to do so, etc. In addition to working as designed, which is to carry a passport and other travel related documents, it also makes for a great wallet, albeit on the larger side. That it can carry a pocket size notebook (i.e. a field notes notebook, of course) is a very nice added bonus.

Hand-dyed in progress.

Workin’.

Modular. Versatile. (My end-of-the-workday-quick-creative-idea-to-execution).

Also, cool can. Good beer.

first look: The Galileo passport case

Sized up slightly to fit an International Driving Permit 🚗

🗳️ Polling the audience: have this as default size or as an optional size?

Necessary reminder.

Grateful Log and some Wisdom for Saturday September 21, 2024

1. Up at 3am
2. Yoga
3. Coffee

So in the majority of other things, we address circumstances not in accordance with the right assumptions, but mostly by following wretched habit. Since all that I’ve said is the case, the person in training must seek to rise above, so as to stop seeking out pleasure and steering away from pain; to stop clinging to living and abhorring death; and in the case of property and money, to stop valuing receiving over giving. - Musonius Rufus

Accidental selfie while taking photos of the passport case earlier today.

Second prototype, perfected the sizing. This product is good to go. Name TBD, but it is a passport case.

• made-to-order
• available in three colors: tan, brown (pictured), and black.
• veg-tan leather exterior, Italian suede interior (pockets)
• free monogram (optional)
• free domestic shipping
• $149 USD

Really liking how this passport case turned out. Will be part of the Strathmere Leather line. Also really liking suede for the interior pockets. Went with the same approach on the soon-to-be-announced Franklin bag.

Prototype.

A visitor.

Dyed by hand.

State of my bag lately. Water bottle in the modular compartment off to the side, 13” MacBook Air, 11” iPad, magazine for wishful moments to read, Jefferson full of notes and unfinished thoughts. Plus pockets on both sides of the bag holding useful day-to-day things.

Mornings.

Back to work! Have successfully not been down here since Saturday morning, which provides a fresh mindset in-between bench sessions and now as I get back to it.

Promo cards.

Grateful log for Sun, 15 Sep 2024

1. Finalizing everything to launch the Jefferson
2. Time with friends last night
3. Fell asleep under a tree yesterday afternoon, it was amazing.

🥳 LAUNCHED!

Introducing: The Jefferson Notebook Case (blog post announcing it).

Or just dive right in, head to TheJeffersonCase.com!

back of the napkin scribbles vol 2

Will have The Jefferson notebook case available soon! Recorded the walkthrough video today and finalized most of the website details. Stay tuned!

Experimenting.

After each set of leather bins I make I raise their prices.

This photo has nothing to do with the leather bins.

Set of 6 leather bins in progress: 18” x 12” x 12”. Stitching the bottoms into place next.

Finished and shipped these beauties yesterday. All hand-dyed. Leather cigar cases and a cigar match pouch. I whittle the ends of each cigar match (not shown in the photos) for a unique look on each one.

Hoping to have time at the beginning of next year to work on a few ideas I have with these types of products.

Beefy. Part of the next bag I’m working on (hoping to have everything finalized soon).

Heading out.

Had an idea.

School day is done for the day! What’s new in your world?

Alternative.

Random contents.

A small set. Phone sleeve and card sleeve. Hand-dyed leather, hand-stitched with a forest green thread. Lovely pine trees stamped on front and back.

I’ve been doing pretty good the last week or so at reading before bed.

This was a very fun project to work on. Challenging, new, learned a lot! Suede inside and out. Hand-painted logos. All very custom :-)

Pausing one, moving onto the next for a few hours.

A few tweaks before client work.

Day set.

This bag has been more than ideal as a daily carry for the past few weeks now. Just need to finalize a few smaller details. Very eager to get this one announced officially!

School day yesterday with this awesome kid ✏️👨‍🏫

Continuing to test, which is going well. Will be available for sale soon (with or without the pine trees, with or without out a monogram, two sizes, several different leather/finish options. Ordering will utilize simple email correspondence and then invoice for payment).

Was very needed.

Painting this morning 🎨

Morning starts lately.

Giving The Jefferson as a gift later today. Have made a bunch of “unboxing inserts” as a result.

You’ve Got Mail.

Later night than anticipated but had to follow a creative burst.

Made a stitched dual-layer hand-cut shoulder strap for the bag this evening. Much nicer. That and the snap in/out top provide excellent progress…I think this one is coming together nicely. Just a few details to finalize yet.

Bit by bit.

Wrapping up a large order today.

Not completely finished but was just about there at 2:30 this morning. Had to follow the creative energy.

Oh man 😍

Will finish this tomorrow. This suede is a dream to work with.

Season is definitely changing.

Moving on.

📝 Getting a few early morning words in before I can’t.

Should wrap up this Strathmere between tonight and tomorrow morning. Wondering who will get one next!

Much better. Added the trees since I’ll be testing this particular case well into September. Looking to make available in late September/early October.

Perfecting a few things, then making pancakes for breakfast.

Made one for the larger Field Notes. Also experimenting with a simple solution to keep the strap in place without it being fixed in place.

Have been doing some writing before bed the past few nights. Nothing organized, just getting the last few thoughts out before they are gone.

☕️ Before getting into the day.

Today’s shipments: leather match box (hand dyed in Spanish brown) with 100 hand-carved matches, leather pen case (pens not included). Both a classic part of my portfolio at this point.

Accurate. Looking forward to some rest this weekend, hopefully.

Today’s completed projects (so far).

Both hand-dyed. English bridle humidified cigar tube case. Mahogany tobacco pouch, satin-lined.

Continuing to enhance. Added two deerskin lace bookmarks.

Will finish this later this evening.

Hard to believe it is that time of year already 🎄🎅🎁

A very simple leather pouch I put together a while ago for keeping various cables and such in one place.

Using the case with a third notebook now (added the 56-week date book from Field Notes).

Planning.

Late night stamping. Dye will be applied (to A LOT of projects) tomorrow.

Saturday. Pancakes & Monopoly.

Another Strathmere bag in progress.

Doesn’t take long for me to get carried way 🙈

Thinking these will fall into an “accessory” item of the Strathmere Leather line. Going to keep using mine to see how things hold up, so far very pleased with it.

Gathering hardware for the next bag. Working title is The Franklin.

Much better. Adjusted the size slightly. Veg-tan leather with deerskin lace.

Holding two field notes notebooks and two traveler’s company “inserts”. Will use it for a while to see how it holds up.

Enjoying this.

Made it quickly last night using scrap oil-tan that I’ve had for a while. Will make another today with veg-tan. Deerskin lace works well though, will continue with that approach.

Quick one to get the brain into gear.

Leather wrapped handlebars. Loving them.

I do enjoy biking up here to write. This morning’s writing is almost exclusively for the next bag I’m working on. This is how most of the bags/designs start: with the written word. I flesh out the ideas this way, and then sketch.

When I take the time to watch a movie, actually sit and watch, I find myself pausing it to take pictures of things that become sparks for future ideas and designs.

Drying.

One guess as to what these will be wrapped with next…

Delivered the leather bag and leather coasters to my customer just now. He’s pretty excited to put the bag to use 😊

Back to the picnic bench.

Another Strathmere leather weekend bag out in the wild, complete with my client’s logo on the top flap.

Thankful for the rain.

Some hardware.

The rest of my day is focused on making my client’s Strathmere leather weekend bag. Excited to get into it! Photos and such to follow. Brown leather with antique brass hardware.

Hardware for two leather bags I’ll be making this week.

A quick leather project I made yesterday today to give as a birthday gift to my brother. Have added it to my portfolio as-well.

Now Available: Ocean Front, leather bag by yours truly. Thanks to everyone who watched up to this point in the process :-) Website is live, commissions via the email form at the bottom of the page can be made, excited to get some made and out there! Please check it out and pass along.

nearly there…

Some purse “repair” action this morning.

Voiceover time 🎙️

My third indoor plant to keep alive :-)

Grateful Log for Saturday July 20, 2024

1. All of the ideas I’ve been having lately, most of which have come to life!
2. Good sleep
3. Being inspired.

Here’s a photo of the neighbor cat enjoying one of the new deck chairs yesterday while I was making dinner :-)

Slower and more work on my end, but this feels like the right way to handle this part. Will also update The Strathmere site to use this same method. Much more human in this very digital world.

A few shots of the Ocean Front leather bag with yours truly as the model :-)

Much quicker. This one will be live soon. Creating a bit of a brand around Strathmere Leather, with the various travel related products underneath it. It is in my nature to complicate things :-)

Grateful Log for Friday July 19, 2024

1. Time at the pool this week: I sit there, soak up the sun, receive the ideas, write them down.
2. Being able to shift to various tasks based on where I feel most effective at any given moment.
3. SOLID sleep last night.

Completed these two leather cigar cases yesterday. Hand-dyed in a custom dye blend that I mix for each new order. Very happy with how they turned out.

I know enough to be dangerous. Using Jekyll and Github Pages for several websites at the moment and am very happy with how everything works together. https://github.com/oceanfrontbag/oceanfrontbag.github.io

A quick preview on mobile before calling it a day. https://theoceanfrontbag.com. More tweaks to make but happy with it so far.

have the photos selected for the Ocean Front website…now to place them…

Ready for stitching.

Time for some magic 🪄

Will be adding photos later today.

Current status.

Grateful Log for Tuesday July 16, 2024

1. Quick bike ride to this morning’s writing spot
2. 8 hours of sleep
3. Mozzie’s ideas

Back to cigar cases

telling me to go 🌊

Grateful Log for Wednesday July 10, 2024

1. Another successful extraction from my brain and into reality…Ocean Front, another bag to add into my portfolio, turned out great!
2. Excellent sleep
3. The hot and humid weather we’ve been having!

Finally get a chance to flip this thing right side out! Excited!

visualizing.

Another extremely enjoyable project to get out of my head, onto paper, and made in the real world. Will go through final assembly tomorrow: Ocean Front. A few teaser photos below.

The best part ✏️📓

Grateful Log for Monday July 8, 2024

1. Great pool day yesterday
2. More great sleep
3. A new week

Grateful Log for Sunday July 7, 2024

1. A great time with Mozzie at the lake yesterday
2. Still had time for a pool sesh beforehand
3. Hand delivering a customer’s order

An original. Cleaned and conditioned with saddle soap yesterday, so it is feeling extra smooth now. Made this leather case for my iPad + Keyboard back in 2021.

Happy with how the leather stamps have been turning out lately.

Excited to announce that I’ve partnered with Faire to sell my wholesale leather catalog online! If you or a retailer you know would like to stock some of my products just head here!

Her favorite spot.

You guys 😍 birthday gift for my niece, she turns 3 this coming week.

Cleaning up from a successful show.

Happy with how this Spanish dye turned out! My most popular leather cigar case size.

Pool time!

Two hours late but I made it!

Another leather bin complete.

The AC went out at her house and she’s not 100% as it is, so Lucy is with me for a little while :-) back to where she used to live as a puppy!

Will be here all Summer. So happy with how this turned out!

Trying to get better at solid work boundaries. Physical boundaries, now that I have space, & time boundaries. The work will never be finished & I need to be cool with that. For now, I’m going to enjoy having friends over this evening, grilling food, mixing cocktails, and having a nice cigar.

Disconnected for a bit this afternoon ✌️

Summer schedule is to quit work at 3, pool from 3:30 to 5. Shower, then handle grilling dinner.

Designed, made, and shipped (via FedEx overnight to my customer’s hotel) two of these very customized leather cigar cases. Designed to fit a medium Boveda humidor bag, a very large lighter, very large cutter, and a bunch of my premium cigar matches. Includes my customer’s logo on the front.

First evening since moving out of the apartment and into the townhouse (tomorrow marks the first full month!) where I have a chance to enjoy the deck!

The Strathmere, also makes for a phenomenal pool bag ☀️⛱️😎

Email going out to the list tonight, promise!!

Drawing it out.

Leather cigar cases finished and shipped today. Realistically making more tonight to stay ahead of things. Hopefully sending out an email tonight re The Strathmere as-well.

An absolutely phenomenal event last night at the Hilton in Harrisburg! Sold a Strathmere, a bunch of cigar matches in leather pouches, and several leather cigar cases. Selling in person is too much fun. Loved every minute of it and hope to do more this year!

Simple is best.

This was fun: a trip down memory lane and introduced Mozzie to physical media.

Finished. 100% veg-tan sheepskin notebook/calendar case. Hand-painted purple edges. Notebook shown is 6.5” x 4.25”. If anyone is interested please let me know. This one will be shipped out to my customer tomorrow but I have plenty of material to make more. Can do custom sizes, etc etc etc 😊

Custom calendar case in progress.

Field testing.

Grateful log for Sun, 02 Jun 2024

1. Good cigar crawl event yesterday
2. A few business prospects from the event
3. Heading home today

Yesterday was a full day of 7am-2am cigar shops in and around Pittsburgh. Today is the return trip home.

On the road for the weekend.

The box ✌️

Just a few lingering items to get. Need to shift into work though. Will come back for the last bit later today or tomorrow.

🔥🪿 A fun thing Mozzie and I are working on together: FireBreathingStickers.com

Getting ready to ship ahead for an event.

A better shot of the finished hand-painted leather coaster with my client’s logo. I’m happy with how it turned out, and so are they! Actual painted logo will be on a custom cigar cases I’m making for them, this was just to get the hang of things.

Another beauty. Limited run of 4 cases using this leather.

First order made and shipped from the new shop.

We have power!

Getting my leather sewing machine put back together in the new shop. Still a major chaotic mess in here but things are coming along without issue so far.

Have lost all useful light for the finishing touches, but working on some hand-painted-very-custom leather coasters this evening.

Grateful log for Wed, 15 May 2024

1. Game night last night (Mozzie is currently obsessed with playing LIFE)
2. Submitted what will hopefully excuse me from jury duty
3. I am oh so close to moving out of my apartment!!!!!!!!!

Will make a few limited edition leather cigar cases with this beauty.

Been a while: some catching up on life, The Strathmere, and so on

Part of my job can also include constructing custom shipping boxes. 7 leather bins between the two of these custom boxes :-)

Leather bins complete. Time to ship!

Time to stitch the bottom for each bin. They are lovely but I’m ready to get these shipped!

Fixed the flat! Took some learning to get the back tire off but now know exactly how to do so quickly. Seems like the issue was a faulty valve, no foreign objects found, no other punctures in the tube. Happy to have it fixed and knowing how to do so myself :-)

Working on some event swag. More to come, need to chip away at this order.

And now, turn 40 panels into 8 12x12x12 leather bins 😊

In the sunlight.

Another leather cigar case with cigar tubes, these are humidified tubes for optimal cigar storage while out and about!

Working on the final details of things before making The Strathmere leather weekend bag available for purchase. In the meantime, I have finished the landing page which contains all the pertinent product details and also a lengthy video so you can really see the thing. Stay tuned!

Finally finished the video that shows off The Strathmere leather weekend bag. Exporting now and will finish while I’m sleeping. I’ll upload to bunny.net in the morning, then embed on the landing page, and then announce the landing page…I’ll have the bag available for sale this coming week!

Made a Bible cover for a customer, will give it to her tomorrow in church. While at it, made a business card holder. Perfect projects after a day of moving stuff to the townhouse.

Also recorded a video of my work sessions today, with the music I was listening to. Will get that published later.

Have had too many ideas lately.

Working on a batch of leather coasters for a restaurant in Georgia.

Hand dyed walnut leather cigar case, with cigar tubes, and matching leather coasters.

This morning’s writing spot.

Need to go through these at some point.

A wider shot showing where the Series and bag number will be affixed on each Strathmere bag.

Series I - #00. Each Strathmere bag will be numbered, limited annual runs. Each year a new Series.

Landing page in progress. Hoping to finish it soon.

Getting things together.

🎥 Working on a video for The Strathmere leather weekend bag.

Still quite blown away by this bag.

Packed and ready to go!

So far so good.

May finally have time today to work on this weekend bag.

Small batch leather dye, my own blend.

The handles cut into the ends of each leather bin are marked and cut by hand. I could have a die made to cut these out on my clicker press, and probably will in the future, but for now by hand it is :-)

Prototype 1c - suede cigar case. A success! I’ll use this one as my case. The final version for my client will be a lovely gray suede with black accents and his company logo hand painted and stitched into the top.

35 total panels marked and cut and ready to be dyed. Will be transformed into 7 12x12x12 leather bins over the course of the next few days.

So far pretty happy with this.

Raw material.

🎧 todays mood.

Have really been enjoying this pen and notebook case…eager to make more in this particular space.

Laying stuff out for tomorrow, planning, making notes. Will be working with suede.

Whittling matches today.

My spot this morning.

Grateful log for Wed, 17 Apr 2024 09:26:36 -0400

1. Slept great last night, didn’t wake up once from street noise or allergies!
2. A flexible schedule, routine, life.
3. Walking to a place to do my morning writing routine outside.

When work from home kicked in full-time in 2020 I struggled to adjust, only recently realizing this. Staying home meant being trapped, or feeling trapped, & I require movement. 2020 & 2021 meant having to stay in one place. Being able to do what I need to do from anywhere is important to me & I lost that & then forgot about it. Forgot how important it is to my psyche.

Restocking a few oven mitts at the farmers market.

Some more photos of the cigar case I finished yesterday. This one was a custom request, and a design I can see being popular with others as-well. The larger accessory pockets allow for the larger lighters and cutters that my original design is not intended for. Plus a pocket for smaller notebooks!

Success!

Just as planned.

Much better. Now to make the rest of the case. Need to eat first though.

Boxy t-shirts. Working up a new pocket design for my popular leather cigar cases. Will allow for the bulkier lighters and cutters to be carried.

New business cards

Grateful log for Tue, 09 Apr 2024

1. Good conversation with Lindsay.
2. Great dinner last night.
3. Warm enough in the sun this morning to write outside.

It was a good, honest, conversation. It has been a while since we had one of those, and so I am glad that we just leaned into the natural flow of the conversation last night and talked about what needed to be talked about.

drinking, memories, dating

Last one for this series for now. Floral printed veg-tan sheepskin leather cigar case, hand-dyed royal blue veg-tan sheepskin interior, 100% hand stitched. Hand-painted deep purple edges. Happy with the end result!

And some help from Mozzie to get the photos 🙂

Hand-painted edges on this one.

Will be available soon, more color options in progress. Hand-dyed leather bracelet with solid brass hardware, simple button stud as primary clasp. Two size options per bracelet.

Another dye job, this one in Spanish Brown.

Friday night. Still some work to do, but first…

The final item in-progress for this series of products. Floral cigar case, 100% veg-tan sheepskin. SUPPLE. For the small but mighty band of SOTL!

Will be wrapping up the initial set of items using this beautiful printed veg-tan sheepskin leather tomorrow. Really happy how everything is turning out so far. Pictured is a set of stitched coasters.

Another pretty spectacular leather dye job (and leather cigar case), if I may say so.

Mozzie’s idea in the real world, quite swanky! Showed him and his response was:

Yes! I did it! I’m his official design manager! Tell him he owes me $5 every time that design sells.

😂

Can comfortably carry 2-3 field notes size notebooks and a fountain pen.

Clouds rolled in but no rain (yet). Felt great to get out for a walk!

Made a few things today.

Finished assembly of this leather bin. Next I need to build a box big enough to ship it in. First though, need to make more coffee.

Grateful log for Mon, 01 Apr 2024

1. A very nice Easter dinner (photo below).
2. A new week and a new month!
3. Have officially signed all of the paperwork related to my next move.

The dark brown color on this hand-dyed leather cigar case 😍 perfection. Or pretty close to it.

Assembly in progress: a 36”L x 18”W x 9”H leather bin hand dyed in lovely Chocolate. The sides are machine stitched in place, the entire bottom is hand stitched.

Prototype 1b in progress. Just a few tweaks to make from yesterday’s prototype (1a).

Custom order prototype mode today (aka shitty first draft).

When I don’t quite want to call it quits on a Friday night…I start new stuff.

Dye work this morning. Gotta run!

Get to do some axe work today!

Clean and simple design.

Coming soon, a simple follow up to my current leather fountain pen case. This one is designed for a single pen with dimensions up to 5.82” x .61”.

Star, a beautiful St. Bernard puppy.

Fresh batch of these leather oven mitts heading to the farmers market tomorrow.

Step 1: light cigar.

Photos from today.

Reminder to self:

Temps are nice enough, even in the shade, to do my writing routines outside.

Rare moment for me these days.

Quick Sunday project, working on a more refined variation of the leather fountain pen cases I sell.

Rough-cut matches.

Have had time recently to think about through branding and such. Iterated a bunch and happy with how this delivers, the way it looks and feels, the sentiment it provides.

Lovely leather match pouch hand-dyed in green. Hand-stitched with black thread. Solid brass button-stud closure. Sharp look on this one!

Grateful log for Mon, 26 Feb 2024

1. Mozzie and Lindsay arrived safely in Florida
2. Have Lucy for the week
3. Sunday state of mind

Every time I make something with this royal blue leather dye 😍

From my walk yesterday.

Foggy this morning.

Ice is just about completely melted from the Susquehanna river.

🍸 Closing the weekend 🖋️

From this afternoon’s walk, the John Harris Mansion.

Printed sheepskin oven mitts - coming soon!

Grateful log for Fri, 19 Jan 2024

1. Walking to the coffee shop for my morning cup
2. Dinner with my parents and brother last night
3. A snowy day ahead
4. A wonderfully slow morning walk in the snow

Empty.

Oh man. This leather cigar set turned out better than I imagined it would! (If I may say so…)

Not something I do very often, but 🙂 I just made a fresh batch of tan leather pen cases (good for fitting two fountain pens). Orders today will ship tomorrow!

❄️ Snowing outside.

Grateful Log for Sun, 07 Jan 2024

1. Snowed in last night
2. Good night of sleep
3. Playing in the snow with Mozzie yesterday

🧶 A learning project to get used to circular needles, tea, and watching The Family Plan.

Grateful Log for Fri, 05 Jan 2024

1. Sleeping with a window open
2. Starting a new knitting project
3. So many ideas

That time back in December 2020 when I designed my own crown molding on paper with a compass. A project that never happened, but I was prepared. Also, I do sorely miss my old workshop.

My last customer order of 2023. “Off” until January 2nd. Christmas stuff the next few days then writing/thinking/planning for 2024 the rest of the week.

One product I offer as part of my leather goods business is hand cut cigar matches (to go with the leather cigar cases). They are quite popular, which I never expected. Each one is whittled individually by hand.

One thing I am quite consistent with each day and week is tracking my time. Each Monday I load in entires I know will happen (i.e. are scheduled), which includes family time. I look for family time to be between 35 and 40 hours each week.

Took Star for a walk today 🐶

For my dad’s 63rd birthday (cow brand is ‘63’ - which is just perfect).

Today’s workbench.

More leather oven mitts

☕️ Lots of coffee today

🍞 Baked

A few better shots of the custom leather cigar case I finished and shipped last week.

Quick idea I had while out for my walk this morning.

Here’s the video, me talking over a time lapse of making a leather oven mitt from start to finish. This links to the product page, video is at the top of the description. Enjoy!

The soft pretzels Mozzie and I made this morning. They were an absolute hit at the family/football gathering! A recipe that will be repeated.

Will get better photos tomorrow in natural light, but man! I am jealous of my customer receiving these in the mail shortly!

And finished! Will taste one tonight! Braids were not quite tight enough but am happy with how these have turned out so far.

Time to bake!

Each of my leather oven mitts are dual-lined. In addition to the leather, which certainly offers some heat resistance, is a layer of bamboo batting and insulated thermal lining. I’ve used them up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit without feeling a thing.

Success

Grateful Log for Wed, 08 Nov 2023

1. Getting my time back
2. Watching “The Grinch” with Mozzie
3. Constantly learning

Audio file is included, non-YouTube version of the video is in the full-post, and it is also on YouTube if you prefer that…options :-)

Grateful Log for Mon, 06 Nov 2023

1. Great weekend with Mozzie
2. Brewing beer
3. Path is becoming clear

Audio file is included, also video here if you’d like: youtu.be/yYqcoYfjX…

Grateful Log for Sun, 05 Nov 2023

1. Canoeing yesterday
2. Sounds like my dad got a teaching position at a local college/seminary, something he has been working towards for a very long time
3. Making another loaf of bread

Grateful Log for Fri, 03 Nov 2023

It seems that I can’t help but make things complicated 😂 Oh well. Most importantly, I enjoy doing this. It is fun. And it is good to just have fun sometimes.

1. Restful sleep
2. Massage yesterday
3. Remembering that I am a human

Video here if you’d like: youtu.be/0iR9yauPk…

Thrilled with how this leather cigar case turned out with the custom stamp…absolutely thrilled!

Made two of these for Christmas gifts 🧣🧶

Grateful Log for Wed, 01 Nov 2023

1. Trick or treating went well last night
2. The day with Mozzie was a success yesterday
3. It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown 🎃

Audio file is included, also video here if you’d like: youtu.be/DwtAHGdws…

Grateful Log

1. A good dinner last night
2. Mozzie: Being at the apartment
3. Becoming better at accepting realistic expectations
4. Mozzie: Getting better at Madden
5. The last week of pretend part-time
6. Mozzie: Soda

Audio file is included, also video here if you’d like: youtu.be/6lQRUH4C8…

Second loaf 🍞

Grateful Log

1. 10 minute walk this morning
2. Airport pickup yesterday, and then the rest of the day, went well
3. Sunday and the Sunday Mindset

Audio file is included, also video here if you’d like: youtu.be/rRlJ1UBJR…

Grateful Log

1. Dinner with my parents last night
2. Progress
3. Up when I needed to be this morning

Audio file is included, also video here if you’d like: youtu.be/275BPcfD2…

Yesterday’s Grateful Log (it was a day! Wrote the below in the morning and never published it.)

1. Trusting the process
2. End of the week
3. Have everything I need for making this year’s Christmas gifts

Appreciate this :-) spotted while at the office.

Big box of yarn for this year’s Christmas gifts!

I’ve been doing pretty good lately, maybe just this week 😂, with not working too late. Lots of leather to dye and then finished for the day.

This color is going to be fun 🤩 “Fall Leaves” 🍂 🧶

Will be reading soon.

Turned out good for my first! Simple recipe, tastes good 🍞

🐶 sleeping all day to recoverer from the fire alarms last night.

Grateful Log

1. Slept great despite the fire alarms last night
2. Delivery of the leather order went well yesterday
3. Mozzie and Lindsay had a safe flight to Florida

Audio file is included, also video here if you’d like: youtu.be/EOLCkWOMB…

Transcript

Starting the next scarf. Lucy is with me for the week 🐶

Mozzie is on his way down to Florida for a week, he’ll have a great time but I will miss him. He’ll use the leather notepad as a journal and has a few letters to read each day. Will be mailing him more plus another leather pouch for Monday :-)

Quick view into the day.

Tweaks to make but this is the basic idea. Will have the final version in a few weeks.

Prototype in progress for another family item to be replicated.

Starting the next scarf 🧣 Will be making a bunch of these in various colors as Christmas gifts 🧶 🎄

Shipping this leather order out today. Will be a fun one to open :-)

• 2 leather fountain pen pouches
• 2 hand-dyed mahogany leather cigar tube cases (with 4 tubes)
• 2 hand-dyed dark brown leather oven mitts
• 150 3.25” hand-cut cigar matches

Tweaking some things.

Starting a new scarf 🧶

How and where a lot of my leather ideas start out, after a few days of percolating in my head. Once I get this one to a good spot will likely look for a few folks to beta test.

Outside.

Grateful Log

1. Church
2. The way I’m feeling about things right now
3. Time and space to just be

The custom stamp on this leather cigar case 😍

Grateful Log

1. Massively productive day yesterday
2. Rainy weather today
3. The weekend

Audio file is included, also video here if you’d like: youtu.be/fdtvGYObV…

Transcript

A few more photos of the leather wallet replica project. First up is one of yours truly measuring and sketching out the original into my notebook earlier this year. Then a few showing the original and replica side-by-side.

Grateful Log

• Ideas I had while trying to fall asleep (I’m also not grateful for this though)
• Passing football with Mozzie up at the Riverfront Park yesterday
• The awesome weather for this weekend
• Happy October 🎃🍂

For those interested, here’s the leather wallet I finished making recently. Includes a longer video discussing the making process.

Initial leather wallets were a hit. Three more have sold locally 🙂

Ready for assembly.

I understand the sentiment, but I actually believe to “take back your mind” one needs to simply get out of apps, get off of devices, and simply be.

Before settling into football, going to make a leather case for my study Bible. Been on my mind for a while to do so.

And…the wallet! This is the final prototype and I’m very happy with how it turned out. Just a few minor things to tweak. Features hand-waxed thread, completely hand stitched. Dyed by hand, etc etc etc 🙂

Absolutely thrilled with how this laptop sleeve turned out! Shown with my 13” MacBook Air, also shown with a notebook inside.

Chiseled, dyed, and oiled the wallet parts today. Tomorrow is balm and assembly!

In the works.

Next steps: map each piece on the leather (calfskin for this project) and cut it out. Then shape and mark everything.

First step is telling the story (the size and location of each part) on a “Story Strap”.

I am so excited to get started on this project. Replicating a wallet from c. 1928 that was carried by my customer’s grandfather. He has the original and wants one for himself and his uncle.

Football on. Using the “downtime” to bulk-prep the paper items included with each leather order.

Grateful Log

• More monopoly last night
• Fresh haircut
• So many ideas

Grateful Log

• The colors in the sky this morning with the sunrise
• Using time well (thankful for when I do!)
• Massage later today

New custom project in motion. Prototype time.

Grateful Log

• A great birthday party for Mozzie on Saturday with his friends and family.
• A great family day yesterday for his actual birthday.
• He’s 10 and we’ve managed to keep him alive so far and, I think, he’s turning into a pretty good human being.

Grateful Log

• Recovery sleep
• Helicopter ride yesterday with Mozzie
• Watched the Steelers pre-season game yesterday

Grateful Log

• Great day yesterday with Mozzie and Lindsay
• Went to bed again when I was tired, what a concept!
• Comfortable shoes

AC has been out all day and no signs of a quick fix. Handling some work outside and might as well enjoy myself a bit 🍻

A very nice and simple leather pencil/pen pouch.

From our ride earlier today.

My writing spot this morning.

The finished leather bin before shipping. Size is 18” x 12” x 12”.

Difficult to accurately photograph, but I am obsessed with how this green turned out! This piece will be the inside bottom of a large bin I’m assembling today.

Another simple leather pen case I stumbled into while working on a client project, I personally prefer this over the previous design.

I rarely do this, but I have it for sale on my website here.

Outline.

My afternoon spot and couldn’t be happier. Well, I guess I could but this is pretty awesome! Cigar, jack and coke, pool suite fm, sweating. Heaven for me :-)

51th - embrace the mistakes :-)

Small leather pouch that is part of a larger collection of leather goods I’m working on. Using this one to hold a few of my fountain pens.

Mozzie and I just returned from a full day at the 160th Battle of Gettysburg Anniversary Event in Gettysburg PA. This was our first Civil War reenactment event and enjoyed every minute of it!

Time now for a cigar :-)

Quick leather iPad sleeve.

Had a great ride this morning, decided to venture off of the pavement :-)

Shipping two of these out to Cali. Chocolate dye turned out great.

Great Father’s Day ride with Mozzie this afternoon.

Quick little leather box.

Next up

Testing my code in dev before promoting to prod.

Very happy with how this pair turned out.

Leather oven mitt order in progress.

🚴🏼‍♂️ From my ride yesterday evening, sunset over the Susquehanna River in Harrisburg PA.

Back from an extremely enjoyable 20 mile ride with Mozzie, our first ride together on our new bikes. Had a phenomenal time together!

Having showered I am now sitting outside enjoying a cigar, relishing in the good feeling I have at the moment :-)

🚲 My bike 😊. Jamis Renegade S3. Purchased from local bike shop on Tuesday and loving it.

Our trip to the Aquarium also coincided with his last day of 3rd grade :-)

My bit of sunshine lately.

I dig it.

Quick prototype of an idea I had: a key pack to wear around your neck. Keys stay secure in the main zipper pocket, and there’s a smaller exterior pocket for a fob or air tag sized device. Just added the exterior pocket for the fob, otherwise have been using this for a week and find it useful.

Leather dye samples drying for what may become a relationship with an interior design firm…

My take on the classic Field Notes “Pony Express” leather pouch. Easily holds 3 notebooks and even one of the field notes pens. Large nickel snap, edges left alone (not burnished smooth). Oiled and a coat of leather balm. Thick leather. This small pouch is substantial. Will age beautifully.

Made a mini leather briefcase.

Back in my woodworking days I used story sticks to record various notes and markings for projects I hoped to repeat over and over, making small holes with my dividers to save time in the future. I now do the same thing with my leather work, except instead of story sticks I call them Story Straps.

Latest custom leather project shipped out to my customer in the UK 🇬🇧 - a pipe case, complete with a satin lined pipe tobacco pouch and hand-carved matches in their own fancy pouch. Very happy with how everything turned out.

Ritual ☕️

Together.

Hit a good stride with making these leather oven mitts. Can now make the pair for my client, and get them listed for made-to-order requests.

Throwback to when Mozzie and I would walk more often, usually local nature preserves, state parks, etc. also back when I had a beard (early 2020).

☕️ Whole bean in the hopper.

Leather oven mitt - a first of its kind from my workshop. A few items to address on the next one but otherwise happy with how this initial test turned out!

A train engineer doing his engineering.

Taken while at East Broad Top Railroad last Summer.

Leather cut and laid in a way to resemble tile.

Zip.

In the past I used to a actively seek solitude. Now it is my life, and so I actively seek the company of others. But, I tend to get lost in my work too easily, losing track of time. Avoiding solitude is something I never thought I’d have to be so intentional about :-)

Summer weather, and the storms that come with it, will be here soon - or so I keep telling myself :-)

Photo taken 9/11/2019

Secure.

Catching up on several things: making more business cards, sending out more New Year cards (better late than never, I think), and belated birthday wishes. You can get on my snail mail list here for a late new year and belated birthday card for yourself 😂

In my ears this morning.

But first…

🪚 eager to put this Pax panel saw to use!

Making dowels.

Routine.

For a project I hope to start and finish tomorrow :-)

The texture of handcrafted. Folded edges of a better-late-than-never New Year card I made, printed, and folded. Will go out to current and past customers, and folks who are otherwise on my snail-mail list. Next up: addressing each one :-)

My nine-year-old is traveling to Florida for 14 days. I made him a notecard for each day, with a handwritten note inside and and Star Wars quote on the back of each. And, of course, a leather pouch to keep them in.

Clicker press on my workbench! Dad came over to assist with lifting it (150lbs).

Made the notecards I’ve always wanted but could never find. Will be fun to use :-)

Deciding.

I ❤️ print.

Ready to go!

Never gets old.

My stacked morning routine as of late. Completed top to bottom. Typically accompanied with two cups of coffee.

Preparing parts for final Christmas orders.

Santa’s bag.

For 2023. A planner and a “Do Work” notebook. I started using the do work notebook this year, helps me focus and plan quarterly goals and work.

Beautiful scenery on my drive to deliver a leather order in Maryland.

All sides stitched. Next lunch. Then stitching the bottom to each. 2,334 stitches to go.

A nice post-card to go along with each Christmas order I ship out this month. A simple handwritten note will go on the back of each. Also, I love being able to go from idea to execution in just a few minutes. Deciding to make my own print materials has been a great move so far.

Custom version of one of my best sellers. I see a lot of zippers in my future. Shipping this one out today.

One of eight total leather bins (18”x12”x12”). Will deliver all of them to my customer in Maryland next week 😊

Next up: black leather dye.

~3.5 leather sides cut into smaller sections, then cut into final parts.

Starting my largest project to date. These hides will be transformed into 8 very stylish and very functional black storage bins.

Appreciate being able to do this with sites, especially those that abuse ads and popups.

Handcrafted.

Personalized.

Dead simple but entirely intentional: space for phone, space for notebook (can fit up to 6.5” tall), and fits a fountain pen without any gimmicks.

In ear headphones have started to bother my ears, more so than usual lately, so upgraded to these…much more comfortable and WAY better at noise cancellation, transparency mode, etc.

Another leather order for local delivery 😊

Time to cut

Mixing what I think may be my signature leather dye color.

Success :-) Leather box for the hand cut cigar matches that I make.

A lot of my leather orders are the same two products. Taking some time this morning to make something I’ve had in my head but haven’t had the time to try. Feels good to exercise the creative muscles!

Leather orders for local delivery today 😊

Time to make some business cards.

Made time to make a new leather cover for my Bible. This is my own mix of leather dye.

Customer wants a no-frills case for his phone and calendar. Made a mock-up, love the simplicity of this. A few small adjustments to make but otherwise this is it.

Much needed fresh air!

Belts!

Evening walk.

A peek into my current cluttered evening/workbench. Yes wine and yes the Charlie Brown Christmas tree (from last year 🫣). And yes Sopranos.

It’s that time of year: switching to my fall/winter ink 🖋️.

Day in the life, 1:53pm Harrisburg Pennsylvania USA, at my workbench getting leather orders out.

A bit of whittling for cigar matches to go into a nice leather pouch. Oh how I have missed making shavings!

Painting leather today 🎨

Step 1: make a silly hair-on bracelet.

Materials for a few ideas I need to get out of my head.

Doesn’t hurt to try. Making my own stamped business cards. (I blame/credit @annahavron for this particular rabbit hole 😊).

Black on black on black.

Been enjoying the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Also enjoying the black leather case for it, obviously :-)

iPhone delivery later today. Made two new Autumn themed leather cases for it. I’m calling the black case “Jack-o’-lantern” and the brown “Candy Corn”. Both feature two thread colors each, which is a fun little detail.

I’ve become a bit obsessed with edge work lately.

A few other in-progress leather projects: two phone sleeves (one black the other brown) and a dog collar.

Quite the day today, lots in motion and making good progress!

A custom take on my forthcoming Field Notes sized leather cases…this one is a bit taller to hold the client’s calendar, plus a custom spot for a photo. Happy with how it turned out 🙂

Both colors have been popular for leather projects as of late.

Leather gift tag, which will be used again at Christmas :-)

Very productive day today. Finished these three leather projects. Thrilled with how they turned out!

✈️

Lucy is joining me overnight in the apartment. First time she’s seen where I live now.

Another idea, another test.

In the works.

My cousin (on the left) flew into Philly from Cali for a quick work thing yesterday. My brother (middle) and I drove out to grab dinner with him. It has been 19 years since we were all together. Awesome time catching up!

I enjoy the entire process of making something, especially the end when I wrap it and tie it off with a simple bit of twine.

Very happy with how these cigar cases turned out. Client’s groomsmen will hopefully enjoy them as-well.

I don’t usually work in bulk, preparing leather parts ahead of time, but an order of cigar cases for a wedding party of 8 necessitates such an approach. There is certainly something to be said for the rhythm it affords.

Throw back to my days of woodworking with my oh so lovely hand tools. Made this mallet originally for woodworking, turns out it works just as well for leather.

Beta version 1.0 complete. Will share more photos tomorrow.

Concept in progress.

I do have a thing for being by outside while it is raining. The wind, the sound of the rain, the rustling leaves in nearby trees, the smell in the air.

For reference, and for anyone who is interested, the leather camera wrist strap I made for @miraz (original post) is available on my site here.

A bit abstract but I enjoyed designing and making this classy leather wallet. Hand dyed royal blue, printed sheepskin, violet thread, and brass snap.

Made a leather walking pouch of sorts. Belt loops on the back so I can use it with whatever belt I am wearing at the time. Have also been using it as a standalone pouch to hold EDC items.

First time in a while I’ve had to tape one back together. May need to make an appropriately sized leather cover…

Latest creation.

Good sleep last night!

Absolutely thrilled with how this project turned out. Hand-dyed royal blue veg-tan cowhide exterior, interior is completely lined with printed sheep skin. Hand-stitched with violet thread for a subtle contrast. Brass magnetic clasp for a touch of class.

Extremely unusual Sunday morning for me.

Obsessed.

Blue is definitely a popular color 💙

Been dragging my feet on this and I’m not sure why, waiting for the “right time” (thanks for the nudge @miraz) 😊 Anyways, my website where you can commission leather projects is https://amaiken.com. Use micro.blog for 25% off (applies to most items).

Working on a variation for one of my existing leather designs…excited 🙂

Another device sleeve, this one for the client’s iPod Touch 7th generation. Love the simple contrast between the natural balm finish and black thread.

The process of creating something never gets old. The end result is also pretty darn incredible to get to.

🍷 Wine from Austria 🇦🇹 tonight. Looking forward to this one…and really liking the label!

Experimenting.

Leather projects completed recently. Red phone sleeve, green wine tote, and black “bin”.

Friday evening

Ready for delivery!

More leather belts in-progress!

Finished these yesterday, wore them yesterday too! Extremely happy with how they turned out. 1,000 imperfections and mistakes but not bad for my first pair. Planning v1.1 already :-)

Loving this combo. Turned out well, client is happy 😊

Extremely excited about this project. Parts cut out, stamped, and dyed as of now. Will hopefully begin assembly this evening.

Another purse finished.

Caught up on sleep! The data matches with how I feel. Refreshed!

Tonight’s wine. Obscura Petite Sirah 2018.

Not shined, but better. Eyelets are a good improvement.

Idea to execution is too much fun! Turned out exactly how I imagined and functions as expected. Think I’ll call it the “Live edge leather cigar ashtray” 🙂 giving this one as a gift.

In-progress experiment.

Oh yes.

Sipping while making dinner (brown sugar bourbon pork chops with potatoes and Brussels sprouts).

Simple.

Dinner!!

Wandered out for a cup of coffee. First two shops were closed already (only 2pm), third shop was a success! They are open until 3pm on weekdays. Noted.

Enjoy working with this leather. Still veg-tan, so checks that box for me, but drum-dyed, so removes a lot of the finishing steps required otherwise.

Quick case to hold various “sales” related items. Leather samples, business cards, card reader, notebook, promo material, etc.

My mom’s last day working at the church her and my dad helped plant 23 years ago. They’ve been part of it since day zero, she’s worked there since day 1 (primarily dir. of Children’s Ministry). Awesome to be a part of.

From a walk this afternoon after church with my brother and his 2 (almost 3) year old. My 8.5 year old in the center.

From yesterday morning. Like old times.

Working on a leather case/roll of sorts to hold various aspects of meeting with folks when discussing a leather project. Using drum-dyed veg-tan leather, different than what I’m used to working with but fun to try.

RGB

The crisp air felt amazing.

Last two leather rose arrangements I’m offering for Valentine’s Day.

Another leather rose dressed up.

Made this as a birthday gift for my grandmother who loves to knit 🧶

Leather roses all dressed up!

Tonight’s wine, plus progress on the Valentine’s Day leather rose floral arrangements I am selling this year.

He got to spend an unplanned night with me in the city. He loved watching the snow fall.

Tonight’s wine 🍷

Rushing out, so briefcase in a bag is how it needs to be!

Smiling on the inside 😊 looking forward to what 2022 has in store. Also a sneak peak of another bag I finished making last week.

Another project I finished last week. Client loved it 😊

Leather belts I finished last week.

Finished another tote. Will be delivered to my client later today. Happy with how it turned out! Custom color, attempting to match the interior of their car.

Hardware!

Pocket lined with flannel and zipper installed. Then stitched closed.

From one year ago today. Project in focus in was hand carving a picture frame from walnut wood. I am still unable to adequately describe how much I miss this part of my life, of my being.

Leather roses being delivered to a happy client later today.

Wine tote I finished making last week.

My late night.

Reading material that has arrived recently. Although, I find myself studying the ads and article photos more than the words. The way things look has been my method of being inspired, having ideas, and so on.

Looking for a specific color…

Samples!

Finished another wallet 👍🏻 will be delivered tomorrow.

Curated birthday gifts for my dad’s birthday party after the turkey today. Blizzard of Hops IPA, three hand-selected Field Notes, and 4 hand-crafted stamped leather coasters.

My new “external brain” from Leuchtturm1917.

22 square feet of possibilities.

Very happy with how this leather cigar case turned out! Black dye is 🔥

Love starting new leather projects.

Time to paint.

Sharp!

Think for Christmas I may make myself an apron. Accident waiting to happen!

Very happy with how this wallet turned out. Also happy with the dye job as-well, “Chocolate”.

Coming soon

Another one completed, with an action shot 😂

another tote completed.

Like old times.

First up this morning was math and typing lessons with Mozzie.

Working remote all day today, bag is packed accordingly!

I am still praying we are able to work things out. Family day yesterday, short getaway to Gettysburg. Mozzie likes crawling around Devil’s Den.

Need to finish the edges yet, but made a quick leather business card holder.

Much needed after this week. A short break.

Working remotely for a few hours (i.e. not from home).

Third usable prototype complete.

Reading material arrived in the mail today. Magazine is a bit late but will still be worthwhile.

Yesterday’s prototype was a success! Tweaking the final design a bit but it is a beautiful handmade leather sleeve for iPad/tablet or laptop. final version will be lined with flannel, so cozy, and will feature a plastic zipper (scratch free).

Working on a prototype.

Looking for spiders

Still have finishing work to complete but wanted to share. Thrilled with how this one turned out! Dyed by hand, so happy with that too!!

Lining a pocket.

Making another leather bag and am in love with how this color turned out!

Iced americano.

Off to deliver my first paid commissioned leather product. This little pouch was sized specifically for RL’s cigar lighter & cutter combo tool. Thrilled with how the dye job turned out!

Replaced my 2004 Honda Accord with this 2021 Hyundai Sonata SEL. Feels like going from a single-engine plane to a rocket ship. The tech is kinda mind-blowing.

I do miss my dog. Enjoy seeing her when I can.

Where/how I begin most days.

Made one for myself.

Bananas happy with how this bag turned out!

Another preview.

Preview.

Next up, this project has been ready for assembly for a while. Excited about this one!

Finished!

Still need to get the strap on but this is the general idea.

Experimenting. The “final” pair will be pink and will have a strap across the top. Making them as a token gift for my niece who arrived in the world on July 5th.

Finished my first leather bag yesterday. It was a gift, probably going to make one for myself 😀

Went to the pool today.

Starting the next project.

Tuesday 🍷.

Still roasting.

Making Father’s Day gifts. Each will include two Field Notes notebooks.

Have built a lot of furniture in the past few days. This couch was the most involved but no issues. Will also be where Mozzie sleeps when he is over.

From our walk yesterday

The sun is shining now but I enjoyed my early morning walk in the rain.

Guys, I made a leather rose 🌹

Recent leather projects completed: strop (cherry wood, knife carved handle) and hexagon leather pouch with zipper for my cousin who has a few bee hives (thus the hexagon shape).

Leather bow tie gift tag 😁

Pouches!

Starting another notebook. Not able to pull from my full collection, so using another one from the “Fall 2020 Quarterly Edition United States of Letterpress”.

First time dying a leather project and very happy with how it turned out!

Another case/wallet completed.

Leather projects completed recently. Several more in progress. Can’t help myself.

The idea is coming together. Will hopefully finish it today or tomorrow.

Mozzie (and Lucy) helped me pick out a new notebook last night. He liked seeing all of the different covers.

Stitched a wallet into what will eventually be a sleeve or pouch once everything is put together.

Miss him during the week so I always look forward to our weekends together.

Prototype

From our walk earlier today.

I have made three of the large size of this idea, this guy is a smaller variation. Perfect for 2-3 cigars with lighter and cutter. Have other ideas to expand on both sizes. (The one I made and use for myself is filled with notebooks, writing instruments, and phone).

Two new notebooks to fill up.

Made a little chapstick holder thingy for Mozzie.

Walk around the Pennsylvania Capitol complex earlier today. I see it weekly and never tire of the incredible architecture.

Made this for a friend today. Hand cut and stitched. He’ll use it for cigars, lighter, and cutter.

Drove around with Mozzie last night, he wanted to see the city at night.

Decent amount of snowfall.

Starting a new notebook today.

The last week has been the hardest. Out of my element and so much to write about. My family is falling apart.

Out of my element but still need to make things (even if in someone else’s shop). Need to make a sheath for this guy.

Adding this single-bevel Goosewing Hewing axe to my set of tools.

Final day in the shop for Christmas gifts. Well, technically not, but this is the last big push.

Frame progress!

Let the festivities begin 🍻

Birthday roast for my mother in-law.

The experimentation phase.

Today’s list:

• make a picture frame
• finish bird feeder

First, a warmup exercise of cutting the end off of each log and sealing it.

Making progress on the bowl.

Sunday roast

Also, sawed through this 8.5” diameter log to get at a section that will be split and then turned into a bowl for my niece (fingers crossed on this one). Very productive shop day today!

Split this log and carved handles for garden tools. Christmas gifts for my wife and grandma.

Coffee scoop finished.

Chipped away at my mother in-law’s coffee scoop today and I’m happy with how it is coming along. Fits nicely in the hand, very comfortable to hold. Will tweak a few things tomorrow but otherwise this is just about finished.

Tomorrow I shall finish carving a coffee scoop out of this lovely piece of cherry. That and a ½ pound of freshly roasted coffee for my mother in-laws’s birthday.

Scarf completed for Mozzie 🧶

Lots of time in the shop today. Time lapse here. Massive progress on my dad’s Christmas gift. Should have it finished tomorrow.

Tonight: Dominic Hentall Primitivo IGT Puglia 2019

Small batch roasted as part of my dad’s birthday gift.

Didn’t ask for this capture but I’m glad to have it.

Cozy

Happy with how much shop time I scored today! Here’s a quick time lapse of my time.

Roasted

Wine for tonight (Dave Harvey 2018 Columbia Valley Syrah). And some knitting 🧶 while watching The Wire. Brain feels foggy. Hoping a bit of relaxing and a full night of sleep help.

Made another scarf for another stuffed animal 😂 🧶 next one is for a human.

Train I made for my nephew. He’ll open it on Christmas Day.

Adze. Excited to put it to use!

Tonight’s wine: Scott Peterson Rumpus Syrah 2019. So far so good!

Rainy

Spooky

Getting the hang of this, sorta. Need to get better at starting and finishing (the ends) 🧶

Arrived

Roasted

Reluctantly for sure, but she does wear the scarf I made her.

One tool tote is finishing (24 hours between coats)…

Which means I can get started on the next one.

Foggy.

First knitting project complete 🧶 not sure if she’s a fan of it though 😂

Handle carved and a through mortise chiseled on each end piece. The time lapse video of this project is pretty awesome. I’ll share that once everything is finished.

Good morning!

Roasted today. Costa Rica 🇨🇷 . Eager to try!

Dovetails cut and fit today on the tool tote (using chisel only, no saw). Tomorrow: handle, sand, and put it all together…🤞🏼

Astonish me.

Dreary day today, but my state of mind was full of sunshine.

Extremely happy with the progress on this tool tote (cherry wood). Tools used up to this point: axe, knife, and chisel.

Weekly roast.

Had the thought yesterday so I called my grandma. She loaned me this Learn How Book (published in 1941) today with needles and some yarn 🧶. Attempting to learn how to knit.

The Pennsylvania Capitol Building (The Forum in the foreground). Taken October 24, 2016.

Starting the next Christmas gift. This one is for my brother.

Park at night.

Empty.

Roasted.

Now reading A Handmade Life: In Search of Simplicity by William Coperthwaite 📚

Fall colors around the Capitol complex.

Beta version of the cold frame 😊 will build a more solid version next year.

Attempting a cold frame around our small greens and such this winter. Framed out the lower portion today and will tackle the top later. Thinking of just using a clear plastic sheet to wrap the lower portion. Tweaks to be made but this is a start.

First, a little food tray for squirrels and chipmunks from the scrap wood 🪵 🐿

Starting the next Christmas gift 🎄

Bank truck complete 🎄primary tools: axe and knife and a little bit of saw work.

Finished the toy train last week and very happy with how it turned out. “The little engine that could” 😊 my 7yo wanted to make a movie about it. So he filmed/directed this.

Taking shape.

a day in the life. Beginning to work on another Christmas gift. Harrisburg PA USA 4:09pm EST. #adayinthelife

Wheels and axels.

Finished reading Another work is possible 📚

We’ve been getting our meat from a local farmer for a few months now. Steak on the fire seemed like the way to go. Delicious.

Hiked today🌲 🥾

Quick DIY paper towel holder.

There is something oddly satisfying about turning scrap wood into dowels.

The finished beans.

First roast. Fingers crossed.

Manhattan. Been a Monday.

Another coffee scoop. This one is for my dad.

Always learning.

Carved a ladle of sorts. Not perfect but useful.

Included a comfortable spot for the index finger (and thumb).

Using it for dog food 😂

Molding planes needed for a Christmas gift I’m making for the in-laws.

Random, made a coffee scoop for our ground coffee.

Looking for chipmunks 🐿

New notebook today. Olympic National Park from the Field Notes National Park edition (series E).

Split.

Step 1: make a club.

Another closet/shelf project complete!

In the carving phase of a project. Nothing fancy. More dowels.

Productive shop time today. Cut 42 walnut blanks (to carve into dowels) and selected and cut a portion of cherry to begin carving a spoon or two.

Quick project: wanted a simple solution to organizing the smaller things on my desk. Version 1 turned out pretty good. Wood that otherwise would have gone to the chipper.

Mini-mallet for Mozzie’s 7th birthday.

Had an idea. And I think it will work. Will chip away at it tomorrow.

Red oak shavings.

To be a dog.

A home for the pencils.

✏️

Choosing a new notebook to use as my “daily driver” is always enjoyable. I try to match the cover to the season or something that strikes and inspirational nerve. Lately I can’t get enough of the National Park Series.

Went for a walk this evening and stumbled upon a neighbor getting rid of cherry wood (and he’ll have more for me next week!). Will be put to good use.

Eager to head down this rabbit hole.

Finished one, starting one.

Shelves are finished! Hung using hand carved walnut dowels (always experimenting 😊).

Mini railroad ties.

Onto the next.

Shelves are finished!

First go at setting and sharpening my crosscut and rip handsaws.

Hand carved dowels and the rabbet for the back of the shelves turned out well!

Laying out the placement of fasteners on the back of a shelf. They won’t be seen but it is important to me that they are treated as if they would be.

Current project is making four floating shelves. One of the “features” is a lip on the front. I chose a rabbet to join the two pieces. As with everything, major learning process. Not perfect but not bad either.

Making dowel rods for a current project. Sometimes I go down a rabbit hole. This one made me think of Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones.

More quick shelving in the workshop. Made my own fasteners instead of using screws.

Fancy feet.

Additions to the preverbal tool belt.

Good morning

Mallet is coming along!

Sunset in the workshop.

Onto the next woodworking project. Using dowel rods for a portion of it…so I made one. And it worked! Plenty more need to be made but this first try was a surprising success!

Workbench is ready for use!

Workbench is coming along…The top will go on tomorrow!

Shoulder plane gives a perfect fit.

Not perfect but not bad. First go at curves with hand tools. Mozzie will paint it as his gift for Mother’s Day.

Practicing my scales.

This will be fun! (cc: @rnv).

Custom solution.

It worked!

Next small woodworking project is a simple stand for the lids that otherwise lay at the bottom of a cabinet. Did a rough cut and it worked! Spent the evening preparing the final board. It will hold five lids (in theory 😬).

Tools: hand planes, backsaw, chisel.

Finished!

Made some shavings in the shop tonight.

Finished making the bent earlier this week. Essentially a saw horse, a companion to the saw bench for supporting longer boards.

Starting a new notebook - Yosemite National Park from Series A of the Field Notes National Parks edition.

Tenons!

Made a drawing bow today. Will help with laying out curves.

Have a few shop projects in the works. Finished the first, which is a saw bench. All hand tools. All parts cut from a single 1”x12”x8’ board. This thing is going to be used a lot! Will start making the bent tomorrow.

Finished the Easter gift for mozzie yesterday. All hand tools. Happy with how it turned out. (Same design is on the other side as well).

Spent the day here.

Practicing.

Found the problem, and then fixed it!

Good enough!

Did what was necessary to be with friends tonight.

Progress!

Making a place for everything.

Starting simply this morning.

This morning’s soundtrack 🎧.

She digs the new blanket.

Chamfer!

Brew day today.

Her afternoon siesta.

Finally!

Bright out there tonight.

Have the place to ourselves. Much needed quiet for both of us.

Busy but good weekend. Ended with a trip to the Pennsylvania State Museum and an early birthday gathering to celebrate my thirty-fourth. Also tasted my first batch of home brew - surprisingly good! Will be making more :-)

4 stumps successfully removed. Exhausting but rewarding work. Relaxing before our dinner guests arrive.

Cut down three very large, overgrown, bushes today. Tomorrow, stump removal 🤞🏼

Quiet house for a few more minutes.

Started a new notebook today. Will be used as a “hit list” for the must do tasks each day (I pull the tasks out of my Draft GTD system). Having it on paper provides a beginning-of-the-day-review, and also a place where I can refocus on what matters when my day becomes fuzzy.

Went for a hike today. Helped to clear my vision on a few things I’ve been wrestling with.

I leaned into a project yesterday (Saturday) and made this. Will be used to start seeds for our vegetable garden.

The subtle glow below.

An unusually quiet afternoon (for now).

Together

Stuck and cannot escape!

Hiking hurdle.

He lost a tooth at dinner tonight. Double gap!

Starting a new notebook today.

School night and such, but in the mood for a movie. Watching _Clear and Present Danger_. May need to reread the book.

L’Enfant Plaza station (from our trip to Washington D.C. in September of last year).

Tired him out with hike today.

Quite the spectacle arrived in the mail today.

She snores so loud 💤

Had a few breakthroughs this week on a major work project. Made a lot of progress and should be nearing the end of this particular deliverable…hopefully. For now though, time to unwind.

Could have been used to scale a fence, or something eight feet tall, but I used it instead as the side of a storage shelf.

Came across this “Why Blog? copy while looking for something on the WordPress.com site via the waybackmachine (November 1, 2005). Never found what I was looking for, but enjoyed the trip down memory lane.

Not much space…

Lots of tea today, with honey 🍯

I used this notebook as a journal when I was 13. I was starting 7th grade at a new school, and keeping a journal was a class assignment that I was initially opposed to but haven’t stopped doing since.

Tea wisdom

Starting a new notebook today. Cool and clean, white and silver.

Not much rest today. Stained two shelves I made for our dining room and did ~80 cuts for storage shelves I am building for in the garage (as part of my future workshop).

Project started and finished late this afternoon. Will hopefully start another one tomorrow.

Balance

The evening ended on a very chilly note, but this tea provided much needed warmth (with a good reminder).

My interest in doing more myself is rising…testing my brother’s miter saw before purchasing my own. Will put it to use on a few projects this weekend.

His attachment was real…

I use the first 750 words as a way to clear the floor, process things, think on things, get my head right and in a place for what is next. Because of this I enjoy tracking that time as “meditation” or “mindful minutes” in the Health app. Part of saving each entry is this prompt (in Shortcuts) to capture the mindfulness time.

Jellyfish in the steam!

Plain yet grand.

Influx of house projects this year requires an actual workshop, so a new Field Notes notebook was required to start mapping out the space in our garage. It will also serve as my companion on many projects. Plus, this particular notebook (from Mile Marker) happens to be a sign.

Time for my lull.

First batch is fermenting 🤞🏼

Contrast

Quiet Friday evening. Tinkering, writing, and watching Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

The night sky above…

We still have our Christmas wreath on the front door, a plant that continues to provide a wintry scent to that part of our home.

Poor Lucy is sick. Crawling on her belly, trying to get comfortable.

Hide.

My goal for every cord in the house.

My spot in the house.

(Two different operating systems sharing the same trackpad and keyboard thanks to Synergy).

Time to reflect on the day that has passed.

Sight (and a photo from our hike yesterday): “Dad! Look at the fish!”

Enjoyed this brew last night at dinner with my dad 🍺.

No One Likes Us, We Don’t Care Unfiltered India Pale Ale from Broken Goblet.

Tea wisdom.

Open / Closed

I do complain about her neediness, but she is a really good pup. Very loyal.

☕️

💤

Attempting to use Mars Edit for a long post I’d like to publish with images and such. Publishing this see how the image looks...

Go Packers 🏈 🧀

Appropriate for today’s weather ❄️

She’s always sleepiest after being groomed.

This weekend’s project: fresh coat of paint on the walls and ceiling in our family room and down the hallway. Thanks to my dad, painting is one thing I am very confident doing as a homeowner.

I am not an overly “handy” person, but do look forward to a good challenge and always enjoy improving things. Managed to successful uninstall our old dishwasher, and install the new one. A first for me and I’m glad I did it!

Freshly fallen ❄️

Happy New Year 🥳 !

This may be the last, or second to last, Manhattan of the year. Also, posting a selfie to record beard length (just shy of 3 months) 😊 Will compare on 12/31/2020.

Coolest sweater.

Now watching…

This pup

Somehow made it to Mozzie’s ice skating lesson today. Really happy that he is happy when he is skating. He loves being on the ice!

Frozen 🧊

Full moon 🌕 tonight is impressive!

She’s sleeping through the season 1 finale at SEE 🐶 💤

😍

A rare moment.

Evening.

Moz and I with Santa 🎅

I use Drafts for a lot, pretty much everything actually. Here is my current list of Workspaces.

She annoys me a lot, but she is also pretty darn cute.

Have been successful with this layout for a while now. Mostly use spotlight and triggers/shortcuts to do everything. New winter wallpaper though, because ‘tis the season.

Hanging with Moz.