Brick & Beeswax -- a Medina, Ohio leather collection

From the Practice Log -- an ongoing series of leather stamping studies. This is Volume I-A.

An August study.

Brick & Beeswax is a leather collection drawn from Medina, Ohio -- five original stamps for the town around the Square, pressed into everything from luggage tags to leather journals.

First, we drew the Square from above -- four streets making a frame, the walks crossing to the gazebo at the center -- and ran EVERYTHING ENDS UP AT THE SQUARE around it. Anyone who has spent a Saturday in Medina knows the sentence is simply accurate.

The black-and-white ends up at the square stamp plate from the Brick and Beeswax leather collection of Medina, Ohio.

On a catchall tray in golden tan, the stamp gets to practice what it preaches.

A arizona leather catchall tray stamped with the ends up at the square design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

Next, the gazebo itself, front and center, with MEET ME AT THE SQUARE -- the standing appointment of the whole town, from farmers market mornings to the Candlelight Walk.

The black-and-white meet me at the square stamp plate from the Brick and Beeswax leather collection of Medina, Ohio.

We pressed it into forest green for the green itself. The black fob carries it in gold, which is as close as leather comes to candlelight.

A forest green leather keychains stamped with the meet me at the square design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

A black leather keychains stamped with the meet me at the square design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

Then, the storefronts. Medina's square burned in 1848 and again in 1870; the town answered with the brick row that stands today. We ran the facades down the length of a luggage tag and set STILL STANDING beneath them -- a good thing to say on an object built to leave town and come back.

The black-and-white still standing stamp plate from the Brick and Beeswax leather collection of Medina, Ohio.

Deep wine for the brick, pale sea-blue for the Ice Festival. The black tag takes the row in gold.

A sangria leather luggage tags stamped with the still standing design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

A turquoise leather luggage tags stamped with the still standing design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

A black leather luggage tags stamped with the still standing design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

After that, the bees. A swarm changed Medina in 1869, and the town has been in honey and candlelight ever since -- so we drew one candle with a single bee circling the flame, and set KEEP A LIGHT ON beneath it.

The black-and-white keep a light on stamp plate from the Brick and Beeswax leather collection of Medina, Ohio.

Stamped small in the corner of a toiletry bag, honeyed russet over deep espresso brown -- beeswax over walnut.

A indian summer dark espresso leather dopp kits stamped with the keep a light on design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

And finally, the one we liked the most. Medina was planned in 1818, New England fashion, around a public green -- so the die carries PLANNED IN 1818 above a surveyor's line that runs straight for half its length, then gives up and becomes handwriting. STILL BEING WRITTEN, it says underneath. On the corner of a journal, that is the entire job.

The black-and-white still being written stamp plate from the Brick and Beeswax leather collection of Medina, Ohio.

It looks genuinely beautiful. Deep green for the Tree City, dusty rose for the gift it is likely to become.

A forest green leather leather journals stamped with the still being written design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

A parisian blossom leather leather journals stamped with the still being written design from the Brick and Beeswax collection of Medina, Ohio.

We made this out of love. Leatherius Woodman is on a mission to create and share artifacts of beauty, craft and love -- this study is one of them, and we hope the feeling is mutual. Every image is a render -- how we prototype before cutting a die.

If you'd like anything here made real, or anything changed -- say hello through our contact page.