VMCA × Leatherius Woodman – a leather stamping study

From the Practice Log – an ongoing series of stamping studies on real-world logos.

An August study.

For VMCA.

First, we designed a little logo for you. It turned out amazing. The letters V M C A stand on their own bridge deck, the arch carrying them across, with CLEVELAND set in the air beneath the span. A firm that describes itself as the bridge ought to have one to stand on.

A black-and-white bridge emblem designed for VMCA as part of a leather stamping study.

The VMCA bridge emblem shown as a black-and-white leather stamp die design.

And for the record, the identity exactly as we found it – V M C A in plain capitals, pressed in gold on a black tag.

A black leather luggage tag stamped in gold with the original VMCA type identity.

Next, the new mark went to the luggage tags. Deep espresso brown answers the dark of their pages, and a warm civic red picks up the accent that underlines their headings. The black tag carries the gold.

Looks great when stamped onto the leather.

Black, dark espresso, and poppy red leather luggage tags stamped with the VMCA bridge emblem.

Then, the Guardians. Since the 1930s the stone colossi on Cleveland's bridges have watched the traffic cross, each holding a vehicle in its hands. We carved one in their manner and wrote SAFE PASSAGE beneath – a patron for everything that moves.

A Cleveland Guardian and Safe Passage design shown as a black-and-white leather stamp die.

On the keychains, golden tan reads like the sandstone the originals are cut from. The black fob carries the gold.

Black and golden tan leather keychains stamped with the Safe Passage design for VMCA.

On the passport covers the Guardian presses blind into black and warm red – the two poles of their palette, watching over every departure.

Black and poppy red leather passport covers stamped with the Safe Passage design for VMCA.

Then, the word their work keeps circling. The die holds a drawbridge in its last degree of closing, two leaves a hair apart over the river – the moment alignment happens or fails.

An opening drawbridge Alignment design shown as a black-and-white leather stamp die.

On the toiletry bags it presses into honeyed russet over deep espresso – their copper light over dark architecture. It looks genuinely beautiful.

Honeyed russet and dark espresso leather toiletry bags stamped with the Alignment design for VMCA.

And the same die on the golden tan of the catchall tray, where keys land while the moment is still complex.

A golden tan leather catchall tray stamped with the Alignment design for VMCA.

And finally, the journals. One unbroken line enters tangled and leaves the page straight – FOR COMPLEX MOMENTS.

A tangled line becoming straight in the For Complex Moments black-and-white leather stamp die.

Pressed into the lower corner in deep brown and deep wine. Looks absolutely gorgeous when stamped onto the leather.

Dark espresso and sangria leather journals stamped with the For Complex Moments design for VMCA.

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're VMCA and you'd like these made real, or anything here changed – say hello through our contact page.