Home Water – a leather collection from the Ballard Locks – Ballard, Seattle (Volume I-A)

Home Water – an original leather collection for Ballard, Seattle. Volume I-A.

A September study.

At the Ballard Locks, the way home runs through a gate. Boats rise from salt water into fresh, and salmon climb a ladder of twenty-one weirs beside them. We designed Home Water around that passage – five stamps for the things that come back.

First, we drew the small lock in section – a working boat riding the lifted water between two gates, RISE AND CONTINUE across the sky above. The design runs lengthwise, the way the chamber does.

A black-and-white Passage lock-chamber stamp plate for the Home Water leather collection of Ballard, Seattle.

The black tag carries the design in gold. Looks great when stamped onto the leather.

A black leather luggage tag with the gold Passage design from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

A blueberry leather luggage tag blind-stamped with the Passage design from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

A forest-green leather luggage tag blind-stamped with the Passage design from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

Next, a sockeye clearing the top weir of the fish ladder, HOME WATER beneath it – keys and salmon return to the same place. One fob in warm sockeye red, one in navy.

A black-and-white Homecoming salmon stamp plate for the Home Water leather collection of Ballard, Seattle.

A poppy-red leather keychain stamped with the Homecoming salmon design from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

A blueberry leather keychain stamped with the Homecoming salmon design from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

Then the journal. The garden beside the locks was planted with seeds that ship captains carried home through the gates, so we set a dawn redwood growing straight out of a boat hull, SOWN BY RETURNING SHIPS along the waterline. In deep green and in honeyed russet.

A black-and-white Captain's Garden boat-and-tree stamp plate for the Home Water leather collection of Ballard, Seattle.

A forest-green leather journal blind-stamped with Captain's Garden from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

An Indian Summer leather journal stamped with Captain's Garden from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

Then the wash bag, stamped small in the corner – calm fresh water above, salt chop below, two gate leaves closed between them. FRESH is a good word to carry into a bathroom. One kit in navy, one in dark espresso.

A black-and-white Salt Line fresh-water and salt-water stamp plate for the Home Water leather collection of Ballard, Seattle.

A blueberry leather dopp kit blind-stamped with the Salt Line design from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

A dark-espresso leather dopp kit blind-stamped with the Salt Line design from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

And finally, the one we liked the most. The tray is the lock chamber seen from above – a gate at each end, three little boats moored bow to stern down the middle. Whatever lands here at night is only waiting for the gates to open. Looks absolutely gorgeous when stamped onto the golden tan.

A black-and-white Bow to Stern lock-chamber stamp plate for the Home Water leather collection of Ballard, Seattle.

An Arizona tan leather catchall tray blind-stamped with Bow to Stern from the Home Water collection of Ballard, Seattle.

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 these made real, or anything here changed – say hello through our contact page.