Out of Gloucester – a leather collection for Gloucester, Massachusetts

From the Practice Log – an ongoing series of leather stamping studies.

An August study.

For Gloucester, Massachusetts – a collection in leather we named Out of Gloucester.

First, the namesake. A vessel's stern carries her name and, beneath it, her home port – so we set a two-masted schooner under full sail above the words OUT OF GLOUCESTER and ran it lengthwise along the luggage tags, in harbor navy and in buoy red.

Black-and-white Out of Gloucester stamp art from a leather collection for Gloucester, Massachusetts.

The black tag carries the lettering in gold foil, the way transom letters were laid in gold leaf.

It looks genuinely beautiful.

Leather luggage tags stamped with Out of Gloucester from the Gloucester, Massachusetts collection.

Next, St. Peter's Fiesta for the toiletry bags. We drew the walk: the greased pole out over the harbor and a lone walker mid-stride, with the flag waiting at the tip. Everyone who tries comes up soaked, which makes the Greasy Pole the right patron for a wash bag. The stack runs harbor navy over deep espresso.

Black-and-white Greasy Pole stamp art from a leather collection for Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Leather dopp kits stamped with Greasy Pole from the Gloucester, Massachusetts collection.

Then Dogtown. In the 1930s Roger Babson hired stonecutters to carve mottoes into the boulders of Cape Ann's abandoned interior, and the sternest one fits a key fob: NEVER TRY NEVER WIN, cut into its boulder. We pressed it on a warm granite gray and a deep forest green.

Black-and-white Dogtown stamp art from a leather collection for Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Keychains with the Dogtown boulder look just awesome too.

Leather keychains stamped with Dogtown from the Gloucester, Massachusetts collection.

Then the catchall tray. On a harbor chart, GOOD HOLDING GROUND marks bottom where an anchor bites and stays. We charted the harbor onto the tray's golden tan base – depth soundings and dashed contours around one bold anchor – so keys and coins ride at anchor where the holding is good.

Black-and-white Holding Ground stamp art from a leather collection for Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Leather catchall tray stamped with Holding Ground from the Gloucester, Massachusetts collection.

And finally, the journals. A ship out of Gloucester keeps her log in all weathers, fair entries and hard ones in the same hand, so the cover carries a schooner heeled into a gale above the words KEPT IN ALL WEATHERS – in harbor navy and in sailcloth greige.

Black-and-white All Weathers stamp art from a leather collection for Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Looks absolutely gorgeous when stamped onto the leather.

Leather journals stamped with All Weathers from the Gloucester, Massachusetts collection.

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