Second Growth – a Felton leather stamping study
From the Practice Log – an ongoing series of original leather stamping studies.
A September study – Volume II.
Second Growth is a small leather collection for Felton, California, drawn where Highway 9 runs under the redwoods.
First, the design the collection is named for. A coast redwood sprouts from its own roots, and when the elder finally goes, the young trees are already standing in a ring around the place it grew – foresters call these fairy rings, and they are the forest's second growth. We drew the ring and left its center empty, SECOND GROWTH arched over the crowns and FELTON at the base.
It looks genuinely beautiful.
One tag in deep green for the grove and one in deep wine. The black tag carries the ring in gold foil, like late sun reaching the grove floor.
On the golden tan tray the ring runs at generous size, and the empty center earns its keep – that is where the keys land.
Next, the newest officer in California. In 2024 the state made the banana slug its official state slug, so we struck the badge ourselves – a medal the animal will take its own sweet time collecting.
On the golden tan fob the leather nearly matches the animal. The black fob carries the badge in gold foil – an official title deserves it.
Then, the local weather report, good all year. Under the canopy the sun stops at the crowns and the day below stays cool – so the stamp says MADE IN THE SHADE, and the toiletry bags wear it in deep brown on deep brown, the darkest shade we keep.
And finally, the covered bridge, drawn as the walker sees it – crossed braces repeating overhead and daylight waiting at the far opening. OUT THE OTHER SIDE stands beneath, and the corner of a journal is where that sentence belongs. You write your way through.
Looks absolutely gorgeous when stamped onto the leather – once in deep espresso brown like the old timbers, once in warm tan like the sunlit planks.
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.
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