The Standing Invitation – a leather collection for the houses where nobody knocks

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

A September study. Volume II.

The Standing Invitation is a small collection about the houses where nobody knocks – the spare key made official, the guest room that has quietly become yours. Five stamps for the people who are always welcome, and for the hosts who made them so.

First, the room. We drew a bed with the blanket corner already turned down – the sign it was made for you – and set THE USUAL ROOM beside it, running lengthwise along the tags in warm red and in pale sea-blue.

The black tag carries the words in gold.

Black-and-white bed and THE USUAL ROOM artwork for The Standing Invitation leather hospitality collection.

A black leather luggage tag stamped in gold with a turned-down bed and THE USUAL ROOM from The Standing Invitation hospitality collection.

A warm red leather luggage tag blind-stamped with a turned-down bed and THE USUAL ROOM from The Standing Invitation hospitality collection.

A pale sea-blue leather luggage tag blind-stamped with a turned-down bed and THE USUAL ROOM from The Standing Invitation hospitality collection.

Next, we stood two toothbrushes in one cup, the oldest proof that somebody belongs, and wrote MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME beneath. It stamps small in the corner of the warm tan bag over chestnut.

Looks great when stamped onto the leather.

Black-and-white two-toothbrush MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME artwork for The Standing Invitation leather hospitality collection.

Warm tan and chestnut leather toiletry bags blind-stamped with two toothbrushes and MAKE YOURSELF AT HOME from The Standing Invitation collection.

Then the keychain, because a spare key is a whole speech in brass. We left a front door open a hand's width and put LET YOURSELF IN beneath the gap – on deep pine green and on navy.

Black-and-white open-door LET YOURSELF IN artwork for The Standing Invitation leather hospitality collection.

A deep green leather keychain blind-stamped with an open door and LET YOURSELF IN from The Standing Invitation hospitality collection.

A navy leather keychain blind-stamped with an open door and LET YOURSELF IN from The Standing Invitation hospitality collection.

After that, the tray by the door. The keys land, and the house answers before you ask – a kettle with the steam already rising, over the words STAY A WHILE. Centered at a generous size on the golden tan tray.

It looks genuinely beautiful.

Black-and-white steaming-kettle STAY A WHILE artwork for The Standing Invitation leather hospitality collection.

A golden tan leather catchall tray blind-stamped with a steaming kettle and STAY A WHILE from The Standing Invitation hospitality collection.

And finally, the one we liked the most. Every good table deserves a ledger, so we drew the table from above, four plates around the rim, and gave the journal its title – WHO CAME AND WHAT WE ATE. In deep wine and in warm tan.

Black-and-white dinner-table WHO CAME AND WHAT WE ATE artwork for The Standing Invitation leather hospitality collection.

A deep wine leather journal blind-stamped with a dinner table and WHO CAME AND WHAT WE ATE from The Standing Invitation hospitality collection.

A warm tan leather journal blind-stamped with a dinner table and WHO CAME AND WHAT WE ATE from The Standing Invitation hospitality 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 anything here made real, or anything here changed – say hello through our contact page.