The Patient Desert – a Scottsdale leather stamping study

From the Practice Log – an ongoing series of stamping studies. Volume I-D.

A September study.

Four stamps for the patient side of the Sonoran Desert, designed with Old Town Scottsdale in mind and pressed into leather. We call the set THE PATIENT DESERT, and every piece in it is meant to be handed to somebody.

First, the bison's old trick. When a storm rolls in, the herd turns to face it, hunkers down, and waits it out head-on. We drew ours still walking – head down in the slanting rain – and set INTO THE STORM beneath – a stamp to hand somebody at the start of something hard.

Into The Storm black-and-white stamp artwork for The Patient Desert leather collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

The black tag carries it in gold. It looks genuinely beautiful.

Into The Storm stamped into black leather luggage tags from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

Into The Storm stamped into dark espresso leather keychains from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

Into The Storm stamped into dark espresso leather leather journals from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

Next, the saguaro, which can spend anywhere from sixty to seventy-five years growing its first arm. We drew a young one just getting started and set WORTH THE WAIT underneath – for anyone playing a long game, and for the journal where the long game gets planned.

Worth The Wait black-and-white stamp artwork for The Patient Desert leather collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

Looks great when stamped onto the leather.

Worth The Wait stamped into arizona leather luggage tags from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

Worth The Wait stamped into forest green leather leather journals from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

Then, the fact every desert local carries around: rain here announces itself by scent. At the first drops the creosote lets go of its oils, and the whole valley smells like it. We put a creosote sprig under a slanting rain and wrote SMELLS LIKE RAIN along the bottom.

Smells Like Rain black-and-white stamp artwork for The Patient Desert leather collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

One tag wears it on pale sea-blue.

Smells Like Rain stamped into turquoise leather luggage tags from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

Smells Like Rain stamped into forest green leather keychains from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

And on the toiletry bags, the line doubles as a promise.

Smells Like Rain stamped into country gray dark espresso leather dopp kits from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

And finally, the catchall tray for the table by the door. We threw a lariat into one loose open loop and set STAY AWHILE inside it – empty your pockets, you're home.

Stay Awhile black-and-white stamp artwork for The Patient Desert leather collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

It looks absolutely gorgeous when stamped onto the golden tan.

Stay Awhile stamped into arizona leather catchall trays from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

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.

P.S.

Worth The Wait stamped into arizona leather luggage tags from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.

Smells Like Rain stamped into turquoise leather luggage tags from The Patient Desert collection of Old Town Scottsdale.