I spent most of my young adult life looking for my "art". I was always drawn towards creating but could never find a medium that swept me away. I originally thought myself as poet, went to school for this and ended up in marketing for a small women run business. I surrounded myself with art and artists whenever I could.
It wasn't until June of 2018 the night of the Capricorn full moon that I had a very vivid dream come to me. It was simple, I was sitting at the table in our community building of the property I was living at. I was tooling and cutting leather. It was so vivid I could hear the hammer and smell the wet leather as I drew onto it. The next day I went to go buy some basic tools and scarp. Ever since then, my hands felt at home with this medium. I spent every spare moment working off a tiny foldable table in my after work hours late into the night for the first year. Most of my skills are self taught using mainly trial and error, most likely some crying and lots of false starts involved. I learned then that what truly makes an artist is not talent but time and practice. Since that time I have dedicated years and hours into this craft learning everything I can and always trying new techniques. Practice makes progress! Always!
Inspiration:
I have always loved the fashion of the late Edwardian and Victorian era. I can't get enough of this fashion and patterns found here. My first obsession was a Chatelaine. Like present day, women's fashion has never prioritized pockets (WHY!) and the chatelaine, originally root word means mistress of the household or castle or the one who holds keys, was decorative chain devised for women to hang on belts and used to carry keys, scissors, tiny pouches. This item stood out to me for two reasons, one it was a fully functional piece of fashion, it had a purpose and wanted to look good while doing it! Secondly, it was about creating an ornamental highly decorated object for mundane things. I've always believed that beauty lies in the ordinary and that the ordinary is truly extraordinary! I wanted to embody these ideals in all my work!
What also comes with this era is a history of oppression and misogyny. I wanted to reclaim many of these styles and create items that held same beauty but with none of the constraints. I hope to create modern victorian styles for contemporary times.
Present Day:
Leah is the creatrix and work force behind Dreamtender Leather. I reside in Eugene, OR with my partner, Dog (Stella) and horse (Secret).
It wasn't until June of 2018 the night of the Capricorn full moon that I had a very vivid dream come to me. It was simple, I was sitting at the table in our community building of the property I was living at. I was tooling and cutting leather. It was so vivid I could hear the hammer and smell the wet leather as I drew onto it. The next day I went to go buy some basic tools and scarp. Ever since then, my hands felt at home with this medium. I spent every spare moment working off a tiny foldable table in my after work hours late into the night for the first year. Most of my skills are self taught using mainly trial and error, most likely some crying and lots of false starts involved. I learned then that what truly makes an artist is not talent but time and practice. Since that time I have dedicated years and hours into this craft learning everything I can and always trying new techniques. Practice makes progress! Always!
Inspiration:
I have always loved the fashion of the late Edwardian and Victorian era. I can't get enough of this fashion and patterns found here. My first obsession was a Chatelaine. Like present day, women's fashion has never prioritized pockets (WHY!) and the chatelaine, originally root word means mistress of the household or castle or the one who holds keys, was decorative chain devised for women to hang on belts and used to carry keys, scissors, tiny pouches. This item stood out to me for two reasons, one it was a fully functional piece of fashion, it had a purpose and wanted to look good while doing it! Secondly, it was about creating an ornamental highly decorated object for mundane things. I've always believed that beauty lies in the ordinary and that the ordinary is truly extraordinary! I wanted to embody these ideals in all my work!
What also comes with this era is a history of oppression and misogyny. I wanted to reclaim many of these styles and create items that held same beauty but with none of the constraints. I hope to create modern victorian styles for contemporary times.
Present Day:
Leah is the creatrix and work force behind Dreamtender Leather. I reside in Eugene, OR with my partner, Dog (Stella) and horse (Secret).