Here at Awl Together Leather, we are excited to announce that we are doing a Pop-Up Shop for the month of November at The Learnary.

We had such a great time hosting a Stitchery event with them over the summer that we wanted to get involved again. The Learnary is a non-profit educational hub, that operates a store in Vancouver, BC.

“Our mission is to offer affordable, multidisciplinary learning and educational opportunities in east Vancouver; to be a social hub for nourishing intergenerational community connection; and to celebrate curiosity.”

The learnary

With education and curiosity on the mind, we decided to take a leap and test out a new technique. Tess had recently been researching and experimenting with ice dyeing on fabric – a method similar to tie-dyeing, but with ice involved. There is very little information about ice dyeing leather out there though! With this new technique in hand, we took this opportunity to play a little. Tess took the lead on dyeing and preparing all the leather.

After rinsing thoroughly and drying overnight, the leather was given a heavy conditioning. Every member of the team at Awl Together Leather handled a different step of the making process. We wanted to stick to our classic favourite patterns, but combine tie dye and leatherworking. We settled on our leather card case styles, coasters, a variation on our leather keychain, and bracelets (both flat and mystery braid kits). This project was made from 100% veg-tan leather offcuts.

A huge thanks to the Learnary for both hosting this Pop-Up Shop, and for serving as the inspiration behind this collection.

This limited collection of ice-dyed, handmade leather goods will be available from November 1-30th, 2021 at the Learnary’s Store on Coast Salish Territory, 2643 East Hastings St, Vancouver, BC.