A Visit to Ripon

Over the last few months I've been lucky enough to meet some really interesting people in the leather industry, and one of them is Andy Bates.

Andy first got in touch with George Barnsley a while ago. During one of our first phone calls we got talking about education, and I mentioned that we offer educational discounts on our tools. That conversation eventually led to us supplying tools and stitching clams to the Leather Conservation Centre in Leicester.

Andy also invited us to become part of the National Leather Collective, more info on that in a future blog

Since then we've had a few conversations, including a National Leather Collective Zoom call where Andy and I were talking about George Barnsley working with Walsall Leather Skills Centre and Sebastian Tarek to adapt tools for the current courses, as well as the new shoemaking course Sebastian will be teaching. I said Andy was always welcome to come down and have a look around the factory, and after finding out I'd been trying to learn a bit of leatherwork myself, he invited me up to his studio near Ripon.

We spent the first part of the day chatting. Andy told me about what he's trying to achieve with the National Leather Collective, and I spoke about where I'd like to take George Barnsley.

One thing we both agreed on was that knowledge shouldn't be kept to yourself. If traditional skills are going to survive, people need to be willing to share what they know. I'd really like George Barnsley to become more involved with education over the next few years and, where we can, help make it easier for more people to get involved, especially those who might not otherwise get the opportunity.

Before we got started, Andy showed me some of his work. It was great to see the range of things he makes, from tiny stitched tubs to some really impressive masks. Every piece was completely different.

Then it was time for me to have a go! Andy started by showing me his stitching technique before introducing me to wet molding. We soaked a piece of leather in water and waited until the bubbles stopped coming up. Once they had, it was ready.

Instead of picking something easy, Andy handed me a pair of scissors. I worked the leather around the shape until I thought I'd taken it as far as it would go, Andy didn't agree so I carried on!

It's surprising how much more detail you can get just by spending a bit more time on it. Once we were both happy, we dried it with a hair dryer and the leather just held its shape. It was one of those things that's much more impressive when you see it happen in front of you.

To finish the day we made a simple coin purse. Andy showed me a few cutting techniques, some stitching tips and how to use a hole punch properly. It was a great way to finish the day because I got to put everything together into something I could take home.

One thing I've realised over the last few months is that making leatherworking tools and using them are two very different things. The more time I spend learning from people like Andy, the more I understand why certain tools are shaped the way they are, how they're actually used, and where they could be improved.

A big thank you to Andy for inviting me over and taking the time to show me around. I learnt a lot, and I'm looking forward to working more with Andy in the future.

If you would like to see more of Andy's work check out his Instagram

www.instagram.com/andy_bates_leather_studio