My name is Nicholas. I live and work in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

In 2008 I began making small leather goods for myself, friends, and family using inherited tools from the garage. I found that I really enjoyed being able to make something practical, durable, and (sometimes) beautiful, so I started making more and learning more.

I feel that mundane objects are sometimes the most important. I want the objects that I use every day to be imbued with personal significance, and carry my history with them.

I’ve always been a fan of American heritage brands like Filson, Carhartt, Levis, Red Wing, Pendleton, Duluth Pack, and later White’s, Pointer, Phil Wood, Rivendell, and on and on. Grant Petersen once said that companies like that have the wisdom to know the difference between progress and improvement, which is why a pair of Red Wings from 1905, or a Filson jacket from 1914 are largely the same as what they make now. They hit on a good thing, and were smart enough to stick with it.

 

I do my best to put some of that spirit into my work. I shoot for perfection every time even though I know it’s impossible. Attempting the impossible can be a noble action, because even when I fail to make something perfect and permanent, these days I usually manage to make something beautiful and durable, and I believe Richard Sachs when he says that imperfection is perfection.

It doesn’t matter what you do, if you care enough it becomes art. Leather is what I do.