Lthrz

 Leather artistry began as what seemed to be absolute serendipity, although there was a God-inspired purpose behind its inception, which started because of advice I was given by my doctor, to leave my job in "corporate america," which became very stressful, and created medical problems. He advised me to find something I was passionate about, and a passion for which, I could earn a living.

Well, for years, I would pay my cable bill at the cable retail outlet in my neighborhood, which was situated in a strip mall, next door to a a leather craft store. I would bypass the leather store, not giving any thought to going inside. Every month, same scenario, I would pay my bill, get in my car, and drive away.

Things changed in March 2004, when I went to the cable retailer to pay my bill. It was different that day. Instead of walking toward my car after leaving the cable store, I inadvertently walked toward the leather establishment and entered. It was as if someone had taken control of my steps, and steered me into the store.

As I entered, The smell of good, wholesome, clean leather consumed me. The leather master greeted me with her southwestern twang, the full western attire, straight-legged jeans, gorgeous custom leather hand-tooled cowboy boots, and a huge smile. Her southern hospitality and charm were very apparent. She was from Fort Worth Texas. And, yes, she was the "real deal." And, not only did she give me a tour of the leather outlet, she gave me a crash course in leather crafting. I was captivated, and instantly I fell in love with the idea of leather crafting!

In the weeks that followed, I registered for the monthly basic leather tooling class. On the day of class, I was the first neophyte to arrive. I couldn't hardly wait to get started! Upon taking the class, I went indie, creating and designing leather pieces. Actually, my first leather item was a small messenger bag. Then, I made a woman's shoulder bag, with a hand-tooled design. I even gained confidence to dye the bag. I used all of the basic techniques I learned, and some things that were not taught in class. I just stepped "outside-the-box," then, my creativity and imagination kicked into full-gear.

It seemed as though each morning that followed, upon awakening, I had unique ideas to tool on leather bags, which became my item of choice to handcraft. At that point, I knew the Lord was giving me the vision for various designs. I knew creating and designing leather handbags were what I was destined to do.

As an early-retiree from a major pharmaceutical corporation, leather artistry has become my passion, as well as my encore career. I also hold a B.A. degree in Business Administration with a Marketing emphasis.