Who is this "Johanna" person?

[Johanna]

I was 28 when I met my first husband. He was twenty years older than me, and learned leatherwork in prison. He said, "I'm a leatherworker, baby!" and I said okay, whatever. I, like most American consumers, did not know leather from vinyl anyway. He decided to start tooling again, and I humored him. I didn't care- I was single, no kids, no bills and had a good job. If he wanted to spend time doing arts and crafts, fine. I couldn't believe the masterpieces he threw in the scrap bin. I was in shock that people reacted the way they did when they heard he had opened another shop. They were coming to our house, way out in the country, and leaving cash on the dining room table. If they weren't coming, and work was slow, we'd go to a bar or a biker event or a concert or whatever, and I'd wear the stuff he made for me. I learned how to keep sales slips for him, and I took the deposits. He used to joke that when he was in jail he kept three Mexicans busy doing his lacing, and I began to understand why. My husband earned his 40 page rap sheet by being a con man, and he had the gift of knowing exactly how much money someone was willing to part with, but he could back up his leatherwork. It was flawless- beautiful, functional, exceptional. I didn't even know how good he was until years later when we went to our first IFoLG show and people were aghast that I was wearing and using his leather. I was pretty casual about it even then, because, after all, if I wanted something, I just told him. I was floored at that first show- I quickly realized my husband was one of the top leatherworkers in the world. By then I had quit my job just to help him with orders. I did all the dye work, the appliqué stitching, lacing, answered the phone, did the billing, you know how it goes. My husband would turn the music up loud and work like a fiend in the shop, stopping every now and then to play his guitar along with the blues he liked to listen to, and we had a good life. Then he fell off the wagon and got arrested for a whole bunch of things because he always did go nuts when he was drunk, and I didn't know what to do. I couldn't keep the shop without him. So I went to work as a store manager for Tandy Leather. That's when my real education in leather started. He died about a year after he got out of jail, I guess, and I stayed with Tandy.

I had to go to a bunch of meetings in Fort Worth, and I got to know another store manager who was from the same part of Pennsylvania as I was. He was "stationed" in DC, and I had already lived there and knew it would be a cold day before I went back to city life, so after a year or two of a long distance romance, he quit his job at Tandy and moved to Georgia. We ran a shop together, but it was more fabrication, less art. All those days of dealing with people wandering into the Tandy wanting to make something, and me figuring out how to do it so that I knew what to sell them and so they felt confident enough to buy all the stuff they needed started to pay off, and I even considered quitting Tandy, up until the time I discovered I was pregnant. Ooops. I decided to stay because of health insurance and a steady paycheck. That was in 1998, when they started closing Tandy stores. I started to show and word quickly got back to the district office. My sweet store was one of the first to go. We doubled our efforts at our own shop to make it, but when my daughter was eight months old, I realized I was pregnant again with what would turn out to be our son. Babies can't be around sharp things, poison things, expensive things...lol We came up to Ohio to help my mom while my grandmother was dying, and the kids' dad got a day job. A year later he unexpectedly died at work of a massive heart attack. He was 50, and the kids were 2 & 1. For the next few years, I didn't even unpack the rest of the shop.

But after he died, I decided to learn something about computers, because I didn't want my kids to outsmart me with these new fangled machines. Maybe I was a little lonely, maybe it's the problem solver in me, but I think I found my calling. I am a comp tech. I am not an artist in leatherwork, I am a carpenter. I can't carve to save my life, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I can make just about anything, but my decorative abilities are limited.

Now my hands are never funny colors unless I want them to be. If I go into the shop it is to play, and my running joke with the family is that I will not put another frog on a checkbook cover again. If I make it in the shop now, it's because I wanted to. I survived doing leatherwork by being able to do a variety of jobs, and making what the customer wanted, not what I thought was best. I was surprised one day to hear my first husband quote someone $10 for setting a simple rivet. He said, "They don't pay you for what you do, they pay you for what you know." Plus, he had the tools and the expertise. I started to appreciate the value of a good leatherworker- where are you gonna get your ball glove relaced, your orthopedic boot, your custom dog harness, your saddle, guitar strap, bible cover, wallet, biker gear, etc ? Wal-Mart? I see bad leather everywhere I go, and I have to resist the urge to say- "Can I dress up your Harley?" When I was green and new to the leather business, I didn't know beans, and lots of wonderful people were patient with me, and taught me what I needed to know. The Pitt Pounders in Pittsburgh and the Georgia Leathercrafters are examples of Guilds at their finest- freely sharing information and knowledge. If I don't know the answer to a question after 15 years in the business, I do know where to ask.

I started this forum (with the help of some friends!) to encourage fellowship and education, and provide free publicity to leatherworkers who want it, on the main site. I don't want any leatherworkers to have to get day jobs to pay bills! I hope as things come together that people enjoy the forum part, and that the member profile part of the site attracts customers to browse through leatherworkers' sites so they can decide where to buy real leather goods. I would appreciate any suggestions from leatherworkers to make the forum better, and I thank everyone for the kind words of encouragement. The Internet is big enough for us all, and it's great to see leatherworkers sticking together to preserve the ancient art, and using computers to access all the resources available. I'm looking forward to meeting new friends and reconnecting with old ones.

Best regards to all,

Johanna

[BruceGibson]

I just found this. What an AMAZING story. Hat's off to you, Johanna.

[pella]

thank you for starting this forum

[BruceGibson]

I second that--Thank You.

[Johanna]

Aw, shucks... all I do is the tech stuff here. It's the friendly leatherworkers and what they have to say that makes this a fun place to be. I am amazed and delighted to see what others have to share. Keeping the coffee hot and the doughnuts fresh is the easy part.

Johanna

[ClayB]

Aw, shucks... all I do is the tech stuff here. It's the friendly leatherworkers and what they have to say that makes this a fun place to be. I am amazed and delighted to see what others have to share. Keeping the coffee hot and the doughnuts fresh is the easy part.

Johanna

I gotta start getting up earlier. I always miss out on the doughnuts!!!!

[freak]

(while chewing a mouth full of the last doughnut) No, no let Clay sleep. He calls sleeping in his " leatherworkers rest".

I searched and searched for a forums like this. I just knew it had to be out there somewhere. I could not find anything like this. The closest i could come was diff motorcycle forums. Where i would admire the seats people would do and ask them questions. Not all where eager to tell there " secretes".

Then one day i found a TLF just a few miles from my house. I asked a few questions there and i was lead to a aisle that had shevles. Shevles full of books, books full of "secrets". Oh the joy ! the glories joy. The joy a 6 year old is full of christmas morning when they see that Santa came.

Then very soon the reality hit....hit hard...so hard it bounced in fact. Theres too much, too many. How will I, how can I ?? I'll never be able to read them all. How will i know which one will answer the question i have right now. What if i have a question and i don't have that book and the store is closed .... i need that book...ahhhhhhh...Sure RAdio Shack answears the phone " you got questions , we've got answers" but they don't know butt itch about leather...So how can the say that !!!!??

Then i started searching the web again. I found another so called forums for leather craft. Pretty empty yet wide open forums with just one section. Making tring to find a subject pretty much "NOT". But,,,somehow i found a post that was titled something about another leather workers forums by no other then Johanna. Could it be, was this for real, you mean there truely is a Santa. AS my heart raced and feet started tapping , it seemed nothing was fast enough, My connection was just as fast as always but at this time it just did not seem fast enough. I click the mouse a hundred times to fallow the link this one sent from the skys posted.

That's when i learned never stop believing, there is a Santa !!!! Merry Christmas Butt Itch !!

I check these forums a few times everynight when i'm on the pc. lately i can't keep up with all the new post. That's a good thing a very good thing. Even more so for the begin hobbiest like myself. When i think of something i want to do, it does and will allways bring up questions. It's becoming that 8 out of 10 times i can find my answer by searching. Also most of the time i find in the same post ; although i don't know it yet the answer to the next question i'm about to have.

Thank you Johanna for starting these new friendships i'm building. And to me that's one of the things that make up a great forums, FRIENDSHIPS !

I'd also like to take this time to thank all of those that post here and that share there knowlegde so quickly. Ya'll are what makes up the forums. THANKS !!

[JohnD]

I've only been doing this a short time and hope to be doing it for a while. I had sort of the same experience as freak. This site is great, every time I have had a question I just search here and end up finding an aswer. Since most of my questions have been asked already, I've been able to find answers without posting. Thank you, Johanna for starting this and everyone for all the info.

John

[rawhide1]

Well I'm kinda of slow so freak had to led me to this thread and I'm glad he did!!!!!! SO I want to say a big THANK YOU Johanna for starting this site. It gives me something to do besides yelling at the kids and kicking the dog. Just kidding about kicking the dog! Thanks

Mike

[Rayban]

Johanna, I just now found "your story" and quite a story it is..

This site has quickly become one of my favs...I just pound on leather as a hobby and for beer money. I've been a little afraid of making it be too much like a job....

But regardless, this site gives me a daily dose of inspiration, not to mention the fine folks I'm encountering along the way.

Thanks for all you do....

Rick

[Knotnutz]

Johanna

as a simple braider, I am constantly in awe of what I see on the various forum pages - and have only just discovered 'your story'.

All I can say is Thank you. Its not enough, but, is the closest thing I can think of right now.

Beth

[Guest]

I can't believe the longevity of this thread. People have been responding to it for a year and a half.....

I want to add my thanks to Johanna also....for many things....including transporting my "stuff" to the show in Fort Worth, working on a site for me. And encouraging a new guy in leatherwork to keep trying....I'm one of those guys who just has to try to dress up what a customer wants in order to make it the best it can be..... I gotta do something about that.

Dave

Edited December 2, 2007 by David

[Johanna]

Good grief, I'm still blushing. A friend suggested I fill in the rest of the story. Here goes!

After John died, I began going to church every Sunday morning. Moms take turns watching the little ones in the nursery during the service, so it was probably the only hour during the week I was allowed to complete a thought. Every Sunday, a strange scary looking man would sit behind me and stare at me. I was oblivious, my sister was not. Upon investigation, it turns out I used to play with his sister when I'd visit my grandmother as a child. Okay, creep identified, and I still ignored him. Two years go by. Then my 22 year old cat died on a Saturday, and on Sunday they unfurled a banner that said, "Love never ends" and I started to cry. I'm crying because John isn't around to see our kids, I'm exhausted, and I know I am going home to bury my cat. I leave the sanctuary rather late, and bump into this man on my way to the nursery. He is getting his two kids, I get my two, and he's trying his best to comfort me. And he asked why I'm crying, and I answer "My cat died." and I wait. If he laughs, this conversation is over. If he snickers, I'm gonna beat up his sister for old times sake. Wade doesn't miss a beat. "I'm sorry. That's sad." he says, "No wonder you are upset." I decided at that moment to try to like him. We got married in that church about a year later.

He brought over a giant workbench from his house, and helped me round up all the leather shop boxes and unpack them. He reminded me of all the guys that would wander into the Tandy and never want to leave, drooling on the tools and paying with the money folded carefully and tucked behind the kids' pictues in his wallet. (Every Tandy manager has been discreet about the ticket with a customer's Significant Other!) I knew he would be an easy fit, with his experience in wood and metal working. I put the shop together while he hung the lights. I made a couple of belts for family members, turned off the lights and walked out. He spends more time in the shop than I do. I will use it to fix something, or make something if I really really want to, or to entertain the kids, but I'm done in there. I like to go to shows, see old friends, and see all the pics of what people have been up to. There are some neat people in leather land! I wish I could have talked to all you folks when I was learning the ropes. I would have read every post on here, and pestered with questions. I found a bunch of MIWL magazines one time, and read them cover to cover, even though they were already 20+ years old. I remember trying to figure out what a "bosal" was, something that was explained in plain English today. There was no "Google" when I was learning. My daughter is older than Google! The Internet is great for keeping people connected, at their convenience. I'm glad the technology exists to host this forum, and glad you all choose to share some time each day with your teachers, peers and friends. Now everyone get back to work and start pounding something. It's what we do. We're leatherworkers. God bless you all, goodnight.

Johanna

[MatthewD]

Johanne,

You are a very amazing lady and I am very glad everyday that I found this place..

Thanks

[Opagon]

Jonanna,

Thank You!!! for the the community that you are building here. I too was searching high and low for a place to share ideas and learn new things. This site has become an addiction for me and it is one that I hope never to have to give up. The Family feel here is wonderfully warm and receptive. Your post reminds me that everything happens for a reason and I am very grateful that your life story has led you to start this site.

Sincerley,

Heather

[Warren]

From the bottom of my heart, Thank You!

[TwinOaks]

Thank you for starting this site! It's a wealth of knowledge, all for the asking. Keep up the great work.

[Rayban]

Johanna....Singer/song writer Steve Earle sings of a "Fearless Heart", kinda reminds me of you...

Again...THANKS for all you do, and I know you have to feel good knowing how much so many of us appreciate what you do.

[ClayB]

Johanna,

I am glad you continued the story. I hope that when you write the last chapter (in another 50 years or so) that the last line reads, "and they lived happily ever after".

I passed on some thoughts awhile ago that with the growth of the forum, I was worried it would lose it's family feel. I think I was wrong. It's still a great place to hang out. Add me to the list of people that are really thankful for all you do to keep this thing going.

Clay

[cjbleather]

Thanks Johanna for "the rest of the story". You do your self proud with your family and with this Forum. I haven't participated as much as I want, but one of these days..... carlb

[Elwood Turner]

Thanks Johanna for sharing your story and your time to start and contiue with the forum. Elwood

[Randyc]

Joanna,

This is by far the best leatherworking forum I've seen. I missed out on alot of good info and nice people by not discovering this forum sooner. Well gotta go and catch up on all the past posts I missed. Please keep up the great work. We all appreciate it!

Randy

[Kani]

1st off I want to thank you for starting this board. I have been looking for a place I could go to and get answers about leather work. I am a newbie at it.

Love this site.

It took me a while to find it. I accidently typed in leather crafting and found it. I had typed in leather work, leather tooling, working with leather and other sites came up. Boy am I glad I typed in leather crafting. It is a craft an art. Some of the work I have had time to check out here is wonderful. I hope one day I will get to be half as good as alot of you.

Thanks again Johanna for starting this site.

[Washroad]

My first post on this site was how it took me a long time to find such a great place!

I still think this place absolutely ROCKS!!!

I don't post a lot, I just come in, read, look at stuff and think how I can maybe try to do some of it.

Thank you Johanna for starting this website. I'm a big fan of yours!

P.S.

The coffee is always hot but you gotta get here early to get a donut! :biggrin:

[Darrell]

Johanna, You Rock! With so many cards laid down you picked up all aces still. Thanks so much for starting this baby and seeing it along. As you can see by the posts it was well needed,been enjoyed and will only further the art and craft. A real dying art in this day and age of lazy folk who do not take the time to learn an age old trade and craft. This has been around as long as America,and way before. We need to keep the flame burning-thanks for all the kindling.-Darrell