Stash Studios

Fresh Start

New Stash Co site is loaded. The pickings are slim BUT some of my best sellers are now open for special order. New bags for 2012 will be loaded following our next round of Urban Market in February. 

Turn Around. Take a Step Forward

“The hardest thing in the world is to simplify your life. It’s so easy to make it complex. The solution for a lot of the world’s problems may be to turn around and take a forward step.”— Yvon Chouinard

There was some philosophical discussion over the winter break about my pattern of leaving the city to work. Something obvious and necessary to what I do. But words had never been put to the idea of it. I only knew that when I drove out through the open prairies and rice fields that separated my city home from my work that there was a shedding of a skin. An opening to a connection of something more elemental.

I find one is more mindful of resources when they are harder to come by. A stark difference from our flip a switch daily convenience. Ingenuity has more time and space to grow in places like these.

Physically things are harder here. There are no bots to automate repetitive tasks. Work is done by hand and many days blood is drawn and the first aid kit is mobilized.

There is no heat and thermostat controlled air. The roof leaks on one corner like a sieve. Bones creak when the wind blows. Roosters crow. But the place and the work plugs into a deep part of my soul.

Then a friend came to visit me working at the factory and suggested I watch 180º South.

And I did. You need not be a surfer or climber to appreciate this film. Beautifully rendered. Simply stated. It gave me pause to consider the year ahead of me. The idea that there is so much more out there than the postage stamp we call home and that sometimes our greatest potential lies beyond our front door and certainly beyond what we may have imagined for ourselves.

And I also started reading Let My People Go Surfing : The Education of a Reluctant Businessman by Yvon Choinard. 

Last year was interesting. I had been seeking a space to expand to and I had a vision of what I hoped for, but I would never have dreamed that I'd have the opportunity to work in a century old mattress factory.

There was discussion about growth. I had some dreams of PR and expansion. I traveled. I was invited to wholesale market. I kicked myself because things didn't seem to be happening fast enough. I worked 7 days a week. I grew a list of potential wholesale vendors longer than my arm. I found and began to train a few folks to help. We launched headlong into production. But things weren't right. We'd begun to push the river.

There are thousands of people making millions of bags. I've always been clear about one thing. Though I dearly love what I do, I have no desire to be 1,001. Just making more stuff.

So I stopped. I turned around. I took a step that I realize now was a step forward for me. I pared back to just me building. Occasionally I bring back the people who I know love what and where we are creating as much as I do.

And I realized that maybe for now it is enough to work with a waiting list. To make elemental beautiful things for people who really plug in to who I am and what I do. To only use resources when they are certain to be used in a product that someone wants. Less speculation. No buy-backs. And that weekends are necessary to recharge. Because whatever you do, it is simply not worth it if you don't have time to live your life.

Oh, I still work weekends but fewer and usually only before our thrice yearly appearance at Urban Market. I'm not sure exactly where 2012 will take me but I am certain that I am looking forward to the journey.

Looking Forward

Hope this finds you well and warm. The Stash factory is quiet for the holiday and the family is regrouping and planning for 2012 with visions of canvas, wood, adventure and of course, more leather. And inspiring us today is the Canvas Hotel ~ Norway.

Best,

Arrow

Been gone a long time. Crazy busy. Go get you a free song from the Heartless Bastards. Based on a recent meeting, I should be back soon with much much more. Just need to get through this next week.

Roll With It.

Skate, Music, Food, Art, Fashion and Booze for a good cause. This weekend is Sensory Overload 2, an ancillary event that arose out of support for the Johnny Romano Make-A-Wish Skate Jam benefitting the Make-A-Wish Foundation. 4411 Montrose starting at 7pm. Music, silent auction, food by Monica Pope, cutting demos, a live art installation with Tra' Slaughter and Dom Bam, fashion show, and the guys from Embassy Skateboards will be busting out some pro board moves for the crowd. 

photo | Gary Griffin

Stash is pitching in one of my handcut Bison Clutches for the silent auction and will be on hand to shoot the event. Come support our friends at cutLoose and Make-A-Wish. 

In case, you don't know the story of Johnny Romano, the catalyst for the largest skate-for-charity event, check out the Texas Monthly feature here.

Get your tickets at cutLoose and more info here. 

Later,

Noir and Noir.

My preference for designers with a penchant for black shall remain unshaken in these technicolor times. founders & followers Atelier feature on Devastee (above) was the perfect new share for this All Hallows Eve.

And tomorrow, we celebrate All Hallows as we head out to Austin to see the latest designs of our favorite local Atelier, Blackmail by Gail Chovan.

Whatever you are doing this week, hope it's a scream!

Spaulted

The only person who can paint a Jasper Johns original is Jasper himself. In the very same way, Centro-Matic writes their own songs and plays their own music. With this idea of personal creation, we build our own bags and we design our own furniture and fixtures down to the raw material. 

Above is a Texas pecan tree that we've been curing in our wood storage container for more than a year. When we put it through our saw mill, we were delighted to find it had naturally spaulted which means that it is shot through with stunning zone lines, varying colors and patterns as a natural result of the decay process. 

A true family effort with help from friends, we have cut, cured, milled, planed, sanded, finished and crafted each piece to create an industrial meets wood table and two bookshelves. These pieces of very unique furniture will be available for viewing and purchase in our booth this weekend at Urban Market - Houston. Come see the result.

Resonance

Saturday was our second round of hosting an acoustic show at the old factory. After the first, I found no words to describe what had happened there. Our friend Kim intervened and wrote an amazing piece here.

Finally I have figured out why I lost my words. There are none. None that can authentically convey the experience to you had you not been there. Still shots, moving images, even audio recordings cannot take you to that moment. Like finding yourself alone in the euphoria of a stunning sunset.

Live acoustic shows, especially ones that feature an interplay between musicians who have a deep appreciation for one another and a love for what they do, are an alchemy of art in process. Much like a painting that develops as an audience watches nearby. Strokes of voice and cord create a piece of art that hangs only in that moment as the vibration settles into the soul.

To each of you who made the journey, thank you. To those who supported from afar, thank you too. The Way Sound Leaves a Room is just out from Sarah. And Will's Little Raider is his most recent solo venture that deserves some serious spinning. And check out Ryan's work with Western Fifth.

For now, this is all I will share as I am still enjoying the resonance on my soul.

Best,

Feature photo by Audrey Griffin. Others by Gary Griffin and Paul Forde.

 

Clementine

Sarah Jaffe's "Clementine" Music Video from Jon Todd Collins on Vimeo.

NY Times included Sarah in a story of Eight Bands That Could Make An Impact At SXSW.

A preview. Sarah Jaffe. Coming to the Stash Factory October 1.

Live Music at the Factory

Pull up an old piece of abandoned furniture and listen to some good live music with us at the Factory. On Saturday, October 1, Will Johnson (Centro-Matic) is joining forces with rising Texas star, Sarah Jaffe for an acoustic show.

A limited number of tickets are now on sale through Undertow Music. 

Before their show, we are throwing a pre-show with our friend Ryan Holweger of Western Fifth who is joining us all the way from Minneapolis for the event. You can grab dinner on the spot from an old airstream and just kick back and enjoy a unique musical opportunity.

Keep up with event updates here and here. Plus you can always email me if you have any questions.

Have a great week!

Know Peace.

Wherever you are. Whoever you are. Know hope. Know joy. Know peace.

[Random shots from Stash archive]

Wood Work.

Working to find a large slab out of a twisted multi-trunk 7x12 Bois d' arc tree, we got a jump on the heat to tackle this little project. 

The Bois d' arc is a hard hard Southern Plains tree introduced as pioneers moved west and needed fences to keep cattle. So before the invention of barbed wire in the late 1800s, landowners would grow hedges of Bois d' arc. Tolerant of hot summers and fast growers, the immature trees bear inch long spines making them well-suited for prairie windbreaks and fencing. Just 100 years after its introduction, nearly 100,000 miles of this living hedge were found in Kansas alone.

We collect trees. And much like any of the materials used around here, the Stash family spends a good deal of time with them trying to figure out the best, most creative use for each unique tree. Unlike our old canvas collections and accumulation of metalwork, cut trees have a bit of an internal clock. In particular, hardwood trees like the Bois d' arc must be cut fairly green or they harden to nearly impossible. This one cured a bit long and we busted a blade on the mill but this week we are designing a special sled to use with an extra-large chain saw so that we can finish the job. 

You will be able to see the fruits of these labors this October 22-23 at Urban Market in Houston.

 

Out of the Woods

If you know me, then you know that just as much as leather, the scent of sawdust sparks my creative fire. I've designed multiple pieces of furniture that the craftsmen in my life have realized. I spent a good deal of the summer designing wooden forms for use in Stash bag-building and spent the better portion of yesterday testing these forms for production.

There are stories of wood gathered, salvaged, and collected throughout our home and studio spaces. All of our guitar faces have some unique figure to them spalted and rare. In fact today we are setting up our mobile saw mill to slice into a salvaged tree to find a slab of wood for a piece that my partner and I have in mind.

So when I saw Herrlicht glasses, the perfect marriage between material and craftsmanship, well, heavy duty admiration ensued. Each pair is numbered. They are only available through two shops in New York and their demand well exceeds the rate at which Andres Licht can produce them. Expect to pay at least $1500 for his art.

Have a fantastic weekend!

Far From Glamorous

Last Sunday afternoon we were on a concrete drive in 104 degrees, full sun, on hands and knees scrubbing old canvas and doubting our sanity and I remember saying that making things by hand without any import tags from absolutely scratch and nurturing the materials at every stage has gained quite a cool reputation of late but it is far from glamorous. 

Quoddy Workshop - Lewiston, Maine from Oliver Wilkins on Vimeo.

So, I was headed out to the factory this morning to see if the roof and buckets held through the night with the much-appreciated rain we've finally been receiving. Then this hit my inbox from my friend Sweeney via FREE/MAN. So I had to stop and share.

What I know is this. Despite the buckets holding raindrops waiting for me in a creaky dusty structure that was first dreamed up more than a century ago. Despite the fret and worry over the economy, the roof, personal investment and not enough time in a day. Despite the highs and lows of owning one's own business. Despite ending days covered in sweat and caked with leather dust. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Have a good one,

The Disaster.

The Kopecky Family Band is proof positive that sometimes really good things can emerge from "disaster". As in Birds (above) from their so titled album The Disaster. Find more at The Blue Indian and Paste Sessions at SXSW.

Also see what happens when a Macon local joins them for an impromptu acoustic blues outtake of the Blue Indian session, here. Proving these kids know how to roll with it.

K Family video and top two photos by William Haun. Last photo by Taylor Christian Jones.

Have a cool weekend,