Many of you may know I offer a custom design service to those looking to add an heirloom piece to their wardrobe. Normally I receive a few requests in a year for custom projects but 2020 has already blown me away with challenging and exciting work!
The “Why”.
The Bourdain was the brainchild of my friend and business advisor Eric. We set out to create a duffel bag that represented the artistry, quality and unique character that the late Anthony Bourdain brought to the world.
The “How”.
In my experience most custom projects can take anywhere from 30 to 50 hours to complete and this project was no exception. Eric first submitted a sketch of his design aesthetic with estimated dimensions and then I got to work turning the sketch into a physical pattern.
The Work.
Because this project was a one off with a tight deadline I didn’t have the opportunity to film a time laps of the entire process. One-off design or original design results many hours of standing in front of a pattern and mentally designing and assembling all the pieces which doesn’t translate well in video. A good pattern, like the one above, acts like a GPS when the function and pattern don’t agree.
The leather we chose was aniline dyed, which allows the natural grain and texture of the hide to show through. Aniline dyed also imparts a suppleness to the hide, a waxy soft “hand” that not only feels great but stand up well in-climate weather. And the most unique element of the entire project is the repurposed military duffle bag that makes up the exterior pockets and the green piping shown on the ends.
The finally product.
I partnered with Eric Doyeto from Something Blue Studio for this photoshoot and enlisted the help of Dunn Beard to model. The day was set more than a week in advance when we saw, the night before, that heavy rain was in the forecast and with no time to reschedule we pressed on. What could be a better way to show the character of this rugged bag than to do a photoshoot in pouring rain?
Back in the studio Eric captured the elegance of the Bourdain.
The Bourdain is one of the pieces I’m most proud of for it’s complexity, size and the new challenges it brought. Thank you Eric for allowing me to craft this beautiful pieces to accompany you on your mind adventures. And thank you Eric from Something Blue Studio and Dunn for braving the rain to document the end result of many many hours of work that resulted in The Bourdain.
Cheers,
Emily