My name is Edward Effron. Though I am an American Citizen, since 2009 my family and I have based our lives in the Italian spiritual eco-community, The Federation of Damanhur. This is where my leather studio is located.
I made my first leather article in 1965 when, as a young dancer in New York. I needed something in which to put my practice and rehearsal clothes. My mother’s sewing machine couldn’t sew the leather that I had bought on Spring Street which, back in the day, was the wholesale leather district; now long gone, replaced by Soho… I bought the necessary hand tools needed to stitch up the bag. I still have those tools—and so many more. To this day, everything I make is hand-stitched.
I broke an ankle bone in 1972. While recovering, a friend gave me a book on knot tying. I became fascinated with it and also with leather braiding. Most of my handmade products have closures that are constructed with braiding and knots.
My work is very versatile. I rarely duplicate items; rather my passion is to make what my customers want.
Anything handmade is time consuming and so my goal is to make only what my customers want. Everything is made to order. It is most satisfying to construct a unique handmade leather product when there is a collaboration with you.
I hope what you see on this site will inspire you to challenge me to make the custom handmade leather item you’ve always desired.