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  • This Of a Kind launch was meant for last year, in Winter, but we got tangled in the decision we shared in our last newsletter (if you missed it, you can read here!) And so here we are, ending winter with an abundance of scrumptious old blacks and blues!

    Excitingly, in the time between meant-to and are, we’ve added some fun extras, including gorgeous Handmade Ink by A Rural PenTintype Journals, and Alternative Sketchbook Tins!

    Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures within treasures. Every discovery holds a bit of the past, and the story and marks accumulated. They are a joy to put together and harken back to the best part of our origin story – the gathering of old things and the reimagining and reworking of them into once again useful objects.

    We have a handful of One of a Kind Custom* Pouch Sizes – this one is made with an 1800s Quilt Block! 
    We have a selection of Hand-Bound Tintype Journals in this collection – read more below!

    *Custom Pouch Size: We have 7 pouch sizes in our Peg and Awl catalog, but when we find a quilt block or scrap that is perfect as is, we make the pouch match its size!


    Our Wintery 2023 Of a Kind Collection!

    This Of a Kind launch was meant for last year, in Winter, but we got tangled in the decision we shared in our last newsletter (if you missed it, you can read here!) And so here we are, ending winter with an abundance of scrumptious old blacks and blues!

    Excitingly, in the time between meant-to and are, we’ve added some fun extras, including gorgeous Handmade Ink by A Rural Pen, Tintype Journals, and Alternative Sketchbook Tins!

    Have a wander through our collection of bags and pouches made with homespun linen, quilt blocks, prints from the 1800s, feedsacks, and 1930s dressmakers cotton, along with some of our favourite scraps of scraps, with which we made a variety of littles. Some of the bags are made with our classic waxed canvas colours, and others with our Autumn colours — so many hoorahs!

    Here we are, ending winter with an abundance of wintry blues when all I feel is colour!

    A Rural Pen Handmade Ink!
    View in our Shop

    This ink is handmade, bottled, labeled, and waxed by alchemist Thos. Little of A Rural Pen. I was so enamored with the ink, and when I learned I couldn’t purchase a bottle directly, I decided to order some for all of us! The ink is made using a historic formula of extracting and dissolving the iron from guns with Sumac, instead of Galls. The ink goes on as a pale, smoky, cool grey, and quickly oxidizes on the page; the shade and depth varies depending on the paper used.

    This ink is for dip pens only – it cannot be used in fountain pens.

    Note: The ink is hand bottled, labeled, and waxed. Some bottles have a little leakage through the wax. When you use the ink, it will also get on the label so please accept this possibility, as we do not consider it a defect.

    Handmade Ink by A Rural Pen
    Playing with the ink for the first time!
    Testing this magical ink – drawing paper (Left) and watercolor paper (Right)!
    Inky left-handed Witch Hazel – watch my drawing video, here!

      

    Crossbody Bags made with Vintage Textiles!
    V
    iew in Our Shop 

    Standard Tote with Feedsack: Wylie
    Mini Tote with 1800s Homespun: Edward
    Small Hunter with 1800s Quilt Block: Astrid
    Heavy homespun linen blanket transformed into a Hunter Satchel lined with Truffle.
    I found two full bolts of this textile from the 1800s long ago. The width was 36" which was the width of the looms then. I've been savouring it, and we may have some small bits for bookbinding linens, but mostly, this is its last hoorah!
    Hunter Satchels are my favourite hiking and flea market bag — carry only what you need!

    Pouches made with Vintage Textiles!
    V
    iew in Our Shop

    We’ve been finding so many gorgeous textiles at Flea Markets lately and have to tame the scale of each collection. We’ve transformed the gathering of patchwork and scrap into useful pouches, giving them new life.

    These pouches are perfect for art supplies, make-up, and anything else that needs organizing in your bag or on your desk — they’re hard to be without and you can never have too many!

    This feedsack was washed again and again until its printing faded to just a subtle reminder of days past. 

    Custom Pouch with 1800s Quilt Block: Mackenzie
    Essentials Pouch with 1800s Dressmaker’s Fabric: Dolly
    We reserved some Elderberry before it sold out for this collection!
    Scribbler Pouch with 1800s Antique Cotton: Sinclair
    Keeper Pouch with 1930s Dressmaker’s Fabric: Delia
    Spender Pouch with Early 1900s Scrap Bundle: William
    Hand Stitched Custom Quilt Block – perfect for small things, fits inside our bags’ pockets!
    Saver Pouch with Early 1900s Scrap Bundle: Joanna

     

    Edgeworth Tin: Alternative Sketchbook!
    View in Our Shop

    We have 6 blue tins in stock – they are nearly 100 years old and have varying degrees of rust and marks of past lives. Each tin comes with 100 sheets of Strathmore drawing paper in celebration of the upcoming 100 Day Project, which begins on February 22.

    My Non-Dominant Hand 100 Day Project from Last Year

    We don’t have many of these tins, and we are always looking for more, but in the meantime – grab your favourite tin, cut your favourite paper and voila! Here is our short video on cutting your own paper.

     

    Tintype Journals!
    View in Our Shop

    Read More About Tin Types!

    One of a kind tintype journals are back! The cover is black vegetable-tanned leather, and is paired with some of our favourite antique black and white textiles from the 1800s. Beneath oval frames we’ve set enduring portraits of nameless faces newly christened. The insides, as always, are made of hand-stitched Strathmore drawing paper and work wonderfully with a variety of drawing and writing materials.

    Standard Tintype Journal: Noam
    Standard Tintype Journal: Gertrude
    Companion Tintype Journal: Shirley + Jasper
    Companion Tintype Journal: Ethel + Timmy


    The Secret to a Good Flea (Market) Day is a Good Friend! 

    Read the story that celebrates the discovery of some of the treasures in this collection at a Flea Market in the thick of the summer heat!

    Sneak Peak into our Wintery 2023 Of a Kind Collection

    Each new Of a Kind collection allows us to dig around and find treasures wit...

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  • We’ve watched all of the YouTube reviews of our Sendak Artist Roll (thank you!) and have made our own video to answer some questions and share our experience!

    We are grateful for all the wonderful Sendak reviews, and for sharing videos and spreading the word!

    The Sendak Artist Roll Video | Peg and Awl

    We’ve watched all of the YouTube reviews of our Sendak Artist Roll (thank you!) and have made our own video to answer some questions and share our experience!

    We are grateful for all the wonderful Sendak reviews, and for sharing videos and spreading the word!

    Video Transcript

    Hello, everyone! I wanted to give you a little walkthrough of our Sendak Artist Roll. I've been seeing a lot of other people's video walkthroughs and it's been inspiring me to do the same.

    Introduction

    Here is my very well-loved and very well-used Sendak. This is the first "right one" that we made. We went through a lot of trial and error to get to this, so I want to show you what it has the potential to hold.


    Supplies in my Sendak: Scissors and Glue (0:30)

    I always have glue with me because I do a lot of messy collage work, so I love to glue things and I also have scissors for that same reason. I use small scissors if I'm traveling anywhere where I'm getting on a plane, and I use big scissors if I'm just traveling in a car. Both sizes fit into the Sendak nicely. I tend to put the big scissors on an end, in one of the smaller pockets. The smaller scissors fit anywhere, it just depends what else I have in my Sendak.

    The Pencil Pockets (0:55)

    One of the most common requests that we get and one of the things that people tend to comment on is that these pencil pockets are too small for fountain pens. While that's true of this Kaweco cap (the bottom fits, the top doesn't), this vintage technical pen is pretty chunky, and I put it in there all the time. I carry two or three. You can see how it kind of draws the Sendak together, so ultimately there's going to be a little bit less room in other pockets. It's making other things more tight, but really, it's fine.

    When the Sendak is new, the waxed canvas might be tight to even just fit a pencil, but as you use it, it breaks in and loosens up, and then it doesn't loosen any further – that's where it's going to stay. Once you use it more, you can easily fit two standard pencils or paintbrushes into each slot, so it's really not a too small slot once you break it in. 

    Art Studio Desk with journals and drawing supplies and sendak artist roll filled with pens, pencils, and paint brushes


    Supplies in my Sendak: Pencils (1:35)

    I love these beginners pencils that have really soft lead. I love making marks that are a little less particular than, for example, when I'm using my mechanical pencils (which I also love).

    So, these are some of the supplies that I carry every day. I think where the variation comes in, is in which pencils I want, which softness levels, or if I want a water soluble pencil. I'll put the pencils together in this end pocket. It's important to note that the Blackwing fits in. This Blackwing pencil was sharpened once and it makes it a perfect fit. This one was never sharpened, and the eraser is worn down a bit, so it's just above that folding point (the Sendak measures 7.75″ tall at the folding point). The taller one will obviously still work, but I know these are awesome pencils that a lot of people have, so I wanted to show you that.

    Supplies in my Sendak: Pens (2:15)

    Another thing that I carry are dippy pens. I will put pen nibs into a tin. I love using antique tins to store pen nibs, and in this case, a kneaded eraser. These tins are great for little art supplies, and I just put them into the zipper pocket.

    The Zipper Pocket (2:30)

    In addition to the vintage tin, I put another regular eraser. When pencils get too small for the pencil pockets, then I'll put them in the zipper pocket. I also have some extra lead for my mechanical pencils, a pencil sharpener, and I often have a whitewash in there as well. You can fit a lot in this zipper pocket.

    I like to not overstuff my Sendak so that it folds nicely. I really like it to fold up rather than to roll up, which happens when it is very stuffed.

    The Interior Pockets (2:55)

    We have 16 pen and pencil slots in the front, and then we have four pockets behind those. So these four are varying widths – you could see the width of the smaller ones that I use for scissors or pencils, which measure 2.5″ wide. The larger two measure 4.25″ wide. I use these two bigger pockets for sketchbooks.

    We make these Landscape Orra Sketchbooks in our shop. We designed them to fit into both this Sendak and the Mini Sendak. They can also serve as a tool protector if you need it, for example, if I was putting in a dippy pen whose nib needed protecting, or paint brushes, that would be a great tool protector. We also sell acrylic tool protectors separately if you don't want to carry a Sketchbook or Painter's Palette.

    The Iris Painter's Palette is another product that we make. It is for squeezing in tube paints, watercolors, or in this case, making your own paint and filling up these wells with homemade paint. This was made to fit in both the Classic Sendak and the Mini Sendak as well, in these large interior pockets.

    I'm going to put my palette here, and these pens in the back here with some small scissors. I want to have another paint brush and then whatever colors I want to bring. Sometimes I get really organized and other times I just put stuff in. You don't have to be crazy overthinking this. It's just really supposed to hold what you need – what you need for the day, what you need for a week, what you need for a trip.

    I also often have a bookbinding needle held in the top flap here, and I'll put some bookbinding thread here in the zipper pocket, in case I want to make a book. I'll also prepare by having folded paper here in these exterior pockets.

    The Exterior Pockets (4:30)

    These two outside pockets otherwise are great for random sized sketchbooks like this – this would have been one of those random ones that I made. I also love this tin. It's for 15 neocolors, but I've had it for years and I move pastels or other more delicate stuff into here that I don't want to crumble in the pen pockets. It's a really nice fit for these back pockets.

    Exterior pockets on the Sendak Artist Roll, with thin sketchbook and tin reused for pastels

    This is our Orra Portrait Sketchbook, which we made to fit into the Classic Sendak. We have three sizes of these sketchbooks – the Portrait, the Large Portrait, and the Landscape.

    Closing the Sendak (5:00)

    So when I fold up the Sendak – this one is pretty full with everything that I just stuffed into the outside pockets – but when I fold it up, I will hold everything down and pull down this top flap so that it folds nicely. Then I roll in the sides, starting with the zipper pocket, so that all the parts of my Sendak are where they should be. Then I just synch it closed with the leather strap and buckle.

    I'd say this is pretty full – I have stuff in every pocket. In some instances, I have more than one thing in a pocket. There's still a lot of room on this leather strap. So that's it! This will fit nicely into my bag, and I've got what I need for a long time.

    The Buckle Closure

    Another question that we've had is about this buckle. This comes from a gun sling from maybe the forties, and it was intended to function exactly as we use it. We found that it just really holds the Sendak together nicely, and of course, we love incorporating old bits wherever we can, into whatever we make.

    So there you have it! My Sendak, lovingly worn in and full of life.

    Mentioned in this video:


    From Our Shop
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    From Other Shops:

    Related Blog Posts:

    The Sendak Artist Roll: A Walkthrough Video

    We’ve watched all of the YouTube reviews of our Sendak Artist Roll (thank you...

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  • We’ve simplified Søren's journaling card into a free downloadable PDF of Expedition Cards. He tested them out on our local hiking adventure from earlier this week to Harmony Hill. We are loving this new alternative journal format, and hope you do as well – document your expedition, and have fun!

    I’ve been keeping a journal on and off since I was 12. Because of this, I thought it would be a simple and obvious thing to add this to my boys’ homeschool days, but neither Søren nor Silas shared my compulsion.

    Søren’s journals were mostly uninspired lists of what we had done each day, but somewhere along the way, during camping trips and road trips – somewhere deep in the pandemic, Søren began to transform his task of journaling into something he was excited to do. Using Procreate on his iPad, he now creates his own alternative journal cards with personality-filled drawings, descriptions, and photographs!

    It has been heartening to watch the evolution of his journaling practice, from bland journal pages to documented expeditions – completely Søren-ed and so shareable. We’ve simplified his card design into a free downloadable PDF! Søren tested the new card (on the spot!) with a local hiking adventure to Harmony Hill. We are loving this new alternative journal format, and hope you do as well!

    As Søren flipped through his cards for my camera, he said, “It feels like I’m reliving all of this – even just glancing at each one." If the purpose of a journal is to create a ritual, to reflect and document, to build writing and observation skills, and to have a place to go, then Søren has fulfilled these expectations, and I am overjoyed with his finding his own way!

    homeschool drawing and adventure project


    Download the Printable PDF

    DIY Travel Project for your next trip, Expedition Cards by Peg and Awl


    Søren’s Original Expedition Cards!

    DIY Travel Project used on our last trip, Expedition Cards by Peg and Awl
    DIY Travel Project for your next trip, Expedition Cards by Peg and Awl
    Photograph of Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park.
    Revisiting our "Mexican Food" experience in the Ozarks with giggles.
    On the Go Desk Setup with Art Supplies, Pouches, and Hiking Backpacks by Peg and Awl
    Writing and Sketching in Handmade Leather bound Journal
    Our messy table in Missouri - this is how we know magic is being made!
    Søren sketching in his small Tome – okay, not everything is uninspired!
    DIY Travel Project used on our last trip, Expedition Cards by Peg and Awl
    How to complete DIY Travel Project for your next trip, Expedition Cards by Peg and Awl
    My birthday treat! We visited Mark Twain’s boyhood home in Hannibal, MO and the cave that inspired some his work and childhood!
    How I love the re-reading!
    Plein Air Painting at Mark Twain's Boyhood Home with Pochade Box by Peg and Awl
    Drawing and Sketching in Journals with Artist Rolls handmade by Peg and Awl
    Walter is painting Mark Twain’s boyhood home with his Pochade Box— as always, attracting the curious!
    Søren, Silas, and Shep, matching(ish) Sendaks, shirts, and drinks!
    How to complete DIY Travel Project, Expedition Cards by Peg and Awl
    DIY Travel Project used on our last trip, Expedition Cards by Peg and Awl
    A brief telling of our trip to Chicago!
    Exploring Chicago, dreaming of being elsewhere...
    Drawing and Writing at campsite
    Intuit Museum homeschool visit
    Always on the go with make-shift picnic table studios.
    Intuit Museum in Chicago featuring Henry Darger’s home studio and other outsider art!

    Expedition Cards by Søren Kent (Free Printable!)

    I’ve been keeping a journal on and off since I was 12. Because of this, I th...

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  • After many prototypes, countless customer requests, and an endless search for sustainable leather, The Franklin Makers Apron is finally here! Our Apron champions the virtues of hard work, curiosity, ingenuity, and industriousness, and it has quickly become one of our favorite companions while working in the studio or at home.

    After many prototypes, countless customer requests, and an endless search for sustainable leather, The Franklin Makers Apron is finally here! 

    On our first trip to England together, Margaux and I discovered a magical art supply shop on a small cobblestone street. Like something pulled out of Diagon Alley, it was lined with dark oak, floor-to-ceiling shelves overflowing with pigments of all kinds: oil paints, pastels, watercolors, and more. Ladders and spiral staircases led to stacks of dusty boxes each holding the possibilities of masterpieces yet to be made. We spent hours exploring the nooks and crannies, and amongst all the treasures, we discovered two artist aprons, the last from a company no longer in existence. They looked like relics of a bygone era, plucked from the studio of Sargent or Klimt. We left the shop, each with an apron, and though Peg and Awl hadn’t yet begun, the seed to someday make our own version, had been planted.

    Our Apron champions the virtues of hard work, curiosity, ingenuity, and industriousness, and has quickly become one of our favorite companions while working in the studio or at home. Its durable canvas armor protects against dirt, paint, liquids and debris, and with multiple waist and chest pockets it provides ample storage so tools are secure and conveniently accessible. The Franklin is available in two sizes, and the suspender-style vegetable tanned leather straps and belt have multiple settings to comfortably fit a variety of statures. Once on, The Franklin Maker’s Apron becomes a part of you, bringing the perfect mix of order, utility, and aesthetics to the creative chaos of a maker’s daily routine!

    The Franklin Maker’s Apron

    After many prototypes, countless customer requests, and an endless search fo...

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  • Our first Of A Kind Collection of 2022 is bursting with character! Each of these collections allows us to dig around and find treasures within treasures. Every discovery holds a bit of the past, and the story and marks accumulated. They are a joy to put together and harken back to the best part of our origin story – the gathering of old things and the reimagining and reworking of them into once again useful objects.

    Our first Of A Kind Collection of 2022 is bursting with character! Each of these collections allows us to dig around and find treasures within treasures. Every discovery holds a bit of the past, and the story and marks accumulated. They are a joy to put together and harken back to the best part of our origin story – the gathering of old things and the reimagining and reworking of them into once again useful objects.

    recycled vintage fabric for waxed canvas pouches by peg and awl

    Hand Mulled Ghost Green Watercolour Paint!

    We made two small batch sets for painters. The first is the Petite Paint Set, which contains a pan of hand mulled Ghost Green watercolour and a brush rest. The other is a set of 3 Brush Rests for those of you with more than one brush or pen in use!

    Our watercolour is made from Wissahickon Schist that was pulverized when digging the well for our barn. Made from rock, the paint is gritty in texture, and a warm, earthy grey green. This paint is in Bioplastic Pans, made by Poems About You, that fit in our Painter’s Palettes

    handmade watercolor paint by peg and awl
    wissahickon schist used for making paint by peg and awl
    Bioplastic pan of Ghost Green Watercolour
    The Wissahickon Schist was pulverized when digging the well for our barn. 
    wissahickon schist used for making paint by peg and awl
    wissahickon schist used for making paint by peg and awl
    Wissahickon Schist – also known as Trash Stone – makes this gorgeous ghost green colour.
    I transformed the pre-ground pigment into paint, which is part of our Of a Kind Collection!
    paint making journal page with drawings in ink
    A page of my left-handed #100DayProject in my Anselm Sketchbook
    Portrait of my family in Ghost Green.

    Printable: Paint Pan Packaging

    We have made this paint packaging available so that you can package your own handmade paint. As it is, it is designed to wrap around the Bioplastic Pans by Poems About You, although you can adjust and be creative about your uses and sizing!

    Download the Printable PDF

      

    Handmade Brush Rest made from Reclaimed American Chestnut!

    The Brush Rests (here in a trio) are made from extinct* American Chestnut beams that – for nearly 200 years – held up our barn (read about our barn restoration here). Walter turned them into barn studio doors and made these delicious little brush rests with the scrap – they fit perfectly in the Sendak pocket and may just make clean up a touch easier next time!

    *Read more about the blight on the American Chestnut here.

    handmade wooden paint palette, watercolour paint, and brush rest
    wooden brush rest made from reclaimed american chestnut
    Our Brush Rest, Hand Mulled Paint, and Tilda Painter’s Palette together!
    I’ve been using my brush rest also as a rest for my vintage dip pens, so we're also offering a Trio of Brush Rests!
    The barn – before restoration!
    These American Chestnut Tree beams, born in the 1700s, held up our barn for nearly 200 years.
    Walter used his Alaskan Saw Mill to mill down the beams.
    We’re excited to share a portion of this beautiful reclaimed wood in the form of brush rests!

     

    Mystery Boxes!

    They are back! We’ve sifted through our misfits: merry mishaps, prototypes, and items riddled with character – imperfect but fully functional. We’ve have grouped them together into themed mystery boxes at nearly half price! Though not for the faint-hearted, each set is useful and nearly half price. Enjoy the mystery and the gifting potential: one for you, one for me, one for you...

    These boxes are perfect for the indecisive (who love Peg and Awl) or for those who just love a good mystery.⁠ The Desk Caddies more character, knots, holes and markings – more evidence of the wood’s prior life.

    Each box contains an assortment of related and similar-valued items – the photographs illustrate the theme and sample items within each box, but not necessarily the particular grouping.

    This set of Desk Caddies are part of the Desk Organization Mystery Box – these will vary in wood characteristic, engraving, wood type, etc.
    Here you can see examples of the variation in the wood – these particular caddies are so special and filled with character!
    An old favourite! This is our "Tabletop Caddy," an old iteration of our current Beatrix Artist Caddy
    The Kitchen Mystery Box includes a variety of products, including decoupaged candleblocks – one of our first products!

     

    Vintage Textile Pouches and Vintage Bag!

    We've transformed two favourite antique quilts (one is well-worn, soft, and frayed and the other, unfinished and crisp!) into useful pouches lined with waxed canvas. These are often one-of-a-kinds – the textile patterns and designs used within one patchwork square are unique from another!⁠

    We've done our best to divide the pouches by similar qualities so you may have an idea of the one that will arrive on your doorstep, but if you love mystery, the green quilt especially will peak your interest. ⁠

    The 1800s quilt, well-loved, and in the colors of Pearl (our puppy!).
    The assortment of vintage textiles, including our two favourite antique quilts.
    Each pouch is lined with waxed canvas to reinforce and protect the textile from the tools and supplies that will fill the pouch. These pouches are also finished with vintage zippers.
    It can be sad to cut into a vintage quilt, but wonderful to give it new life!
    This quilt was started in the 1930s and never finished – we transformed it into pouches lined with waxed canvas!
    This collection also contains one repurposed canvas tote that was originally designed with a drawstring closure – we’ve adapted it with vegetable-tanned leather straps and a waxed canvas pocket!

    Spring 2022 Of A Kind Collection

    Our first Of A Kind Collection of 2022 is bursting with character! Each of t...

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  • One of the key steps to speed up the breaking in process of leather is to simply twist and roll the leather in your fingers. As you use your bag the leather will naturally soften and become much easier to maneuver. Whether you help it out, or simply use your bag, the breaking in process does not take long!!

    *What is Vegetable Tanned Leather? Vegetable tanning is a slow, natural, and sustainable process of tanning raw hides with natural, biodegradable extracts derived entirely from vegetable sources such as tree bark.

    Our bags are made with full-grain vegetable-tanned leather*, which is a durable leather that develops a lovely patina over time with continued use. It is thicker than conventional, chrome-tanned leather, which also lends it to be more stiff in the beginning. This video shows how to quickly soften the leather, as well as the proper steps for detaching and attaching the leather shoulder strap and front closure on our Peg and Awl bags.

    One of the key steps to speed up the breaking in process of leather is to simply twist and roll the leather in your fingers. As you use your bag the leather will naturally soften and become much easier to maneuver. Whether you help it out, or simply use your bag, the breaking in process does not take long!!

    *What is Vegetable Tanned Leather? Vegetable tanning is a slow, natural, and sustainable process of tanning raw hides with natural, biodegradable extracts derived entirely from vegetable sources such as tree bark.

    Step 1: Detaching the Strap
    *The leather is the most stiff when it is new. As you use it and work with it, it will soften.
    • Hold the button stud and pull the leather strap to bring the button stud into the leather slot.
    • Firmly and slowly work the leather over the button stud. Take your time working with the leather as it softens.

    Step 2: Attaching the Shoulder Strap
    • Twist and roll the strap to soften the leather. It does not take long to break in.
    • Press the leather slot over the button stud. Hold the stud and pull the leather strap to bring the stud into the hole.

    Our Leather!

    Our first bag – The Waxed Canvas Tote – which we finished with reclaimed military leather slings found at a flea market. Dusty and dull with years of neglect, the leather was unassuming. But with some hot soapy water, perseverance, and beeswax balm, we removed the layers to find stories told through the markings of days past. We were delighted! The usefulness of the leather sent us on a mission to scour flea markets and military shows for as many old slings as we could find. For years we used these relics to finish our bags – until there were no more to be found.

    And so, a new mission was soon underway: the search for the right new leather. We began in the UK driving along long and winding roads through the English countryside to visit J&FJ Baker, a 500-year-old tannery. This experience and many subsequent conversations enriched our understanding of a leather world we had known nothing about.

    While shipping leather from the UK turned out to be impractical, we left enlightened with the knowledge that there do exist a few companies who produce leather in a sustainable and responsible way. When we returned to America we found Wickett & Craig – only a stone’s throw from our shop in Philadelphia. Their vegetable tanning process is a slow, natural, and eco-friendly process of tanning raw hides with natural, biodegradable extracts derived entirely from vegetable sources such as tree bark. This durable leather breaks in and gathers a gorgeous patina, bearing the marks of the users’ (and makers’) adventures – the very thing we’ve always celebrated! We’ve been using this leather for three years now and love it!

    With the transition from using reclaimed WWII era gun straps for our leather handles to using locally-sourced vegetable-tanned leather, we are reaffirming the fellowship between ourselves and the materials with which we make. By creating beautiful and useful objects out of sustainable and responsibly sourced materials, we strive to change the way that we as individuals make, use, repair and reuse everyday objects. As our new bags leave our Philadelphia workshop and arrive at your doorsteps, what adventures will they see in your hands and how will they transform to become truly yours?

    Vegetable tanned leather is made with a slow, natural, and sustainable process of tanning raw hides with natural, biodegradable extracts derived entirely from vegetable sources such as tree bark.
    The more you use your bags and journals, the softer the leather will become.
    This durable leather breaks in and gathers a gorgeous patina, bearing the marks of the users’ (and makers’) adventures! Here, you can see the leather on Walter's Tote and Scout.
    As you use your bag the leather will naturally soften and become much easier to maneuver.
    We took out Hunter's out on an Amethyst dig! they got pretty dirty, so we turned the bags inside out, tapped out the dirt and wiped the inside with a sponge and put them in the sun to dry.
    Our Finch is my favourite bag - I carry mine nearly everyday. It holds my books, journal, water bottle, and other bits comfortably. 

    Adjusting the Leather Straps on our Waxed Canvas Bags

    Our bags are made with full-grain vegetable-tanned leather*, which is a dura...

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  • A collection of massive handbound and filled tomes by Margaux Kent of Peg and Awl

    I am sure my right arm* is stronger for all of the writing and stitching and hauling of pages in journals for so many years of my life. So many miles we’ve traveled together, me and my books. I wonder how many miles of words I’ve written if strung end to end? The first journal that I made was stolen in a café in Amsterdam. What the journal thief couldn’t possibly know was that his actions would set me upon a path.

    Massive Handbound Journals covered with antique leather and handmade details

    Massive Handbound Journals covered with antique leather and handmade details

     “Whatever you think you can do or believe you can do, begin it. Action has magic, grace, and power in it.”   
    Johann Wolfgang Goethe

    I am sure my right arm* is stronger for all of the writing and stitching and hauling of pages in journals for so many years of my life. So many miles we’ve traveled together, me and my books. I wonder how many miles of words I’ve written if strung end to end? I've always made books (I have one from when I was 6!), but I began to keep a journal regularly when I was 12 years old, and started making my journals when I was 25. I won’t do the math, but there are a lot of years of books and a lot of years of scribbling between now and then. I was always stitching a book or filling one up.

    The well-worn pages of a collection handbound journals by Peg and Awl

    Hunter S. Thompson invited me into his limo one day, outside of The Strand in NYC. Actually, it wasn’t me he invited in, but my journal—I was holding it. I didn’t know anything about Hunter beyond Fear and Loathing, but I climbed in and sat next to him—shoulder to shoulder. When he asked if he could see the journal, I handed it over. Then he asked if he could write in it. I said yes, of course. He wrote a message in Latin and I don’t remember what else. I never did get to translate it because I went to Amsterdam shortly after the encounter and my bag—with my journal in it—was stolen.

    That was the first proper journal I had built. I’ve made hundreds since then. But the first one was stolen in a café in Amsterdam. What the journal thief couldn’t possibly know was that his actions would set me upon a path, for despite my initial despair, I struck out in search of a book bindery. After a day of walking and asking nearly every stranger I could make eye contact with about the shop, I’d finally found it. And what a magical place it was! I stocked up on supplies I’d never known existed then went to an upholstery shop up the street, where I discovered antique leather in a dusty floor corner removed from a chair made in the 1800s! With tools and material from the bindery, I set to work making my second journal, using my thighs as a book press. The result, with its battered old leather, looked like it had travelled through time many hundreds of years, and its pages begged for stories like that of The Journal Thief.

    The very objects that started this adventure are a foundational piece of our shop. Putting these Tomes into production was no easy task and after much planning, many trials and many years, we’ve got the process down and have been able to explore with variations in headband, textiles, and leather! I appreciate everyone’s questions and interest in these Monsters!

    Hand-stitched headbands adorn each Tome.
    I use all kinds of medium and make all kinds of marks within my journals!
    Working on sketches for Poison for Breakfast by Lemony Snicket!
    Harper and Jackson Tome Stack!

    Handbound Leather Journals by Peg and Awl

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    *since writing this, I've been using my left hand for drawing - beginning with the #100dayproject 2021! I'm still at it, so my left hand is catching up a little.

    Handbound Leather Tomes

     “Whatever you think you can do or believe you can do, begin it. Action has ...

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  • I am drawn to making jewelry as objects that continually flow through human hands – all symbolism and storytelling and marks of use from imagined pasts and futures. Explore the inspiration behind each of our jewelry collections and the lost wax casting process...

    After years of working with local jewelers who cast, finished, and sized our jewels, which was after years of my finishing the jewelry in our dining room, we finally set up our own jewelry shop at the Peg and Awl building! In addition to designing the jewelry and packaging, we now do the entire lost wax casting process in house – making molds, waxes, casting, and finishing!

    Jewelry remains a Peg and Awl outlier (we all need outliers!) as it is not useful like our other objects are useful. It is symbolic, representative, adorning, and meant to be part of an ongoing narrative. I am drawn to making jewelry as objects that continually flow through human hands, like objects at a flea market – all symbolism and storytelling and marks of use from imagined pasts and futures.

    We love digging into history and happenstance for our collections, and have been working on a few tricky ideas which we hope to be able to share with you soon! Until then, peak inside our workshop and collections.

    Rubber molds.
    Waxes of Foundlings Earrings!
    Flasks for plaster molds.
    Nitrogen regulator to keep the casting operator oxygen-free!
    Getting ready to cast!
    Our first in-house silver tree!
    Liver of Sulfer to blacken the details. How to (re)oxidize your jewelry below.*
    Ready for finishing and polishing. The details will hold onto the black/oxidized finish.
    Polishing the insides of the rings. 
    Stamping the Peg and Awl mark in our rings!
    Finished pendants from our Botanical Collection.
    Epic Desk Caddy atop my first and still-used jeweler’s bench — a gift from my dad after receiving a high school scholarship for a summer art program at Moore!

    Foundlings Collection

    Foundlings is a collection that has come to life through the layering of hands that make. 

    One end-of-winter morning, we ventured out into the last grey of the season-leaving, amongst sagging time-worn tables that house trash and magic. Flea markets are often secret repositories of history, and we were about to dive backwards some 200 years, as sparkly creatures, patiently waiting out their decades of idleness, nearly rose up from their tattered box to greet us. Farm animals, imagined animals, flowers, and other wonders of the natural world – painted by unknown hands in an unknown time, fairly pulsed with scintillating energy upon nests of scritchy, scratchy handwritten ledgers, lessons, and language, impeccably penned by generations past.

    Our discovery of these mischievous old fellows has led to yet another transformation. A select few have been carved and cast to retain their child-like style and to celebrate the expressional whimsy of each nurtured creature.

    Terran Necklace, a tulip!
    The original flower ledger art that we discovered at a flea market.
    Adding details to the cat creature Ash from clay for molds.
    Sculpted cat face models of Foundlings Earrings.
    The original tapir that we named Fern.
    Fern Earrings cast from the found artwork.
    I love working on the packaging for jewelry, ‘tis where we add the layers of story!
    Sketching the design for the Foundlings booklet.
    Foundlings packaging in the works.
    Dip pen on this lavish paper, a little bleedy, a lot magic!
    Foundlings, boxed! The perfect addition of the little jewelry boxes that Walter made from our scrap pile.
    Final Foundlings packaging, printed locally by Fireball Printing.

    All the Names Collection

    All the Names incorporates small brass frames from mid-1800s Daguerreotype and Ambrotype hinge cases that once framed faces whose names are forever lost. 

    In 1847, preservers or brass frames, were added to hinge photograph cases. They wrapped the glass, mat and image to protect the delicate photograph from oxygen. We have taken the cases apart and transformed them into jewelry

    The hinge photograph case that became Eulalie.
    Silicon mold from brass frames. First step of transformation.
    Silver frame pieces, next rounded and recast into a variety of sizes.
    Finished! Here is Eulalie, named for Edgar Allan Poe's poem.
    All of the names, with the exception of Beatrice, after my grandmother, have come from characters in books.
    Creating the faces for the packaging!
    This packaging happened while and because of a class I was taking at the time – a children's book illustration class by Make Art That Sells.
    A stack of Dorian rings, named for Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray – the first book Walter shared with me when we met!

    Poison for Breakfast Collection

    I have been lost in a magical world that I can barely believe isn't all in my head. Black and white with lots of exploration and learning. And eggs on repeat. Tis a place I can go when the sun goes down—scribbling, scribbling...⁠⁠

    These pieces were made to accompany Poison for Breakfast, written by Lemony Snicket and illustrated by me, Margaux. Pretty sure this was one of the most extraordinary projects I partook in…the reality is coming in and out of focus. 

    Inspired to continue on, we decided to move the marks on paper into metal pieces for this small collection, which pertains to this enormous philosophical question, "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?"⁠⁠ 

    I love this photograph of Søren. He was so pleased with the final version. Seeing his face made it real-er to me!

    My model, Ragnar as a chick, perched on my journal on the kitchen table, where chicks belong. 
    My original drawing.
    Lasered stencils from procreate tracings of my drawings.
    Shaping clay minis after pulling them out of the stencil!
    Our first in shop mold!
    Waxes to be built into a tree and cast in silver, gold, and bronze!
    Wax tree prepared for mold making.
    Chicken + Egg Necklace in our Walnut Jewelry Box.

    Botanical Collection

    Often times our most wonderful discoveries are merely the recognition of what is before us – and in this case under foot! Our botanical jewelry collection was inspired by our unearthing of the usefulness of weeds and pays homage to its winged cultivator.

    *How to (re)oxidize your jewelry!

    If you are drawn towards the fully oxidized silver variation on the left, it is easy to do yourself (as we no longer offer this version in our shop) – start with smashing a hard boiled egg in a container. Next put the ring into the container with the egg. Close it and let it sit in the fridge for several hours. Take it out when the darkness suits your fancy — the longer it stays in the sulfur, the more oxidized it will become. 

    Then polish with a cloth or the ankle part of your jeans — no one will notice the black spot down there...

    Seed packet packaging!
    My journal page from April 2014...
    Dandelion – the entire plant is edible! How many ways can you prepare Dandelion?
    Botanical rings, pickled after casting.

    Our Handcrafted Jewelry Process and Collections in our Philadelphia Shop!

    After years of working with local jewelers who cast, finished, and sized our...

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  • Our Autumn collection is full of Violets, Reds, and Grays, just in time to join an adventure amongst the first changing of the leaves! Their stories evolve as they pivot to new lives in our hands then yours. 

    These collections go fast - we will send out an email announcement 3 hours before they are available – you will be able to look through each item in the collection at that time.⁠ Join our newsletter to receive the preview and launch announcements!

    Our Autumn collection is full of Violets, Reds, and Grays, just in time to join an adventure amongst the first changing of the leaves! Their stories evolve as they pivot to new lives in our hands then yours. Journals lined with antique textiles breathe subtle change into our classic collections. Waxed canvas pouches covered with antique textiles explode with colour amongst our earth tones. Alternative Sketchbooks and Original Foundlings Art transform adventures and walls.⁠

    These collections go fast - we will send out an email announcement 3 hours before they are available – you will be able to look through each item in the collection at that time.⁠ Join our newsletter to receive the preview and launch announcements! ⁠⁠

     

    Autumn 2021 Of a Kind Collection

    Our Autumn collection is full of Violets, Reds, and Grays, just in time to jo...

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  • Walter paints a portrait with The Scout Plein Air Box.

    Time isn't very orderly these days.
    It speeds up and slows down inexplicably.
    This was this winter, or years ago.

    Walter paints a portrait with The Scout Plein Air Box

    Time isn't very orderly these days.
    It speeds up and slows down inexplicably.
    This was this winter, or years ago.

    Read the backstory of how Walter came to develop the Scout Plein Air Box, which was inspired by our endeavor to make art every day. 

    Painting a Portrait with the Scout Plein Air Box

    Walter paints a portrait with The Scout Plein Air Box.  Time isn't very ord...

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