Hi Everybody on the Leather List:

For the last couple of months you’ve heard me whining about how we had bought a warehouse full of excess inventory from an out-of-business harness maker.  We were pretty low on the list of priorities when it came to packing up and shipping the stuff to Maine, but it finally arrived.  On the same day we also bought out a local small shop, so all-in-all we’ve loaded almost 6 tons of new hardware into the barn and our warehouse.  My New Year’s resolution is going to be to get a forklift.  My arms are killing me.

I managed to get a couple of the new items listed on our parts page.  The stuff that came in is all high quality, no factory defects or any of that rot.  First quality hardware from some excellent suppliers.  We got bridle/bit/harness chain sets (I know which end of the horse these go on but that’s about it – if you know anything about this stuff I’d sure appreciate a little help), roller/keeper buckles in a couple of sizes, over a million spikes (apparently these were some tough looking horses, probably wore their ballcaps backwards too), d-rings, post rivets, piping (decorative trim for leather seams), slide buckles, conchos, and other stuff.  I only have a few of the new items listed on the parts page so far, I’ll get the rest of them done pronto. Check out the Leather Parts & Tools here.

I’ll have some more news before we get much further into December.  Sure did turn cold, didn’t it?  We haven’t seen the upside of 30 in over a week.  Probably won’t either until May.  Looks like we’ll have excellent ice skating on Brettuns Pond until the snow buries it, and ice fishing always promises to be a good time.  If you’re a penguin.

Enjoy your holiday season, we’ll get back to you next week or so.

Churchill Barton Brettuns VillageHi Everybody:

Just a quick note to let you know that our new trunk handles arrived. These are the same size as our common two and three layer handles, but these have no slots in them.  They’re available in dark brown and black, $6 per pair, shipping included.  Take a look at our antique trunk tools and parts!

A couple of new trunks are listed on our For Sale page, Christmas sales are fast and furious.  Keep in mind that here in the shop “fast and furious” probably looks a little different than you might ordinarily expect.  Our version is something along the lines of “two people awake and moving around in the barn at the same time.”  At any rate, we’ve been pitching cinammon into the coffee pot to get into the spirit of the season.  I’ve heard some other stuff splashing also, I’m not so sure the crew isn’t getting more into the spirits of the season.  Oh well, everybody seems happy.

One of the pickers called last night, he’s driving in today with 17 trunks.  That is, he’ll be here if his truck is up to the task.  It’s a moody old beast, prone to leaving large oil stains in the dooryard.  I keep trying to get him to housebreak that thing.  Jenny bites his tire when he shows up, just for good measure.  I love that dog.

By the way, we started making our own line of dog collars, just so our little fashion queen can change her appearance to suit her mood.  If you’ve ever spent time with a young lab you know that they really only have two moods – full tilt and fast asleep.  I’ll let you know more about these collars later on, not that they have the first thing to do with old trunks.  Sorry.

Enjoy the season, make the most of it.  Get in the car tonight, go around the neighborhood checking out/criticizing everybody’s decorations.  Up here it’s pitch black by 4:15 so we get this done before supper.  It’s fun to look around  and it helps you catch the fever of holiday cheer.  Try it, you’ll see what I mean.  Let me know how it turns out.

We’ll get back with you before the end of the month- Churchill Barton Brettuns Village