Freehand Goods by Laila Silva fashion
One of the best things about Orlando is the support the community has for local businesses . There are so many places where you can fi nd unique , handmade items right here in your hometown . One of these hidden gems is Freehand Goods . With a location now open at the very popular East End Market , this company is growing daily . According to founder Jacob Zepf , the company was developed “ out of a desire to collaborate with local artisans to create a small batch of handmade goods . We don ’ t want to be the biggest , but we do strive to offer the best quality , all produced within city limits .”
In a world where you can purchase things with a click of a button , it ’ s easy to forget about originality and uniqueness . At Freehand Goods , you will be able to fi nd things like wallets , belts , candles ( in scents like blood orange , sandalwood , coconut lime & orange chili ) and even grooming kits , all hand-crafted . What all these products have in common is that they are truly made with passion . “ Our leather goods are hand-cut , dyed , and sewn one at a time , so you can truly say it ’ s one-ofone . Our product ideas start from scratch and are designed on the fl y over a couple beers . We ’ re inspired by the city we call home , the people we come across , and the Florida lifestyle .”
Orlando Arts & Culture , v . 2.3
Before Freehand Goods became a reality , Zepf was introduced to Seth Daniels , a leathersmith with a similar passion for handcrafted products . Both Zepf and Daniels started doing pop-up shops out of a 1978 military trailer purchased from a base in Albany , GA . One of those pop-ups happened to be at the holiday market outside of East End Market . At a time when Freehand Goods hoped to expand their space and line of products , luck just happened to come knocking at their door . A permanent space inside East End Market opened up , and so did the hope for many more ideas .
“ The theme of our East End store is a guy ’ s garage . Seth Daniels started his leatherwork in his own garage , and we didn ’ t want to outgrow that . Our store is set up so that customers can see the entire process of hand-cutting , dying , and sewing our leather pieces . They can smell our candles being poured and sample the grooming products before they buy . Now that the storefront is open , we ’ re doing fewer pop-up shops with our trailer , but we do have some events in the works .”
In a short time , Freehand Goods has been able to expand their product offering , thanks to the support of the community as well as the perseverance of both Zepf and Daniels . They know they are not only selling you a product , but also ultimately a piece of art they take pride in .
“ We are constantly coming up with new designs for the leather as well as new recipes for the grooming line . You can expect some new color dyes , unique thread color ways , and different leather types in our upcoming products .”
And besides just being able to purchase from Freehand Goods , you can now make your own products . “ We ’ re going to start offering leather classes in the near future . The fi rst one is most likely going to be a belt-making class . We ’ re also beginning to accept custom leather orders and leather repairs .”
Photos by Laila Silva
You can see more at : FreehandGoods . com
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