Priestleys Crafted By You
Making something by hand changes how you feel. The research agrees.
There is something that happens when a team steps away from screens and makes something together. The noise quiets. People talk differently. Something shifts.
Priestleys Crafted By You is a series of leather craft workshops designed for workplace teams — hands-on sessions in which every participant makes their own piece from full-grain vegetable-tanned leather. They choose their materials, personalise their piece, and leave with something made properly — and with how they feel after making it.
It is not team building in the traditional sense. It is something quieter and more lasting than that.
Making things by hand is genuinely good for you — and the evidence is substantial.
A 2024 study of 7,182 adults conducted by Anglia Ruskin University found that engaging in arts and crafts produced greater wellbeing benefits than employment alone. A 2025 systematic review of 19 peer-reviewed studies confirmed that craft-based activities measurably reduce stress, anxiety and depression; and research published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology found that even a single session of making something produced measurable improvements in cognitive flexibility and perceived stress.
Ten minutes of making is enough to produce a measurable wellbeing benefit. A two hour session in good company, making something worth keeping, does considerably more.
The Notebook Workshop
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Ninety minutes- two hours. A piece of leather. Something worth making.
Each person makes their own full-grain leather notebook by hand — choosing their leather colour, their elastic, their charms, and hand-stamping their own initials into the cover. The room gets quiet in a way that office rooms rarely do. People slow down, focus, and find that making something with their hands is — without trying to be — genuinely calming.
No craft experience needed. Just the willingness to make something properly.
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Everything is provided. Each person receives a pre-cut piece of full-grain vegetable-tanned leather and every tool they need. The session moves through marking, punching, edge finishing and assembly at a relaxed pace — there is no rush, no pressure, no wrong answers. Just steady hands and the quiet satisfaction of watching something take shape.
Every notebook is personalised with hand-stamped initials — a small act that makes the piece entirely theirs.
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Item dA6 notebook — £35 per person
Fits in a pocket. The quiet companion for notes, thoughts and the things worth writing down.A5 notebook — £45 per person
The everyday notebook — the right size for most people, most moments. The one they'll reach for without thinking about it.Trifold notebook — £55 per person
Three panels, two inserts, completely flat when open. The one that feels different the moment you pick it up.All notebooks are refillable. When someone reaches the last page, they replace the insert and keep the cover. A piece made to last as long as they need it.
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Each person chooses from:
A range of full-grain vegetable-tanned leather colours
Two charms to thread through the elastic
Their choice of elastic colour
Hand-stamped initials — blind embossed into the leather
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A grazing box or sharing platter makes a beautiful addition to the session — something to enjoy together while the leather is still warm from working. Get in touch to discuss catering options for your team.
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Session length: 90 minutes to 2 hours
Group size: minimum 6, maximum discussed at enquiry
Location: we come to you — studio, office, meeting room or venue
Everything provided: leather, tools, materials, full instruction
Each person leaves with a finished, personalised leather notebook — made by their own hands
To arrange a group booking, please complete the form below and we will be in touch.
Coming Soon…
Belt Making Workshop, from £75
Coming soon
There is something deeply satisfying about making something you will wear every day. In this session each person will cut, skive, punch and finish their own full-grain leather belt — sized precisely to them, finished by their own hands. A piece that will soften and improve with every year they wear it.
The Bag Charm Workshop From £25
Coming soon
The simplest make. The most personal result. Each person cuts, punches and finishes their own leather bag tag — hand-stamping their initials or a short word into the surface. An accessible introduction to leatherwork for larger groups or shorter sessions, and a piece that travels everywhere after it.