*This old post will be relevant to an upcoming post so I thought it made sense to revisit it today (12/6/24). This belt had fallen out of favor over the years, but lately it has seen a lot of action. I tend to use it in my for lack of better words, Americana fits (see an example below). More on that later. Now on to the old post.
I am in the process of trying to find a pair of jeans that I like and in that struggle I found a belt that I had forgot about. It’s a simple leather belt that I had made 10 plus years ago in the middle of a mall.
I had this belt made before I started to a work for an insurance company. I wanted a simple leather belt. I was struggling to find one that I liked and that fit me. Then I remembered this kiosk in the middle of the mall where I had purchased a few belt buckles. You know the kind of place. Ran by a mountain man type wearing a lot of leather. He sold buckles of all kinds both large and small, NASCAR leather jackets, leather goods, maybe knives, and now important to me leather belts.
I wish I remembered the man’s name, but I don’t. The mall is still there, but empty and closed. I do remember him saying that he had a small place on Mackinaw island that he ran in the summer. He did the kiosk off-season. The short of it is that he was a great guy and could help me out. When we started to talk about the belt he guided me to a few hundred leather straps to look through. I picked my buckle and leather. He then measured me, asked me about width, and told me to come back the next day. I did and it was perfect. He made and sold this belt for around $20. It was money well spent.
There are still places where you can get belts made. For example,
Narragansett Leathers is still around offering moderately priced leather goods. I am sure there are others out there as as well along with people making other stuff like shirts and moccasins. Enjoy it while it is here and get while the getting is good.
