IF you are the owner of a locally made leather stubby holder, it is quite possible that Merbein’s Roz Dickson was the creator. Caitlyn Morgan sat down with Roz to learn how retirement lead her onto the path of leathercraft. Pictures: Carmel Zaccone.
The magic of watching a plain piece of leather become something else is the reason Roz Dickson spends many hours working in her shed in Merbein.
The mother of three, grandmother of 10 and great-grandmother of four has spent majority of her life caring for her children and grandchildren and when she wasn’t doing that she was working various jobs in Sunraysia.
So when she retired from working as a pharmacy technician 10 years ago, it was time for Roz to do something for herself.
“I was ready to do something different so I joined U3A (University of the Third Age),” she says.
“It was there I met Beth, who was 85 years old at the time and taught me leathercraft once a week for four or five years.
“I was interested because it was an old trade that had been taught at school even before my time and Beth and I got along so well. It was a pleasure to learn from her.”
Roz admitted to knowing “absolutely nothing” about leathercraft when she began but in just a few years since creating her first leather stubby holder she was selling them at markets in Sunraysia.
“After working my whole life and raising children it’s nice to do something for myself,” she says.
“I enjoy it very much, it certainly is a great past time.
“While it’s an expensive hobby, it is quite amazing. I love seeing the end result and seeing what the different tools can do.”
Three years ago Roz feared her new passion may come to an end after chemotherapy left her fingers numb.
“You just don’t realise how much that can change things,” she says.
“It took me six months to get used to knowing how hard to push down using my hammer.”
Roz began selling her items at most of the Sunraysia markets five years ago after her granddaughter Narissa Telfer encouraged her.
“She had a stall for her henna and crochet in winter, she is very talented,” Roz says.
“It has been a wonderful opportunity to spend time with her.
“I enjoy meeting people and how they respond when they see the leather, many talking about when they did something similar while at school, or that they have leather at home that they should use.
“If I can get one person to take it up then it will not be a dying art.”
While her collection of items to sell has grown to diary covers, passport covers, bags and key holders, the most popular items remain the classic stubby holders and wine bottle holders.
