We are a team of artisans highly-skilled in traditional and modern craft. At OTZI each piece, whether bespoke or something from our collection, is carefully hand-crafted for optimal aesthetic and functional satisfaction. The whole team love what they do and are avidly enthusiastic about making, the materials they use and their craft, which means that skills are always being shared and improvements are always being made.
OTZI benefits from the support and guidance of members of the Saddler’s and Leatherseller’s Guilds, as well as the Queen Elizabeth Trust.
OTZI is not only keeping craft skills alive and relevant, it is keeping them dynamic and vibrant. We obsessively prioritise the highest levels of craftsmanship and materials; we maintain and build upon traditional craft practices such as hand stitching, cutting and finishing to keep artisan leatherworking thriving in the UK.
Combining traditional skills and materials with modern technique, OTZI ensures a contemporary approach that adopts the best of the old and the new. Innovations in the use, working, and application of leather are central to the workshop’s output. We create objects with integrity, durability and purpose that are made to age gracefully, as they withstand and reward the rigours of daily use. Everything we make will improve over time, as the
unique patina of its life emerges, reflecting the character of the owner. Full grain, vegetable tanned and aniline leathers wear elegantly and well, burnishing in areas of frequent wear and developing an antiqued lived-in feel that becomes part of the piece, enhancing it and its uniqueness. Each piece of leather we use is carefully graded and selected to ensure the utmost quality and finish. Still, blemishes and imperfections are unavoidable. We believe these are qualities to be enhanced and celebrated, and make a virtue of showcasing the natural characteristics of the material, with any marks placed thoughtfully into our pieces rather than removed. It is these that give each piece its unique quality and character. The leathers are often finished with natural oils, tallows and waxes that are applied by hand to give the leather its strength.
Close working relationships with designers, interior designers, artists, makers and brands help OTZI to create unique and functional pieces. The studio facilitates the making of both small and large quantities for private and commercial projects around a strong conviction that everything demands an equally high level of design and craft. At its core OTZI holds a belief in functional, timeless design that showcases honest and beautiful materials. Referencing classic Bauhaus sensibilities and midcentury aesthetics, OTZI only uses the highest quality leathers and characterful native hardwoods. Read more about the materials we use on our dedicated Materials page: What we use, why we use it, our approach to sourcing, and how to look after it.
STORY
Otis Ingrams has been working with leather for over a decade. OTZI was born out of Otis’s need to work with his hands and to create work with a permanence and durability, in contrast to the disposability of so many of today's items. Inspired by William Morris’ sentiment “Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful” Otis wanted to make functional yet beautiful pieces that can withstand and be enhanced by the rigours of regular use. Drawn towards leather as a core material - the feel and handle of the material and the sheer breadth of design applications it has – he founded OTZI in 2013 and began making small leathergoods and bespoke leatherwork for interiors. After years investigating the potential and the possibilities of leather, he published 'Leatherworks' in 2017; a craft book offering a step-by-step guide to the basics. In 2018 he was made a QEST scholar with the support of the Leathersellers’ Company. From a nomadic beginning across London, OTZI is now settled in Norfolk, East Anglia and has developed an ever-growing collection of interior objects and furniture made from leather and hardwood. At OTZI, Otis is supported by a dedicated team of highly trained craftspeople; all with training and experience in their crafts, as well as additional ongoing one on one training and guidance from Otis.