Ariko's first experience in leatherworking dates back to 2006, when she got fascinated by the process of bagpipe-making. Her very first leather products included bagpipe bags, which were shortly followed by other leather accessories (such as sporran purses) or clothing components.
She started designing and manufacturing her own handbags in 2018, and the inspiration for this activity came to her in a rather unusual way - in the form of a dream in which she saw herself holding a handmade bag depicting Ariko's favourite symbol, which she designed by herself - the rose of the broken heart (and which adorns her chest as a tattoo). What really caught her attention was the fact that the symbol on the handbag was neither sewn nor printed, not even painted, but made up of several pieces of leather of different types and colors, giving the impression of uniformity of the material. She immediately had to put this technique, the name of which she did not know at the time, into practice, and actually make the bag she saw in the dream. That made her develop a technique sh later began to apply in the production of other handbags and leather accessories - a technique called leather marquetry, which consists of patterns being precisely cut into the leather and filled with pieces of leather of a different colour, creating a unique picture (similar technique has been used quite often in woodworking).
The technique of leather marquetry is currently one of the hallmarks of Arik's leatherwork. She loves creating portraits of people as well as abstract symbols on her bags and other accessories (phone cases, wallets...) and it's what makes her work unique and easily recognizable among others. Each of these creations is an original piece of art, no two are the same and each one is embellished with a different picture.
Ariko makes her products exclusively from genuine leather and uses both vegetable and chrome-tanned leather.
