The other morning I was having a power meeting at Starbucks with one of the owners of The Furlough Project.  He was discussing some cool projects that they had lined up for the prolific East Coast type foundry, House Industries and then he mentioned that he had stumbled across a cool brand, Fielder’s Choice Goods,  that re-purposes old baseball gloves into wallets and other items.  Intrigued, I reached out to the brand’s owner Jon to find out more.

Fielder’s Choice Goods bio states that it was created to embrace forgotten pastimes & artifacts. Once lost and reintroduced back in to everyday use that it once had. While the need to recycle & re-purpose becomes more and more pressing, it is comforting to know that what we buy or use has had or can have another life.  All pieces are one of a kind, hand cut & sewn made from vintage quality goods and re-purposed right here in the good ole’ in the U.S. of A.

BLURPPY:  Give us a little background about you?  What did you do before Fielder’s Choice Goods?

FCG:  I currently live in Long Beach, CA, working out of a small studio space in my backyard where Fielder’s Choice Goods calls home.  By day I work as a graphic designer for RVCA Clothing. By night I spend my time deconstructing and  conditioning vintage American baseball gloves as well as designing accessories for FCG.

BLURPPY:  How did you come up with the idea for Fielder’s Choice Goods and how long have you been at it?

FCG:   Fielder’s Choice Goods is just about a year old now.  It started back in April of 2012.  I was looking to start a unique, niche product line that wasn’t like any other brand.  I have always had a love for baseball and I was trying to figure out how I could work it into a brand along with a quality American heritage.

BLURPPY:  I absolutely love the repurposed aspect of what you do as well as the hand made in the USA angle.  Where do you get all the gloves you use for you products?

FCG:  It’s easy to find an old baseball glove but its getting more difficult to find American made gloves that are in a condition not for collectors.  I like the idea of finding old weathered gloves that haven’t’ been touched in years and restoring them into a workable quality.  A lot of gloves I find come from swap meets and estate sales.

BLURPPY: What makes a glove Fielder’s Choice Goods worthy?  How do you pick or are all old gloves used regardless of brand, age, etc.

FCG:  I try to find gloves that are pre 1970′s.  That way they have some age to them.  They must have a “Made In The USA” marking on them with a focus being on traditional American brands like Rawlings, Wilson, Spalding and Nokona.

BLURPPY:  How long does each wallet take to make?

FCG:  It’s not a certain time on each wallet, it’s more the process that takes awhile.  Of course I could physically make one wallet in a short time but it’s the actual time that goes into ‘finding’ the glove, deconstructing, conditioning and then reconstructing  it into a wallet or other item that takes some time.

BLURPPY:  How many wallets to you get from each glove?

FCG: I get between 1-2 wallets from each glove.

BLURPPY:  Do you have any plans for additional items other than wallets?

FCG: Definitely! We currently stocked up on our first run of Ebbets Field Flannel Caps which feature repurposed leather accents from left over pieces of vintage gloves.  For Opening Day of the baseball season we will be releasing a repurposed leather baseball belt which will be adjustable and made of all American goods and made right here in the USA.

Head on over to Fielder’s Choice Goods Website to see all the current as well as the upcoming products they have.  On Monday, February 18th they will be releasing their next batch of custom, vintage, leather wallets.  These sell out extremely fast so be sure to follow them on TWITTER for the onsale announcement if you want to pick up one of these pieces of Americana.  You can also follow them FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM – (@Fielderschoicegoods) and TUMBLR.