Mr. Chapman..Mentors and the Web

One of the most amazing effects of blogging is that I continue to meet people who are both incredibly interesting, talented and just awesome human beings. I find it renews my faith in the business that I am in. After years and years dealing with the same people and knowing all the players in the vintage clothing business my world has been opened up globally to a whole new field of international vintage enthusiasts who bring their bits of knowledge and experience to the fore. I find myself communicating and sharing with knowledgeable people on a global scale!
One of those people is John Chapman. John has grown to be both friend and mentor to me. He started a leather jacket production company in 2006 abandoning his other career to bring into the world the most authentic replicas of a-2s available on the market today. His company Good Wear Leather is a small one man operation where John's commitment to detail and authentic materials and design are reflected by the fact that he makes each jacket himself for his clients. He sources out his leather globally for the most authentic veg tanned horsehide, and even uses original war era zippers and produces authentic reproductions of the tiny tiny paper lot tags that used to be sewn under the label. I am thankful for the internet because it has allowed me to meet such fantastic genius' like John and pushes me forward to completing my own project to design and produce perfect small batch slow food leather jackets!