About
Bulox Leather was inspired by my mom and dad, who grew up in Wilcox County and Bullock County, respectively. It is fitting, since I owe who I am to them and the upbringing they gave me, to honor them by recognizing their heritage in the Bulox name — a combination of Bullock and Wilcox counties.
Both Bullock and Wilcox Counties are rural, and I love their quiet, simplicity, and beauty. I grew up hunting, fishing, and just being outdoors. I have always loved building, tinkering, designing, creating and working with my hands.
Although I spent my teen and young adult years in the city of Montgomery, after college I was drawn back to Bullock County. I began to appreciate the rural area more and realized what it meant to me—how lucky I was to have it, when not everyone does.
With most things that you love and are attached to, you are drawn back. I worked for 10 years as an accountant, but I wanted to do more—I wanted to build. I was lucky to find and purchase some reclaimed heart pine from an old home being demolished. I loved the story of the wood; it was historic and only found in homes or buildings constructed in the early 1900s or prior.
I loved every part of the process: finding the wood, the history, taking it down, working it, designing the piece, building, and the finished product. I did this for a few years in addition to my full-time job, but it began to take a toll on me. Woodworking became a job and I wasn’t enjoying it like I once did, so I put it aside.
But always needing something to keep my hands busy, I started a small project of making a wooden fly rod case and I wanted to put a leather strap on it. I enjoyed the leatherwork, began to read about it, and I was hooked again. I didn’t know it at the time, but what would become Bulox Leather was born. I did leatherworking sparingly in the beginning, but eventually decided to pursue it full-time.
Leatherwork involved the same aspects of woodworking: finding the best leather, working the leather, designing and finally creating with it.
Our products, like our maker, are American made and southern through and through.
Our custom pieces are hand crafted on the outskirts of Montgomery, Alabama. We pride ourselves on craftsmanship and durability.
We want our pieces to look good, but also to be simple and functional. We try to incorporate functionality, classic lines, and convenience into the designs of each and every product. The goal is to make items that will last and can be handed down for generations.
Appreciating the intimacy of owning something that is created by hand — the time taken and the attention that is put into every piece — and hoping that you feel the same way when you hold a Bulox Leather product.
Josh Thomas, Owner and Leatherworker