The “Granddaddy” of all albums - this massive, heirloom-quality album is great in size and in artistry. Each is hand-made, imported from Italy, and are made from the finest materials available: smooth, full-grain leather, and exquisite, acid-free, 80lb. paper (that’s nice and heavy!), interleaved with a sublty-patterned velum (also acid-free).

Details: 15 x 17 x 3 inches, 120 pages, hand dyed Red Mahogany

Manufacturing Details
This album is 100% made by hand in Italy! Detailed leatherwork spans the entire 15 x 17 inch front cover. Artisans work for days to create just one of these albums. Each is of course unique in the sense that it would be impossible for any leathersmith to make any two exactly the same. There are subtle differences that are inherent to this ancient craft; so you are buying an original work -- these are not machine pressed -- everything is hand carved with iron hand tools and hand pressed with brass plates (the tools themselves are often hundreds of years old!). Made in the Umbria region of Italy, where since the times of the medieval and renaissance cultures artisans have gathered in the hill country to practice and pass on from generation to generation their ancient leathercraft.

Description of the Album Front Cover Hand Artwork
You can’t miss the two cherubs at play, dancing around, each measuring 7 inches tall and 4 inches wide in their splendid beauty! However, the focal point of this hand sculpted masterpiece is really a 4 x 14 inch long centerpiece. The crafted leather centerpiece is an elaborately tall structure which consists of (from top to bottom): an arrangement of fruit and long stemmed roses standing out of a large wide urn supported by a short column; below the flowers, a 2 x 3 inch water drop shaped emblem (suitable for monogramming) is encased within a grand frame (to which the cherubs are viewing); this, held up on a pedestal -- which is really the pistil of a large flower with long flowing leaves, is all growing out of the headdress of a tribal godlike bearded man-creature; who, situated at the bottom of the album (and holding everything up on top of his head) is smiling and his wondrous eyes are fixated looking up at the emblem.

Customization Options
The album is already striking but many do want to personalize it for future generations to see. With this in mind the centerpiece on the front cover of the album has a 2 x 3 inch water drop shaped emblem (a flat yet unadorned area n the center of the album) where a family symbol, crest or letters can be added.

There are several ways to customize this album. Generally, a finished piece like this is best customized using appliqués. Decoration techniques include working leather, paper mache, wood, metal or a combination of these materials into finished pieces that are then permanently bonded to the blank surfaces of the leather album -- these blank areas are designed to allow customization by a competent craftsperson -- and if so designed the appliqué looks as if it is part of the original design (at least to most people).

In addition to the centerpiece area, you could likewise apply specially constructed volume markers or other embellishments to the spine. The slightly curved spine has four equal sized regions that are yet unadorned. Appliqués can either run the entire width of the spine in these blank regions measuring 3.75 inches across or can be mounted on the spine’s center in roughly a 2.3 inch square area.

The back of the album has a large 11 x 14 inch unadorned area. Customization of the back is often an opportunity that is overlooked. The back of the album is a good place for a small quote, dedication or other inscription and is usually produced to include gold leafing.

While it is possible, to have additional leatherwork done on a finished piece like this it is neither common nor recommended -- as this is NOT really the time to achieve customization. After all, to properly work leather it must be wet and it is impractical to do this after a book is finished. There are tricks of the trade and many good techniques to get a beautifully customized result. What many people think is custom work created on the original surface of a leather book after it is finished, is usually either performed at the time the book was originally crafted or most likely is a well made appliqué that is properly and permanently affixed.

Customization of your new book takes time and planning and our art department will be happy to work out a customization plan that fits your needs. Customization, can be done at a later date too, but you will have to remove any photos and send the book back to us for any work to be performed.