The makers' hands

He came into the trade in 1986, and not because he chose it: circumstance landed him in a trade school for cojocărie, the sheepskin craft, at Iași, with the practical training done in Brăila. He was a child, and his mind was mostly on playing. The trade came to him through people: domnul Nicu Isaia and doamna Tina, the masters who worked beside him and who sadly are no longer with us, taught him over time, a little at a time, until he fell in love with it. He learned to make by repairing. A man brought him a coat torn at the pocket; he took the pocket apart, remade it, and only then knew how to cut one from scratch, then came a lapel, and from there the leather clothing began. The rest was brought by the customers, who arrived with all sorts of designs and wanted something other than the classic models.

Viorica Spiridon is co-owner of the workshop and the shop in Brăila, which she runs together with Florin Spiridon. They are married and partners in the business.