Anybody else here old and creaky enough to remember Pet Rocks? Apparently, Nordtrom is trying to bring them back. Just… rather more expensively.
Medium Leather Wrapped Stone
A paperweight? A conversation piece? A work of art? It’s up to you, but this smooth Los Angeles-area stone—wrapped in rich, vegetable-tanned American leather secured by sturdy contrast backstitching—is sure to draw attention wherever it rests. A traditional hardening process gives the leather a beautiful ombré effect. Like all Made Solid leather pieces, this one is cut, shaped, sewn and finished by hand in artist Peter Maxwell’s Los Angeles studio. Using vintage leatherworking tools and traditional saddle-stitching techniques, Maxwell aims to create beautiful designs that embody both simplicity and functionality, and that develop rich character and patina over time.
- 3″ x 4 1/2″ x 2″
- Each piece is unique and will vary slightly
- Vegetable-tanned leather/stone
- Made in the USA
- Love Pop-In Shop
And if it wasn’t sold out, it could be yours for a mere $85.
According to Snopes, this is on the up-and-up.
OK, kids, it’s time to speculate. Seems to me there are two leading possibilities:
- The “artist” behind this is one of those cranks who actually thinks hokey junk like this is actually Important Art (subset: “Ironically”)
- The “artist” behind this is something of a jokester.
I’m hoping for #2. The world is full enough with the sort of lameass “artists” who think that a rock in a leather pouch is something special. In comparison, the world needs more scam artists.
All that said: damn, I wish *I* had thought of this.