FOUR YEARS OF patina

Written By Christine R

contra turns 4!

Although this hobby started many years before, four years marks the point where I consciously decided to grow my leather bag passion into a business.

Four years ago, I hired a career coach to help me make sense of all of my ideas, and our first task was refining and aligning on the name, Contra. Then came my first website.

The philosophy of my brand feels fairly true to its original ideas, although written with a very different tone. Once written as “Contradicting the fast-paced world around us”, now softly spoken: “designed for everyday, guided by material, refined by hand”.

I believe the brand is evolving into something more elegant, soft but solid, with more definition and beauty with every passing day.

Our core mission, to create products with quality and craftsmanship, has not changed; it has only deepened and become more present in every decision made.

Major Milestones from the last four years

  • I have a signature line of products

  • I have sold my products in shops across Mexico City, Guadalajara, Punta de Mita, and Sayulita

  • I created and offer six different workshops, with more on the way

  • I have secured two main places in Mexico to purchase and custom order leather - this was a struggle, and a main goal for many years

  • I have had the opportunity to create some amazing custom leather products for amazing clients

  • I have shipped my bags across North America, and some to Europe

And through all of these milestones, I’ve met some amazing people who have supported and encouraged me - and I am so grateful for all of them.

What’s Next?

  • Continual focus on creating quality crafted goods

  • Cotton bags are coming soon!

  • Leather sandals are still in the works - I am still trying to find the best place to have them made

  • And - something is soon returning, keep an eye out for the Pantina Chair 2.0!

Every day still feels like a struggle, but that comes with the space to create, make, and work with my hands. It’s that discomfort that pushes me to make more, experiment, learn how to market myself better, how to create ads, or how to find time to just create something for myself. And it has also brought me to my chosen country, and allowed me to choose a different life than I was in line to live. And I will choose this road every time.

Thanks for joining me and supporting my brand,
And I’m looking forward to sharing what I’m making over the next four!

- C






Christine R
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leather care