Nestled at the east end of South Park, located on South Hill street is a mysterious yet vast leather shop called Sandast.
A concrete laced ground floor warehouse, upon when entering, you are gently presented with the lush smell of dated leather. Though it has a rougher exterior compared to the newer build-outs of the neighborhood‘s surroundings, Sandast welcomes you with a unique sense of style and aroma of leathers that gives it an American Vintage feel.
Chris Pak is the gentle owner and master leather craftsman for over 10 years who has dedicated his life to making custom leather works for his loyal customers.
Chris has owned and operated Sandast for 8 years now since 2012. Greeting you with a grand smile, he’s happy to show you around and give you a detailed tour of his vast space filled with top tier handcrafted leather goods.
With seemingly endless colorful murals on the wall, and gorgeous leather goods sitting neatly on varnished wood shelves, Sandast certainty feels like a home away from home.
If you haven’t yet heard of Sandast it’s probably due to the fact that until recently Sandast survives without the typical fury of PR campaigns and social Media marketing campaigns. He has only really been selling his products through word of mouth, and as we did the same as the other customers who somehow managed to find his mysterious shop.
Finding a Sandast leather wear to call your very own because of this can be attributed to ones own personal path and how Sandast fits in to their destiny. His best sellers include Handcrafted bags, cowboy belts, coasters, wallets and backpacks.
Chris shut down with the mandates of the COVID pandemic and was almost convinced to leave his studio behind due to increases in rent and other factors.
He planned to have a moving sale and got ready to shut down permanently and move to a new location. However, Chris’ refusal to give up gave Chris the gusto to try out different ways to attract new customers.
A whole new path. Chris used the shutdown to reflect which led to the remodeling and fresh new look of the store.
A new seating area is added and the space has been set aside to accommodate private special functions. Bright ceiling lighting had been added, along with a bar space to serve healthy beverages.
There is even a homemade wooden table with a leather made Settlers of Catan board game! He looks forward to renting out his vintage studio space for high-end meetings and parties for new gen millennials.
Chris hopes his leather studio will be “that” vintage place to be in Downtown LA, where you can have a healthy beverage and light a cigar outside.
With the new updates to his studio, Chris is also planning to open up some new leather making classes for beginners and experienced craftmen. He’s looking to spread his unique skill to others that are interested, though his concern is that he may not be the greatest teacher!
Chris is currently working closely with his friends on a simple teaching curriculum that allows anyone to learn leatherworks with ease.
He hopes that his first few beta classes will be successful, and thus he will be able to teach mainstream students on a regular basis. The first project he wants to accomplish with his students is a leather dog collar! A leather making class is the perfect first date idea.
Sandast is really an exceptional place to be, and with Chris Pak being the heart and soul of this distinctive leather studio.
There is something special about the red painted support arches beaming across the workshop, and the floor to ceiling coastal artwork. It shows that the person who looks after this place genuinely loves being there and working on his craft.
Almost everything in it looks and feel homemade. Though the store is rooted in an older era, Chris wants to push his brand to the modern day and age.
Sandast is only well known to leather enthusiast, but Chris wants his brand to expand to mainstream customers, so that more people can enjoy the look and smell of genuine leather products. He is looking at pushing his outreach and social media so that leathercraft is no longer obscure and mysterious.
In the end of the day, Chris just like to enjoy his private time working with leather, making exceptional leather products, and having a drink and cigar with dear friends. Sandast studio is where his dreams come true. It is the ultimate artist getaway for those who enjoy not just seeing amazing artwork, but love smelling natural leather that reaches your soul in a romantic way. It is definitely a place to visit next time you are in Downtown LA.
