Arran Wood, formerly of Cape Town, now lives on a Free State farm and he has always been educated at home. “I’ve never even set foot in a school and I’m so
glad for it when I look at how my life has turned out.
Because of my lifestyle, I have learnt so much and I’ve really been able to find who I am and build a relationship with God. A lot of this is thanks to my parents,” he claimed.
“When I was little I hated doing art lessons because I could not draw what was in my head. But I still had a lot of exposure to creative outlets, I loved colouring-in-books.
I also was obsessed with knights and the medieval world from a young age. I have always enjoyed making things with my hands. I have made countless wooden swords in my Dad’s workshop.
After I moved to our farm, my friends and I had so many adventures, it has been such an amazing experience. However from grade ten I changed the way I did my schooling so I could write the National Senior Certificate. My workload increased and I had far less time for the things I used to do. I would do what I could between school.”
Arran was inspired by artists and photographers that he found on Instagram (a social media platform), particularly photos of bridles and other leather creations. Since he and his friends love horse-riding, he was inspired to make his own bridle from leather – and he did.
Leather work by Arran of WoodenWulf
“I had a lot of fun and realized that I could do so much more. I did what work I could between school and made a few more projects.” Arran planned to start his own business after completing his matric. He named it WoodenWulf. “I had to use a “u” instead of a “o” because someone had already taken it, surprisingly. That was the birth of WoodenWulf,” Arran explained.
Arran started his business more for fun than to make money. He markets all his work through Instagram and has worked with many clients from all over the world. He now produces bridles and leather equipment for horse riding in medieval style. One of his clients is a medieval re-enactment company that hosts shows in England, named The Knights of Middle England. They also work with films and do stunt work. He also make custom orders where he designs the style that the client wants. He draws designs and tweaks them until the client is happy.
Arran is always backed up on orders and hopes to get his work into film in the movie-industry. “I am excited about my the future for my work and I will always keep working on it even if I cant do it full time as I intend to study at university. I also plan to expand my skills and create much more out of leather and other materials.”
See Arran’s unique bridles and leather craft on Instagram at Woodenwulf