By Nick Pernokas 

Time and time again, leatherwork has proven itself to be therapeutic. It is also a discipline that a man can reinvent himself in. A case in point is Jonathan Augustin. 

Jon’s dad was in the military and his family traveled quite a bit. Eventually, they settled in Richlands, North Carolina. His dad’s career foreshadowed his own, and Jon ended up in the Air Force for 11 years. He was an aircraft electrician working on fighter jets. Jon was stationed in Korea, although he had occasional duty in Japan as well. He rose to the rank of Staff Sergeant before a back injury forced him to take a medical discharge in 2020. Back home, married and 33 years old, Jon looked for his next step. He tried to go back to school, but his hands were restless. 

“I needed to do something with my hands because I was so used to working on aircraft,” remembers Jon. 

Jon realized that a trade might fit him better. He began studying blacksmithing techniques and metallurgy on YouTube. Jon tried out these newfound techniques for building knives. His favorite to build were large bushmaster-style knives. Jon also built a lot of self-defense knives. 

In 2021, Jon made a knife for himself and realized that he needed a leather sheath for it. He went back to the internet to learn about leather working techniques, materials and hand sewing. Jon soon had a pattern that he liked. He purchased the tools, and the English bridle leather he needed, from the BuckleGuy online store. 

“When I made the leather sheath, I really liked working with leather, so I started crafting with leather,” says Jon. 

Soon, Jon was making more knife sheaths along with wallets, bags and pouches. 

“It snowballed from making knives to making leather products.” 

Today, Jon‘s biggest sellers are holsters. John makes a couple of pancake holster styles. He also makes an unlined, 8 to 10-ounce belt to carry them on. A concealable conversion model holster is available for wearing inside or outside the waistband as well. The belt clips can also be adjusted for angle and height. 

Jon uses 5 to 6-ounce tooling leather for his holsters. He lines them with suede leather. Jon likes the suede lining for both retention and protection of the firearm. All of his work is hand sewn. 

“I like doing it by hand, and everything hand stitched, because it’s more like an art to me,” says Jon. 

The Steadfast and Abound shop is in a spare bedroom of the   Beulaville, North Carolina home where Jon and his wife, Jordan, raise their three sons. 

Many of Jon’s customers are people that he met in the military. His close proximity to Jacksonville, a military town, makes the signage on his truck effective as well. 

Although Steadfast and Abound is a virtual store now, a future brick-and-mortar business is not out of the question. 

“I’m bootstrapping right now. I don’t like the idea of going into debt, even though it is a business.” 

You may have guessed that the name “Steadfast and Abound” comes from Bible verse.   

“Before we make a decision about anything, we pray on it.” 

In fact, most of Jon’s holster styles are named after various disciples and apostles. The concealed carry, inside the waistband style, however, is fittingly known as Jonah. 

To find out more about Jon’s work, you can go to steadfastandaboundleather.com. Steadfast and Abound can also be found on Facebook. 

Steadfast and Abound Leather Goods 

P.O. Box 1451 

Richlands, North Carolina 28574