Introduction And Pic To Share

[drew23]

My name is Justin I am from Monticello, KY and have been lurking around for a while. I currently have a kit from Tandy as well as a few extra odds and ends. Here is my first real piece. I know that I have some issues with the background as well as my letters. I need practice with the swivel knife, i used an Exacto to cut these since I am not used to the swivel knife yet. Comments would be appreciated. Second is how I am planning to finish. Fiebings USMC black with Folkart acrylic red. What should I finish off with? Super Sheen, Lacquer, something else?

Thanks,

Justin

[BillB]

Justin,

Nice start. It looked like you changed tools in doing the "F" so the mix of the bevel patter and the background tool don't exactly fit together. Sometimes it is better to take the back ground patter all the way up to the figure, in this case the edge of the F. Unless of course that was the visual affect you wanted. It is, after all, up to the artist.

As for the finish. If you have the money, I would recommend you buy some of each finish you want to use/try and do some testing on scrape leather. Since I don't know the final use of the pieces you have made and thus the weathering / handling affects they will have to deal with over their useful life, I cannot exactly say which finish I would use. I do know that over the years I have stopped using any of the Sheen type products since it is my experience that they are really just a plastic coating on the leather. That seals the leather and it can no longer breath, after all leather is skin. I prefer finishes that allow the leather to breath and age naturally. These would be oils based finishes and waxes. It does mean that the leather piece requires more care and attention over its life. I have had leather products rot from the inside since they could not breath and did not pick up oils from human hands when handled due to the way they were finished.

Again, my advice would be to buy some of each finish you want to try and do some experimenting on scrape leather.

BillB

[drew23]

The F was a practice piece to determine if I liked the bevel used in conjunction with the backgrounder or not. It lost out to just the backgrounder. As to the use it is for my son on a fire helmet but, I do plan on making a few helmet fronts for myself and possibly some of the other guys on my dept. My on is 4 so it is just a toy for him. Thanks for the comment.

Justin