New to leather and loving it!

[Schno]

I've recently begun my foray into the very satisfying and rewarding art of leathercrafting. This all began with my first SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) event, the 'Estrella War' of February 2008. I emerged from that very rain-soaked and muddy ordeal as a fledgling archer.

A very decent fellow there helped me out quite a bit with my form and my aim and all. He also introduced me to a marvelous accessory: the ankle quiver. This is a bit of leather that buckles around the ankle and serves to hold the arrows close by and in proper position for speed shoots, when you're trying to loose many arrows very quickly. Well, I was certain that I needed one of these nifty inventions so I went about making one.

And I was hooked.

Since then, I've been voraciously pursuing the techniques, tricks, and arcane secrets of leatherworking. I've found the artisans of leather community to be not only very approachable and helpful, but simply good, decent people as well. Some other craftsmen jealously guard the 'secrets' of their trade; not so with you lot, as clearly evidenced on this website. Cheers to you folks for your generosity. I hope to return the favor as I discover some tricks and techniques of my own.

I've been an active part of the local BDSM community in LA for over a decade, so a lot of my projects focus on paddles, restraints, collars and such. Of course, the SCA is another outlet for leatherwork. I've only made a couple of accessories so far, but I want to be able to make armor eventually. The very thought of starting that makes me nervous, though I know it shouldn't

Anyway, that's pretty much it by way of introduction. I look forward to being part of this community!

[Drac]

welcome to the addiction and the forum! if you have any questions about BDSM items, you can ask me (13 years as a professional crafter of those goodies) or a couple others on here (I'll let them let you know who they are so there's no accidental outing). I also did a tutorial on making floggers here http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=431. don't know if you know already, but send Johanna a message asking to be let into the adult section. there's also a couple of great armor makers on here doing things that will make ya drool!

[tazzmann]

First off, welcome to LW.net! Lots of great people on here! ASl Johanna about the "Secret" room for your more "personal" leather working.

Second, do you have a picture of that ankle quiver? I do a lot of archery and would love to see one. It sounds fascinating and I have never even heard of one before.

Thanks, and looking forward to seeing more of your work!

Mike

[Schno]

Thanks, Drac!

I definitely have a question, right out of the gate! I've managed the leatherworking part of the paddles well enough, but the construction has presented a challenge. I can't seem to find the right kind of thing to spine my paddles with. I need something that will be strong, yet light, resilient, yet easy to cut and work with. I've been trying to run down spring steel strapping, but it only seems to come in bulk and it's quite expensive. Any ideas?

I'll try to track down Johanna about the adult section. Thanks again!

Schno

welcome to the addiction and the forum! if you have any questions about BDSM items, you can ask me (13 years as a professional crafter of those goodies) or a couple others on here (I'll let them let you know who they are so there's no accidental outing). I also did a tutorial on making floggers here http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=431. don't know if you know already, but send Johanna a message asking to be let into the adult section. there's also a couple of great armor makers on here doing things that will make ya drool!

[Schno]

Certainly, Mike! It's a bit rough, but it was my very first project. The really shiny blown out stuff on the crest is silver gilding. I learned that at our last SCA event. The inside of the quiver is lined with a bit of foam core around the sides and bottom to keep the pouch open a bit.

Second, do you have a picture of that ankle quiver? I do a lot of archery and would love to see one. It sounds fascinating and I have never even heard of one before.

Mike

[Drac]

what I use for the spine inside my paddles is 1/8" think by 3/4" wide steel flat bar. you can get lengths of it at places like home depot for pretty cheap. it cuts easily enough with a hacksaw or a dremel. I always tell peeps loking at me paddles what's inside then tell 'em if they bend one of me paddles, they SHOULDN'T have bent one of me paddles. *L*

[tazzmann]

Thanks! So it is basically a pouch. What is the dimensions on it? I would think larger arrows would tip over. Yes/No?

[Schno]

Thanks! So it is basically a pouch. What is the dimensions on it? I would think larger arrows would tip over. Yes/No?

Not really. When you strap it on your leg, the sleeve tightens just enough to poke the arrows in, while holding them steady. The idea of the design is to hold the knocks in the right position so they can be pulled out and placed on the string with the cockfeather facing the right way without requiring the archer to look at it at all. This enables the archer to keep his eyes on the target and loose arrows more efficiently.

The front of the pocket is roughly 6 1/2" by 6 1/2", while the backside is 3" longer at 9 1/2".

The only downside is that it only really works when you're shooting from the line. It's not something you can walk around with, unless you like beating yourself with your own fletchings. I typically throw my arrows in my back quiver for walking around and transfer to the ankle quiver for speed shoots and such.

[Hilly]

welcome to the addiction and the forum! if you have any questions about BDSM items, you can ask me (13 years as a professional crafter of those goodies) or a couple others on here (I'll let them let you know who they are so there's no accidental outing). I also did a tutorial on making floggers here http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=431. don't know if you know already, but send Johanna a message asking to be let into the adult section. there's also a couple of great armor makers on here doing things that will make ya drool!

I've been here more than 6 months now, and I've never heard of an "adult section"? While I'm not into "kink", I would find it interesting to window shop