Handstitched

@beefy i have in old Seiko stw 28-b, twin needle that I have had for many years, i have yet to find a manual for it, so I just use a consew 226 manual as a guide only instead . I contacted Seiko in Japan to find out the age of my machine using the serial number, turns out it's the same age as me......not telling 😅 HS

@Sheilajeanne i showed that pic to my elderly Father, he was quite amused at the snow on the barby ( we put steaks and snags on ours , lol),while we were having our new air cond installed this morning, its working beautifully. While it was 40+ outside, it was a lovely 24 degs C inside. Bliss 😊 It's going to get hotter in the next few months no doubt . To be expected . HS

Even though I've only been on here a short time, so many speak very highly of him reading the many posts. God bless, HS

Well chuck, the hot weather has well and truly kicked in .40 degs + , today and next week, whatever that is in F's . Just as well I'm having our air cond upgraded tomorrow. Our local sparky is doing the installation. No doubt its getting quite cold where you are . Just 2 more markets to go and that's it until next year. Looking so forward to a nice break tbh. Stay safe, HS

Why would anyone want to throw that away? Even if it didn't work , it would make an awesome display piece in your workshop 😀 I'd be like a kid on Christmas day . Great find 👍 Hope you're able to get all cleaned up and working again. HS

@Mablung former, akubra, newbie, again, statesman. My very first hat was a statesman and is now a museum piece on display in my workshop. My next pair of work boots will from an Aussie company, also not owned by a mining squillionare HS

@chuck123wapati well done and well deserved . They look so good and will polish up nicely. There are times when we just love to treat ourselves. I'm contemplating buying a new( stetson style)hat for myself for Christmas. The brand/ company i would normally buy from has now been bought out by a mining squillionare . They can go and jump. So I'm going to support another Aussie made company instead, not owned by a mining company, a bit pricey, but so what ! My current hat is around 10 years old, stained badly, smells. and worn out and has holes in it and was a prezzy from a former flame and not a good look at the markets. Time for a change 👍 Enjoy your new boots 👢 👍 HS

I have never seen a raccoon break into a bottle shop ( liquor store) in Virginia, get absolutely sh*t faced and pass out on the toilet floor, and wake up with a massive hangover . I wonder if he had a kebab ? He might need rehab. HS

I have a Pfaff 60 that I use for thin leather, wallets etc. It was my late mother's machine that she made or repaired our clothes on. But some more info would be good 👍 HS

When I need to apply contact adhesive with precision, I use cotton ear buds, ( or Q tips) single use, and you might use a few, but are cheap as . It might be a bit fiddly but it saves cleaning up after. Hope that helps. HS

@AlZilla a bit like ' where does the chicken come from' .......sorry, couldn't help myself but would be so handy not to keep refilling bobbins on long runs, like shade sails, horse rugs, etc. I just pre-load 2 -3 bobbins before I start to save time. HS

@Dwight that's exactly what I do, I wear my wares. I have 3 belts with different designs that I wear regularly. My flip phone case is quite a fancy hand laced and hand stitched one with a fancy concho , and yes , I keep some business cards in my wallet. At the markets I have a few folders with heaps of pics of what I have made, and custom work I have done and place them on my table for people to browse through. Word of mouth has worked better than paid advertising , as for face book etc. , my customers do that for me Great minds think alike HS

In my lil' local country town, I just did some basic market research. I simply talked to people, and when I told them I'm getting into leather, the common response was " we can't get a decent belt , or a knife case" . So thats pretty much where it all started....20 years later.... I just made what appealed to the local market. What you may be referring to may not be as simple as that HS

@TomE that's pretty much what I do, leave a wider margin around the edge. The excess gets sanded away and neatened up. All looks quite neat when finished. 👍 HS

All of the cases i make have a bit of excess around the edge just wide enough for the (441 clone) machine to sew without changing the foot. Once sewn, i sand the excess off,then edge dye, burnish, etc HS