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Exactly, do what method is appropriate for the task at hand and do it correctly else it is a failure.

I do have, if nothing else, some store-type plastic bags, though I may be able to finagle some paper bags. But thank you for mentioning them, they weren’t even on my radar. As far as refreshments of some sort, we are working with the local health department to determine if we even need a permit for fresh-brewed tea (tea blends are one of my wife’s products 😉). They’re severely understaffed though, and haven’t returned any of our emails or calls yet. If I can’t get a response I will go ahead and ask forgiveness if I have to, since I’ve been trying for permission and failing. My wife may also attempt some baked goods, which fall under the cottage foods act, don’t need any permit. The dry tea blends are also “cottage”, but for some reason, adding hot water is problematic… 🤦🏻 The book idea I had started kicking around, especially since I want to push my bookmarks out, though I am hesitant about another expense that may not sell. We’ll see though, I have a full library that I could probably part with. What do you do with your flawed (not ruined) products that people may but probably not notice, such as a scratch on a panel or overstamping? (One of my more popular stamps/patterns is notoriously difficult to maintain a line or correct once it wanders…)

I think your are right the lady should have sent the client to a someone that does that kind of work. The leather patches seem to be a stop gap measure. The straps to me hold the saddle and rider to the horse be it I know nothing about saddles the repair seems iffy at best. I think the straps should have been completely replaced as the new leather straps were scabbed onto the old leather that looked like they were gone way beyond their best before date. kgg

I have a Juki DNU-1541S and it is a very nice brand name compound feed (needle / feed dog / presser foot) machine. I also bought a Juki DU-1181N walking foot (feed dog / presser foot). The reason for the Juki DU-1181N is my Juki DNU-1541S absolutely hates thin stuff and can drive softer material down into the feed dog hole and create problems. I have never sewn or seen German square weave carpet except on Youtube but if had to I would probably consider binding the carpet with the Juki DU-1181N rather then the Juki DNU-1541S. Since you have other projects like head liners / leather I would purchase the Juki DNU-1541S and do any necessary work around's for the thin stuff. Another alternative to consider is a cylinder bed machine like Juki LS-1341 or clone with a table top attachment. If this is your first machine I would suggest taking a sample of your stuff to a dealer and see what would work best for your needs. kgg

Just because you maybe very good in a certain area of leather craft does not mean you can take on certain things, here is a prime example she maybe a excellent cobbler I don't know but she should have said no to this. People at there very least can get hurt and walk away but could also be changed for life If they survive, just because you may get away with it does not make it right so again please don't. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ksl9Xdw59E Hope this helps JCUK

A few months ago I had a local tack shop who I do so repairs for, gave me two head collars to restitch as the stitching had failed on both of them. He had sold one the customer who brought the first one back so he replaced it like for like, low and behold the second one had the same problem again brought back again, not sure if he gave them their money or what. Both were fancy head collars and machine stitched with in my opinion with to light thread, anyway i took them to my workshop as I was looking at them the stitching was unravelling before my eyes, that would never happen no matter how badly a saddle stitch had been done, even using a lighter thread. So the question is a saddle stitch stronger than machine stitch - it's a yes from me. Also in the saddlery trade you will find there are certain things that will only be hand stitched for safety reasons, that said a machine is a great time saver when time is money and for certain things its can save you hours which is a good thing for the right time and piece of work required to use a machine. Hope this helps JCUK

I'll let people familiar with what you want to sew comment on the Juki. Meanwhile, I'll recommend you to this thread: Welcome to the sewing machine obsession.

And the problem is - you see more of it all the time!! I get the question at least once weekly at least - "Do you have any stitching punches?". Ummm not often but what I want to say is that I have sharp awl blades and hafts, stitch markers, and harness needles in all sizes available 24/7. Much like the saying that "PVC pipe makes anyone a plumber", stitching punches make anyone a hand stitcher. Large holes for easier passage of needles and perhaps the biblical camel, holes that don't close back up, mismatched needles and small thread sizes, and there is no leather to thread friction to hold stitches. Machine sewing beats that all day long. Good hand stitching with tight holes, even spacing front and back, and that is some kind of pretty! Hand stitching well is an acquired and practiced skill for sure, but once a person has it - you have that skill for life. In reality - there are places you can't machine sew and there are places that hand stitching makes no difference. The best is the person who can both hand stitch well with awl/needles and set up a machine to sew a nice tight stitch. Then decides which is more appropriate and gets it done.

Same difference, I remember my late maternal grandfather, a blacksmith, rant on about the inferior electrical arc welding replacing hot rivets in rail car manufacture and that they were "weak". I dared point out to him that the liberty ships were welded together, once... That being said, I have seen many ugly leather pieces with large holes punched and overly thick and garishly colored threads used. These makers also tend to be vocal about how inferior machine stitching is. YMMV

Finally purchased one of Barry Kings Line24 snap setters. How did I not know about this 10 years ago! I have destroyed so many snaps in the last 10 years... I won't say it's impossible to destroy the snap using the Barry King tool, but it's gonna be a lot more difficult. Pretty cool being able to set a snap with a single thwack with. my mallet. Definitely worth the $30 if you set a lot of snaps. https://www.barrykingtools.com/product-page/snap-setter

I am looking to buy a machine to sew leather binding on some German weave carpet on a truck I am working on. I also plan to use it for some other auto ulpulstery (leather headliner, seat, etc). I also wouldnt mind doing somw leather work. I have never used a sewing machine so I will be learning from ground zero. I did some research and the Juki 1541s looks like a great machine. What do you guys think?

Totally Agree. The next project is going to be a small spray enclosure with exhaust for the house. Glad it helped kgg

Thank you for the link. Helped me find it in Amazon for the US.

My first laser engraver (of 3) came from a wonderful friend on here whom I'll leave nameless so people don't bug him for one or other stuff. He offered me a 3000 Mw machine for 50 bucks plus shipping. I love that little rascal. I also have a 10 watt . . . and another one is somewhere in the "in transit" stage. I have no problems with the 10 watt . . . cutting anything leather I want . . . and I even cut 1/4 or 3/16 plywood with it . . . engrave the plywood and do all sorts of funky stuff. I use an air assist which makes the edges look like they were cut with a super duper sharp but hot knife. One of my favorite things to do with it is cut out left over leather scraps for key fobs. It cuts the fob . . . pops the holes for the rivet . . . in two passes. I could do it in one . . . but backing off on the power conserves the life of my laser head and makes for a slightly better looking product. If I'm adding a name or logo or something . . . I do it first . . . then do the cut out. Logo and cut out are in the 3 minute category from blank hunk of leather in my hand . . . to the finished product in my hand. My 2 present machines sit on a 10 dollar second hand door about 24 inches wide and 6 ft long . . . 1 by 12's form the sides . . . and some of the top . . . plexiglass windows cover each machine . . . a fan is on one end pulling out the fumes . . . to a dryer vent hole in the side of my shop that leads outside . . . at the other end of the box is a hole slightly larger than the fan hole. There is no stink in my shop. I don't have my phone or I'd pop the pictures up here. I only have this one of the setp showing it from the end where the hole is. It is covered by the square of plywood with the drawer handle . . . and you can see the two machines inside. Basic corrugated cardboard it a good medium for practice to check your settings. I'll then do a cut out of one of the important areas of the burn . . . run it thru the machine on a piece of scrap . . . adjust as needed . . . an run it. All in all . . . laser engraving is not as easy as falling off a cliff . . . but each person has to learn on their own. One machine . . . using one piece of leather . . . and one program . . . will produce different results than whatever part of that equation changes. May God bless, Dwight

Thats pretty cool

Use your laser and mark the flesh side of the leather, easy peasy, no need for a template.

I use Lightburn extensively, not only to drive my lasers but as my premier pattern design tool. I don't use or recommend any Adobe tools. For CNC milling and 3D printing Fusion is my product of choice.

A basic laser can be relatively inexpensive but it is but a subset of what is required, IMHO. I use different lasers for various tasks in my workshop but I rarely burn images or text directly into leather for decoration as it degrades it too much for the items I make. YMMV. That being said, I do use a large diode laser extensively to cut card stock templates/jigs and marking the flesh side of leather for cutting etc. Marking the leather this way saves a lot of time as I don't need to scribe or trace the patterns onto the leather. The charring of laser cut leather can be a pita and cleaning it up takes longer than just using a knife or such. I strongly recommend having your laser in an enclosure to allow good fume extraction and prevent possible eye damage from laser light.

Nice setup. I use a DA Paasche for airbrush work with dyes and I have found that using denatured alky instead of isopropyl alky for dilution gave me better penetration and finish on vegtan. The main reason for using an airbrush is gradient coloring/shading and the sunburst finish on small items is striking. I'm unsure how this will work on shoes or other previously treated leather. Similar to you I apply a single coat of NFO minimum of 24hrs to vegtan before applying Fiebings Pro Dye cut to about 50/50 with alky. Absorption and even spread is quite good. As tests I did sectional cuts of 8~10oz HO and found I got better dye penetration on NFO treated than without. Having spraying chamber or doing this outdoors and using a good respirator is important.

All the sites I find these are Japanese. One name I found them under is pattern clip but I cant find them in the US

I moved your post to Dyes, Antiques, Stains, Glues, Waxes, Finishes and Conditioners since it is a finish for leather edges.

What browser are you using?

200 is a successful request, so that's an odd error. Maybe try again in a few hours. You'll need to make a new response to this thread.

Thank you. kgg

@Shoe repair daughter Go ahead and start again, since the edit window is closed on this one. I'll delete this thread as soon as I see the new post. I'll Follow you so I get notified of new posts. Thanks for taking care of it!