Beaverslayer

Yes that is definitely an ear ring. My sons tattoo shop sells all kinds of those. You can most likely get them at any tattoo shop or body piercing shop. Also, thanks for posting that link, I now have another idea to work with...and a ready supply of clasps...

Looks good Kevin...now if you had your shop set up in a tattoo shop like I do, that'd be a full sleeve by now...lol

You can get a small free sample of all 5 colors of Saral Wax Free Transfer Paper in a brochure that explains ways to use and how to use Saral Transfer Paper. To get your free sample, please send us a self-addressed, stamped (45¢) business size (#10) envelope with your request for a free sample to: Saral Paper Corp. Free Sample Dept. 400 East 55th Street, Suite 18B New York, NY 10022

Try punching the hole from the inside as you hold the helmet against your punch board.

Leather rings can also be wet formed over a wooden dowel of the appropriate size, it's a bit tough to do, but it can be done.

The heater you are using does not have sufficient BTU's to heath such a large area. What you can do, is hang a tarp so as to make a smaller area, kind of like a small room. Have it set up in a corner so it's against the two corner walls, then the heater may keep up better.

By putting my mark on my pieces, I hope that as time goes on, people will know by seeing my mark, that they are not only buying quality, but also the name.

electrathon, So would that make Louis Vuitton, Dolce Gabanna and Coach "Taggers"? The question was "what is the proper procedure for marking leather with a maker stamp?" In my opinion, it should be where the "Maker" feels it looks best, and will be visible so as people will know who made it. I for one, want people to be able to see I was the one that made the item, not have it hidden away somewhere where it can't be found. I guess it's another one of those things "To Each His/Hers Own"....

shadowryder, Very nice looking bag, love the color. Have you considered buying whole roo hides, dying it yourself, then cutting your own lace? It is far most cost effective than buying pre-made lace.

Great looking wallet Alex, love the little tutorial as well...thanks

Exceptional looking bag Andrew, very very well constructed. I am impressed, and would love to own one like that.

Looking very Festive Joe...great job.

Yes Dwight, I am with you totally on this one. I try to put my mark where I think it looks good on the piece, sometimes it's right there in your face, so to speak. As we all know, I have been on a handbag/purse making binge of late. All the "BIG" names in handbag/purses put there "Logo" in some cases all over their product. Look at Louis Vuitton, Coach, Dolce Gabanna and a number of others, and these guys sell them for thousands of dollars, and people buy them because the "Makers Logo" is right there....everywhere...all over the place. I am first, an "Artist" secondly a "Leather Worker" when I join the two together, I become a "Leather Artist", and all good artists sign their work....Simple as that...

I've found this new paper that is quite good at transferring your designs to your leather. Rather than using plastic film and a stylus and such, you can now do it before casing your leather. This stuff is very cheap as well, and can be purchased in sheets up to 18" by 24", they will also send you a sample pack for the cost of postage. Here's a link to another post regarding this stuff. http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=44300&st=0&gopid=277595entry277595

Well, we tried out that paper I was telling you about. It's called Saral Transfer Paper, and is made in the USA. Here's a link to there website, you can even order a sample pack that they will send you as long as you send them a 45 cent stamp. http://www.saralpaper.com/products.html Okay, here's pictures of what I did. As far as I can tell, there is no adverse effects whatsoever to the leather when using this stuff. It transferred onto the leather real easily while the leather was dry. Before I cased the leather, I tried to erase it with a "White" eraser, and it came off quite well. After I cased the leather, the design was still very visible and had not washed away in any spots. After cutting and tooling (just some quick tooling) there is no hint of the transferred image that I could see. Even if there is any left, this product is meant to be painted over without any adverse effects, as it is a "Non Wax" material. Here's pics.... We also think this may help us to "Tattoo" leather more easily. We are going to try that again next week.

Yes, very nicely done. The stitching is very good, and I love that color. Mom is going to be Happy, Happy, Happy...

Aurelie, Very nicely done, I love the turquoise lace, what kind of leather is that made from? Keep up with trying new things, you'll be amazed at what you can do.

Yes, it is made in New York. It is also erasable with an eraser, now that I remember what I read on the package. I'll be sure to give it a go tomorrow. And doing stamping with your granite on your lap, does not provide enough "solidness" under the granite to properly stamp...too much bounce in the flesh. I have an oak bar stool that I put a piece of granite on when I want to watch TV at the same time.

Johanna, just to give you all a heads up...my yearly bath is coming up, and I may need to take my tinfoil hat off to wash my hair. I'll try to give you all some notice, I thought I'd wait till after December 21st, just in case those Mayans knew something we don't.....

Nice picture....I like the design on the leather as well.

I was given a product today by an airbrush artist. It's a film paper that has a "washable" transferable ink of some kind on it, comes in 5 colors. He uses it to transfer drawings onto painted surfaces to outline where to airbrush. I'm going to try it out tomorrow on leather and see how it works. I'm thinking it is going to work real good. I'll post tomorrow my results.

One more thing that you can do, is, when you lace something and you have a foot or two of lace left over once you've completed a run, rather the throwing that short piece of scrap lace in the garbage, save them. This way you will always have pieces of different lace to try your new ideas with actual lace you want to use. Scrap can be so handy and helpful...

Charles, First off, welcome to the forum. Rather than printing out your design, then using carbon paper (which is a bad idea) get some Overhead Projector Film from any office supply store. These days they are all made to be able to print on. Then you can use a stylus (pointy end) and transfer your design that way to your project. Just remember..printed side up when transferring, and be sure your leather is cased first. You can use the same piece of film again should you so need to.

When I want to try a new lacing style, I'll practice by punching holes in some poster board, then use the lace I want to use when I do the real thing. Once I have worked it out, I just cut the poster board apart and still have my good lace to use on the project.

Maybe if you post your pics to Facebook, then you should be able to post a link to them through this site....just a thought.