Northmount

If it must be punched from the outside, take a short length of 2x4 or 4x4 wood. Round the edges down somewhat and use it. Punching into the end grain gives cleaner cuts generally than into face or side grain. I like the idea of punching from the inside better. Less work, less to have to hang onto while punching. Tom

Do a search. There are a couple threads here about the same problem. If I remember right, burying it in a bag of cornstarch removes oil. Takes a few days. Tom

Homedepot has several diamond sharpening "stones" like this http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=203381318&R=203381318#.UMU9BXy9KSM You need extra fine, so need to research a little to find the best. Also consider higher end woodworking tool stores. There are several threads here on sharpening swivel knives. Do a search for them. Tom

Very nice. Very neat work. Tom

Get a heater! My hands don't work at 33F. Bring what you need into the house as you need and take stuff back out before the next step. Lots of trips somedays, but a lot more comfortable. Things don't apply and dry as well in the cold either. I usually wear old denim jeans and shirt. When working in the garage/shop, I often wear an old leather jacket. I set the T-stat at about 63F, so it's a little on the cool side, but good for heavier work. Sitting doing close work, I raise the temp so my hands aren't cold. Tom Wood stove is a good idea if you have lots of cordwood or scrap around to burn. Used to use an old sheet metal wood heater ... sort of like a big tin can.

Is the edge truly sharp, faces polished so there are practically no scratches? Is the leather properly cased? Too wet is no good, and of course dry isn't any good either. Close up in-focus pictures of the blades both profile and flat, as well as of your cuts would help someone here to give you good direction. Tom

Great job. I like it. Now for the purse? Tom

Nice job, cute cat too! Tom

Looks great! Have you a view of the inside too? Tom

Thanks for the update. I think you are doing an extremely great job. Tom

Asked again last week. Do a search and you will find a lot of posts about wood stain and wood dye. Search box is in the upper right hand of your screen. Tom

Very nice, makes a bit of a tutorial for others interested in building their own wallet including the liner work. Will be much appreciated by many, not only for showing the steps, but fine craftsmanship too. Tom

You can make your own (if you can get the ingredients and I think you should be able to), take a look at this thread http://leatherworker...ipe#entry258687 Searching LW will probably find several other recipes too. And for an oil/wax finish, note the tip above to use a hair dryer to help melt it in, especially with any tooling. Saddle Lac should be okay as a spray ... so you don't have to rub it on. I haven't used it. As Sylvia has noted, an acrylic floor cleaner/polish cut 50/50 will work too. But needs to be sprayed on, else it can lift your water based dye as well when you are swabbing it on. I haven't had much luck with ordinary spray bottles. They spit too much instead of leaving a nice overall spray. An airbrush works well. You will find lots of info here if you do a search for airbrush. Tom

All finishes have a solvent of some sort. Lacquer finishes have a very strong solvent, acetone, toululene, or other similar chemicals. These strong solvents work really well at lifting dyes, especially water based ones. So as mentioned above, make sure the dyed area is really dry, at least 8 hours. Buff well to remove any surface pigments, then if possible, use a spray finish. Other options 1. Use a brush and paint your finish onto only the dyed area. If you have multiple colours, then clean your brush between areas and don't overlap. Let that finish cure and dry completely before applying your finish over the whole article. 2. Use a wax/oil based finish. Less chance of dissolving any surface dye. An option for cleaning up your problem piece is to flood it with lots of your finish, working fast so you can soften and remove the tinted finish, using lots of fresh rags or even paper towel, and keep adding new finish, diluting and scrubbing off the old finish. You should be able to remove most of the tinted finish. Acetone or deglazer will remove finishes too, though they tend to dry the leather out a lot and likely will give you a bad headache. Worse than the finish. Need lots of fresh air! Tom

You can check out the scrap bin at Tandy or other sellers a buy just the one piece you want. Scrap bag gets more pieces but might not have what you want and becomes more waste. Tom

I would remove the piece with the hole worn through so you don't have the loose edge or bulk getting in your road. Might be worthwhile to use one pair of gloves as parts for others. Palms and backs can be cut to whatever shapes you need. Good project for sitting watching TV. Tom

Anything you can lace can probably be sewen so don't limit yourself to sewing patterns. Various key cases, luggage tags, wallets, book slip covers, stitched edges on belts, etc. then you can move onto more complicated shapes ... Purses, bags, back packs, garments depending on your leather and machine types. Tom

Try acetone, dissolves many things. It is the solvent used for lacquer. As long as the threads are deep enough into the female half, you can grind or file it shorter. Fit it into a piece of leather to use as a holder. Might save some of your skin if you slip. Tom

These covers are looking really good. Nice to be able to etch meaningful photos on the covers. Gives clients a lot of options as to what "belongs" on their cover. Keep up the good work. Tom

Welcome. I'm from Calgary Tom

Here is one of his recent posts here: http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=43145&hl=blackthorn Tom

I should try that, scare the heck out of my grandkids! Unique. I like it. Tom

Very nice! Looks like you are having fun. Tom

Yup! PM sent.

Do a search here for wood stain and you will find a few posts. Also search for wood dye. More info there too. Tom