NVLeatherWorx

You can contact the maker and see what they say about it but, unless the item is truly registered and/or patented, there isn't much stopping you, or anyone else, from making something like this and moving forward on it. The key to true protection of your works is attached to the expense of actually registering them and obtaining a patent/Trademark/Copyright on them; merely saying that your works are protected without having anything legal to back it up does not prohibit one from copying it. As a professional courtesy you should always respect the works and creativity of others and, in the event that you "copy" any of their designs, you should give them credit when doing so. I would however bet that if you were to search the Internet a bit more that the vary design that you have linked above is available from several different sources in one fashion or another so that would not make it a unique item which would make it that much easier to create your own version of it.

I "watermark" everything just so it is known who it belongs to. I have actually found some of my "watermarked" images being used by another local weekender and had to shut it down because he wasn't even following through on most of his requests and I wasn't about to get my name dragged into that mess.

Resolene will not waterproof the leather, it helps to protect the leather from the elements but it isn't waterproof as it itself is a water-based product. Waterproofing only comes from using products that are labeled as such or those that you can make yourself just like so many of us do. I use my own blend of beeswax and Pure Neatsfoot Oil and it can pass the test of being waterproof, the water actually runs right off the leather and doesn't even bead up. There are several sources for a recipe for such things via the Internet and they are not hard at all to make if you have what you need. Several of us even make it to sell as an add-on item to our leather goods. Just remember, you can't stop water with water. And when you get the chance, drop the use of Eco-Flo products as soon as you can; they are not good at all and there are plenty of stories to support this throughout these forums.

Stitching/lacing should always be your last step in an assembly process as you don't want to get any of the coloring/conditioning/finishing liquids on the thread/lace. You should always allow your leather to dry completely first (24 hours is a great start) then apply your conditioning agent, Pure Neatsfoot Oil is the best product for this (no compound oils/commercial conditioners) and then let cure/set for at least 8 hours (12 to 24 is better). Once your conditioning has cured give the leather a good buff and then apply your coloring (spirit based products give the best results and are permanent, water-based products don't penetrate and create a huge range of issues for users and not really as eco-friendly as they may advertise) and make sure to follow the manufacturers instructions not those of some "internet guru" with a YouTube channel (they manufacturer made the product and tested it immensely so they pretty much know what works and what doesn't work) followed by a good drying time (8 hours minimum, 12 to 24 is better). Buff off any excess color/pigment and then apply your top sealer (water-based products are common but are NOT water proof, they only provide some protection against UV but not much); beeswax/oil blends are a great practice and they are either readily available or can be made very easily, they also provide the finished leather with a true waterproofed finish as well as the features of protection and additional conditioning. Once all of this is done you can stitch/lace until your heart is content without any real issue with impacting the color of your thread/lace, as long as you have buffed off all of the excess pigmentation/color, and make sure that your hands are clean when working with the thread/lace.

The Hide House in Napa, CA is where I get my stuff from because they have a selection of much more than just simple leathers. They are supplier to the designer leather goods and medical industry so they carry a huge range of leathers. I get all of my H.O. leather from them and their European sides (From England) are some of the finest foreign sides you will find. Their website is: www.hidehouse.com and they are very quick to get your order out. They also offer wholesale pricing for anyone who has an established business (licensed of course) and you can download or request a catalog from them as well.

You should be applying it with a dauber, sponges don't give you the right application surface to get a good penetration. This whole thing of using sponges for applying everything and the constant failure of researching a question before posting it (because these issues are rehashed over and over again on just about a daily basis in one place or another here) are the biggest reasons why these issues continue to plague everyone. If you want a solid application of product then use the proper application tool: Dye/liquid stain = dauber Top Coat/Finish and Oil = synthetic/sheepskin pad Antique Paste = sheepskin pad Fine/Detail coloring = proper sized paint brush Edge finish = modified dauber (should know how to do this) Products that get proper results: Spirit based products give best, and most consistent, results without question. These products have been around much longer than any water-based products and have a proven track record the world over. Water-based products are just somebody's "feel good about themselves" idea of trying to make people think that they can do their part to "save the world", well, it doesn't need to be saved because there is nothing wrong with it and these products DO NOT provide a quality result (as is repeatedly addressed within this community). If you are looking to make quality finished goods then you need to use quality raw materials and supplies to do so, trying to create quality from garbage has already been tried and has failed repeatedly, it is what we call "mass produced" and is found everywhere that our client base THINKS is out to help them better their daily lives by bringing them "value" when all they are doing is bringing them stuff that fails quickly and needs frequent replacement. A professional should be striving to bring change to that thinking by providing a product that is intended to outlast that crap that is typically purchased.

First of all, which upper right? The background on these is actually done with matting tools and not traditional background tools. If you go to the Tandy website you can look at their stamping tools and will find exactly what you are looking for.

I haven't; I get all of my leather from Hide House. He just started carrying the hides recently so I am not sure how well it is going for him with those. I have been working with Hide House for over 5 years now and really don't see myself going to someone else (unless they were to close shop of course but that doesn't seem to likely in this Century). If he puts his attention to the quality into the leather as he does into the hardware then I would think that they would be pretty darn nice; I know the one's I get from Hide House are very clean and take all of the work and dyes beautifully. For me they are just over the hill from here (literally about a 4 hour drive for me; kind of make a day trip out of it as they let me come into the warehouse and pick my own). For you, Buckle Guy is much closer so your shipping would be much less.

Although Buckle Guy does in fact receive his stuff from overseas, I put all of my hardware orders through him as everything (regardless of finish) is solid brass and of much better quality than any of the other sources (to include OTB, which I do use for other things). Buckle Guy also is a supplier of Tiger Thread (for those of you who care) that can be purchased in larger quantities than the more traditional sources (tired of those stupid little "dowel" spools, BG actually has it in bulk). Highly recommend Buckle Guy if you want to have quality and he also does offer quantity discounts. Shipping is fast too and spot on with order fulfillment.

If you use the Horween as the back (the exterior) then the current weight that you have is just fine. If you decide to do some stamping or tooling you can do it with 3 to 4 oz. but the design will not be very prominent so the better choice would be to use a 4 to 5 oz. veg-tan back for a deeper impression and more definition. I would not recommend going any thicker than that for anything that is intended to folded and carried in a pocket as it will be very stiff and bulky for the user and it really isn't necessary. So far, your thinking has been pretty spot on and good luck with your project; keep us posted as to how it comes out too.

Anyone can label anything with what they want but Tandy hasn't imported much from Europe, especially quality, for a very, very long time; they import from Mexico and South America and that is pretty much it. I have seen some Ostrich skins that have been identified as being from Australia yet the birds were actually farm raised and processed in Argentina and never saw Australia, so there it is. If you look at what Tandy tries to push they make it sound like all of their leather is drawn from the United States yet they don't use anything that is tanned within the U.S.; some of the hides may be from U.S. cattle but the bulk of them are actually pulled from the sources in Mexico and other South American regions where they are raised. Another example is the Python skins that you can find from the various sources, they are actually farm raised outside of the actual jungle yet everyone believes that they are authentic Amazon Jungle Python as advertised; they haven't even seen the Amazon Jungle. Truth in advertising is myth. If you want to obtain authentic foreign leathers and materials then you have to go to the source for them to ensure proper quality and product. Italian leather of any good quality is much more expensive than most here would ever pay (I know, I have some from Italy) and I know what Tandy sells and how they source as I have been in this trade for over 40 years and have had several conversations with staff, both store and exec levels, over those years as they have changed from what they once were to where they are now. It is all about marketing and getting every dollar they can from the buyer, nothing more. Ever wonder how they can run such deep discounts on some of their products when they go on sale? It is because they have such low costs in their materials because of where and how they obtain them that they are still making money on them at a very good margin. None of the quality suppliers and/or tanneries can do that because they are actually using the finest raw materials to create the finest finished products for use in the industry and their margins are no where near what you might think, and that is why you don't see high quality go on sale like you do at a Tandy store. You can also request a mailed version of their catalog from the Hide House if you don't want to download the PDF version and, if you doing this as a business operation, they offer wholesale pricing to those who have a registered business operation. I have yet to have an issue with anything I have received from them so far and I use a tone of veg-tan per year (actually, more like 785 pounds but who is counting).

Actually, it isn't made in Italy, it is just called Roma for naming purposes to identify that is tanned following the ancient slow-tanning methods is all but it isn't that either. It is a fattier cowhide that has been tanned in South America using a non-Oak based formula that is common for that region. I will admit that the grain structure is much cleaner than the rest of what Tandy sells but it isn't what it is perceived to be. Springfield rarely uses HO #1 for pre-cut pieces but they do use it for their top line belt straps; the pre-cuts are from ether their Craftsman HO line or their B-grade HO product line (which is 400% better than anything Tandy offers). I typically source my leathers from The Hide House as they carry the H.O. line (and it is the best I have ever received from anyone yet and matches the A-grade from the tannery) as well as some very fine (and very affordable) imported premium veg-tan that they pull from England and France where they really do slow tan the hides in open pits over a period of several months (and this the true Old World method of vegetable tanning). They also carry some leathers that are sourced from around the globe as they are the primary supplier to the designer leather goods industry.

Expensive it is but quality it isn't. Tandy hasn't been dealing in quality leather for a very, very long time and when they did (just a bit over a year ago they were trying to provide HO to the market) their pricing was so far off from what was available from literally every other supplier out there that they had to drop that program within a mere handful of months. There isn't really a single leather that they supply that can't be purchased from another source, in a much better quality, and at a much better price. They may not be called the same thing but that is just what marketing does, draws you in with a catchy name or powerful description but the reality is that the product has several different names.

I think they carry it in the European supply chain but when they did have it here it was way more expensive than any other source for it was; in fact, the Elite/Business price was still above what you would be charged as a regular customer elsewhere and I have wholesale pricing with everyone. The math on that one just didn't jive too well.

I think this has been pretty much unanimous that there is life after Tandy and that life is good.

Anything is dyed/stained with a water-based product is 100 more susceptible to staining from water, humidity, sweat, etc. than items that are stained with a spirit based dye/stain. Water based products do not have the same penetration and setting factors as a spirit based product and, unless they are totally sealed with a proven water repellent sealer, this is what can happen. It does make a difference with the materials you use as to whether or not the finished product will maintain the look that it had when you finished it and does make a difference which product base type you use. There are so many new, and some experienced, leather workers who think that using Resolene, or Satin Sheen, or anything else like that will keep this type of thing from happening and there are several responses to this requests for help that clearly identify that you can only prevent such a thing from happening if you waterproof the item; there is no such thing as a water based waterproofing agent. It also makes a difference on the order by which each ingredient (for lack of a better term) is added to the leather. In the case of the OP's issue the order in which everything happened is a bit off. From the information available, here is the order that things should have been done: Let leather dry completely (24 hours recommended) Apply Neatsfoot Oil (Pure Neatsfoot Oil, compounds do not provide adequate conditioning and the chemicals that make it a "compound" have the reverse effect on the conditioning); let dye completely (24 hours recommended); repeat if needed Dye/Stain/Antique - let dry completely (24 hours recommended), repeat if required. Seal - if finished item is NOT expected to be exposed to excess moisture/humidity then this should be okay; this includes any wallets that will not be at risk of absorbing heavy sweating when carried/worn/used - or - Waterproof - if finished item IS expected to be exposed to excess moisture/humidity; this also applies to all wallets/bags/ etc. that will be at risk of exposure to heavy sweating when carried/worn/used Applying any conditioners after a sealer/waterproofing agent has been applied has no result as it now has nowhere to go but just sit on top and slowly rub off or evaporate.

In essence they do the same thing so using one as a second coating over the other is not doing anything that can't be achieved by two coats of one product.

You will have to check the size of the blade post against the size of the barrel fitting to see if they are compatible. This is the reason why it is best to shop for your tools in one place so you aren't trying to guess what will work, you will know what will work.

Mine are all Craftool and have been around for awhile but the diameter of my blade shafts fit even the basic swivel knife barrels. Tandy sells a similar product that is about $24 each. If you go with an Osborne tool then go with the #446 adjustable knife so you can have a proper and comfortable fit. You can also take a look into the ergonomic swivel knives and see what you think. Always get your blades from the same source as where you got the knife, it makes it easier to get the right one.

I would base my decision on the level of activity you plan on applying to the craft. For example: if you are just learning to work with leather with the goal of making a few things here and there for friends, family, and maybe a craft fair or two then I would go with the less expensive versions of swivel knife such as the Deluxe Swivel Knife variety sold by Tandy and just about every other leather supplier. It is just what a beginner needs and has the added advantage of being adjustable for comfort and fit (and yes, this does make a difference once you start working more with carving and tooling). If you decide to make this more of a profession then you can upgrade to the more expensive versions which may, or may not, offer a few more advantages. I have been using the simple, silicone coated, ergonomic knife bases for years and I continue to enjoy them; they are comfortable, adjustable, and work very smoothly without all of that over exaggerated hype that is intended to justify the price. It is true though that the blade is the most critical element of the overall knife because if your blade is not made from quality metals you find that it doesn't hold an edge very well and you will constantly be stropping it to get through a project. All of my blades are high carbon steel hollow-ground blades that hold an edge very well and allow me to get through quite a bit of carving before I even have to consider putting it to the strop. My blades cost just about as much as my knife base but then again, I do this professionally and understand exactly what difference a quality blade makes. And, as you are thinking, I do have a separate handle for each blade that I use as there is no reason why you can't have it that way if you select your knife barrel based on need and not hype.

The best product to go after if you are looking for acrylic's is to use the Cova-Color products, they are specifically engineered for coloring veg-tan leather. They can be purchased from Tandy (they are under the Eco-Flo brand), Springfield Leather, you can even get them directly from Fiebing's (the original maker of them). I am sure that you can find them from just about any leather craft supplier (and I recommend that this is how you try and source your materials and supplies as they target those things that are intended to be used in this trade).

You are most welcome.

There is a neat little trick that is geared towards preventing the issues of stretch/shrinkage and that is to attach a firm backing to the flesh side of the leather and letting it set before you start anything else. For project the size of what you are looking at one of those thin little kitchen mats (the flexible plastic kind) would be a great start and you can get them pretty cheap at most big-box stores. Just apply some adhesive (recommend rubber cement) to both the mat and the flesh side of the leather, let it set a bit until it is tacky, and then attach them to each other. Once it has set, maybe 3 to 4 hours, you can case your leather and start your process. Once you are finished with your tooling leave the leather on the mat until it has completely dried; having the firm backing will keep the leather from stretching during your tooling and leaving on until it has dried will keep it from shrinking. I even do all my staining while it is on the mat just to make sure that everything stays in place. Once you are ready to start your assembly just peel the leather from the mat (be careful and take your time); you can then remove any remaining rubber cement easily and set the mat aside for later use. Any adhesive that remains on the leather will be no issue anyway because it is either going to be attached to some other surface (in your case) or will be lined with a thinner leather or other material.

A word of advice to all who read this: although it is in our nature to find the most cost effective way to go about treating our crafting, whether for hobby or professionally like myself, there is one very steadfast rule that should be followed and that is: unless a product, regardless of what it is, is specifically engineered and manufactured for the use on leather you should not be using it. Standard products that seem like they would work can have a very serious adverse effect on the leather which will lead to issues down the road and a very, very upset customer. Do yourself a huge favor and just stick with the stuff that is supposed to be used on the leather and you find that you can stand behind anything you make with a guarantee of quality that is unheard of from other sources. For the most part, the products and materials may cost a bit more but the quality is much better and that is what gives an item value to both the maker and the customer.

Being as it is tanned with natural products (and in this case natural means just that) and the fact that I have been inhaling this "man cave" aroma for over 40 years without even a sniffle (medically documented) I would that there are no side effects from the smell of fresh vegetable-tanned leather aside from the feeling of being lost every once in awhile in a world that is not known to others. Short answer: no, it is perfectly safe; even your dog can chew on it without any issues. It is just plain old cow skin.