WinterBear

Can you post a picture? The folks here might be better able to give you an idea if they had a better understanding of what it looks like and what you are trying to do.

I've had more problems myself with stolen pictures by someone here in the States that from anywhere else. Not pictures of leatherwork, but of custom quilts, where they were trying to pass it off as their own work. Generally, the local sharps are more of a nuicance to the people around here anyways. For instance, in my neck of the woods, it's the start of Frontier Week and there are out-of-towners and hard-core tourists from all over, well, all over! There will be a lot of vendors and street-corner sellers who will be selling machine embossed belts as "hand tooled" to the tourists this week. A lot of laminated/bonded/poorly dyed leather/leather clone is going to be sold as high-end product. Jewelry too--a lot of "silver" isn't--nickle plate, electroplate over brass, and pot metal. And in the long run, that sort of product, and the seller who cheats the public, really hurts the local craftsfolk when they lose sales to tourists who wind up with an inferior product and then assume all of the products being sold are of that same low quality.

A lot of those types of picture thieves don't edit or crop the pictures, which is how that sort of monkey business gets reported. A good way to clue in potential buyers that they are looking at a stolen picture of another person's work is to put your website on the picture, especially where it doesn't interfere with the viewing of your item. Someone liking the work might decide to type in the address and find out that they were looking at someone who was pretending to do the work and will appreciate being able to find the correct source. It also makes it easier to get Facebook to have the account suspended as you can say "Hey! They are using my pictures of my work to entice customers to believe they are doing that work. See, there's my website/Facebook link on that picture." If you do mark your pictures for use on Facebook, you can also add the website or logo where if it is clumsily cropped, it will be noticed that a portion of the picture is cut away--such as having your website name placed diagonally across the corner of a picture. Removing that sort of mark by basic cropping will leave "chunked corners". In order to remove the mark, they'd have to Photoshop it, and most can't be bothered as if they are lazy enough to steal a picture, they are often too lazy to photoshop and will look for an easier mark to steal pictures from. For your blog, you can use some other tricks to make it harder for people to thieve pictures, depending on how it is set up. Some people directly edit the html to add java applications that prevent right-clicking, cover their pictures with a "clear picture", hidden-splicing the pictures into several pieces (so someone downloading and saving the webpage will only get a portion of each picture), and so on. None of these will prevent a screen capture though, so the watermark/website on the picture itself still can help there.

I'll wish you luck then and hope you find exactly what you need. It is no fun using shears that don't fit your hand. Have you considered contacting Ghinger directly and asking if they make the model you want in left-handed? http://www.gingher.com/static/contact/ Worth a shot as not every model they make is shown in their product catalog.

That is amazing. I can't even begin to fathom the man hours in this thing. That is incredible work.

Good luck. Oh, one word of warning. If you're looking to talk to FFA/4-H, county and state fair folk--be sure you aren't trying to talk to them during the week leading up to or the week of county/state fair. They'll be busier than you can believe and stressed to the max. Especially those in charge of getting county exhibits, exhibitors, and animals to state fair.

Yes, they do. Any place that carries Gingher scissors should be able to order them in (Part # G-8L). They are sold by Roberts Crafts online (http://robertscrafts...&ProductID=6851), amazon (http://www.amazon.co...11134671&sr=8-1), Kmart online (http://www.kmart.com...90000000080137P), Possibly your local quilt and hobby stores. I can't find an Australian source for the lefts, but they DO make them. (augh, forgot to look at the country again, sorry).

King's X has the right of it--lots and lots of self-help on here and I'm sure someone nearby will pop in soon. I have a few ideas for you based on what I can find locally and my experiences. Co-op Extension Service Agents, especially the liaisons for 4-H and FFA, and the local Boy Scout Council/Troop Leaders might be able to put you in touch with leatherworkers that teach the youth in your area. You might be able to find someone who'd be willing to teach in exchange for help at some of the youth classes and camps. Fair warning though--Be prepared for various levels of chaos if you go this route. Chaos and kids go hand-in-hand and the more kids, the more the chaos! (From personal experiences, I would avoid anything that would involve teaching those under 11 or 12 years old and teaching groups of youth larger than 5 or 6 youth per instructor. I also recommend a parent or other adult for every 5 or 6 kids under the age of about 15. Kids under 11 tend to get bored to quickly, while more than 6 at a time means a lot of horse play and not much actually paying attention.) Feed and Ranch Supply houses are also good places to wander into and talk to the owners and customers. Especially the Mom-and-Pop types. You'll know you have the right spot when you find the folks who make their own tack, wallets, and boots, or know who does make the stuff. Feed and Ranch stores are also great place to get things like saddle soaps, leather conditioners, and cleaners (lexol, lexol non-darkening, neatsfoot oil, etc.) if you don't have access to a leather store. Shipping costs on liquids can be a bear (no pun intended), so I buy the big bottles at the ranch supply down the street. Find the people with horses and you'll find the people with tack--and those who repair it, make it, and sell it. Talk to the DVMs, farriers, and blacksmiths. Find the local equestrians groups--they usually have a newsletter that sometimes lists classes that can be attended by the public. Horse shows, county and state fairs, ren faires, rendezvous (aka mountain man jamborees), rodeos...I seem to recall that Maine has Cavalry Reenactors? Reenactors, especially of the Civil War and Revolutionary War have makers that supply their gear or they make their own. While at these events, find a maker and see if they offer classes or would be willing to trade some instruction for some help. Ask about short-term "apprenticeships"--they teach, and you help with the work--watch the local labor regs on this though. Some regs require that a wage be paid and taxes collected, some don't as long as no money changes hands. (Several jewelers I know have done this to learn some of the more obscure techniques and the instructors are happy to have the help. Most of them don't mind teaching either, as each person tends to have their own style and will take what they learn and go their own direction with it, so direct competition with similar products is a fairly rare occurrence.)

I have also heard good things about Weaver, but haven't seen their goods yet. These guys were recommended to me when I was seeking thread for canvas repair: http://www.thethreadexchange.com http://www.thethreadexchange.com/miva/merchant.mvc?Screen=SRCH&Store_Code=TTE, and type in "138 thread" and it pulls up all kinds of colors in size 138 in nylon, polyester, kevlar, and nomex. I haven't ordered from them, but they use UPS and USPS and state that they usually ship same-day and don't have hidden handling costs.

If you cant find it in the hardware stores, many camping supply stores carry it too for repair of collapsible tent poles. Look for "shock cord", it usually sells for around $0.25 US per foot. Many craft and hobby type stores will also carry it if they have more than the simple "button and thread" types of sewing notions. REI currently has 1/4" black in stock (http://www.rei.com/product/624074/shock-cord-14-diameter-black-nylon).

Whoops! My fault, I forgot to look at your country Skald. Of course, differing countries have different regulations. All that garbage I posted was the general US regs. If you were to make your own castings out of sterling, and attach stainless snaps with a brass screw--then you could say "custom sterling accents with stainless steel hardware" and everybody'd be happy. I think the snaps might fall under the US exception of "any other joints, catches, or screws" anyway, and would fall under something similar in Sweden if I'm reading what I've found correctly. Have you considered using PMC? Some people have had good results with relief/bas relief work in silver, and production molding it by making a master "push mold" and firing the castings in a tiny kiln, similar to what glass workers use for beads. The items are a little more porous than a piece cast using the lost-wax methods or fabricated, but you can assemble pieces using a slurry mixed with water to make more complex forms, such as hollow filigree pendants, so it does have some advantages. I wouldn't buy "silver" anything off of ebay for those reasons. Or gold, gemstones, whatever. Better to travel to a gem and mineral show or visit the local jewelers who are well respected. But you can make money clips from sterling if you know what you are doing. You simply need a heavy gauge, proper working, and proper tempering. I'd give a link to Kathy's work to show a nice example set with malachite, but she's migrating her website and the pictures are still down. I'll be visiting Kathy next week and I'll ask her about how those things might be put together. Being someone who hand-makes her work from the ground up, she might have some insight on the methods and assembly.

Anytime. Wouldn't a wallet back make a much shallower purse though.Most wallet-backs I've seen are about 1/2 as long as the strip used in the purse pattern in that thread. To be semi-proportional, you might have to cut the wallet back in half along the long edge and make essentially a half-sized purse?

Sorry to hear that, that is really disappointing as I was considering buying from them. I think I'll buy from the bookbinders. Or bite the bullet and buy a whole spool from Zack White--they have a 1-lb spool. I'll probably save myself time and money in the long run, and could probably dye it myself using Ritz or leather dye.

I have not been able to find a reliable retailer at all, but this is what I have been able to find in my searches. Some specialty sewing shops carry it as a hand sewing thread, but they also have difficulty with supply and reliability from their suppliers. Cobbler supply houses are another source, and sometimes a local shoe-repair shop is willing to sell thread--but they are often only willing to sell 10 yards or less, or an entire spool--and the markup on a whole spool will make your wallet cry hysterically. Some bead stores also sell linen and flax threads, but usually only have waxed types. This is where you are most likely to find it locally, depending on the size and structure of your town and how "handicrafty" it is. I find flax/linen thread on ebay fairly often, but I try to avoid the threads touted as "vintage spools" as they are often heat/light/mold degraded and/or stained from being in a windowsill or a dank cellar for years. There's someone on ebay that sells clean 1-lb spools (1500+ yds) in 3-cord natural as well as 2-lb spools (2000+ yds) of 5-cord chestnut. They are currently out of black. Cost is $10 per spool, but shipping is about the same cost as the spool (http://cgi.ebay.com/Pure-Flax-Sinew-Linen-Thread-hand-sewing-beading-/110674971095?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item5f776a0a4b). A caveat: ebay seldom has new linen or flax thread for sale, and instead usually has old spools of dubious quality sold for collectors rather than usable spools for use by artists and craftspeople. New 60-yd spools in various colors can be purchased at http://www.oneoftheflock.com for $4.25, but I do not know what they charge for shipping. Bookbinder supplies usually have new unwaxed threads in different plys, but colors are often limited (see http://www.bookmakerscatalog.com/catalog/Threads/threadandtape/thread.htm for examples). Another source is mortuary and some medical supply houses, but you usually need at the least a wholesale license to purchase from them if not a medical/mortician license, and they often have minimums that need to be met. Miscellaneous sources include suppliers for pool cue makers, fly makers (tied flies for fishing), and handicraft suppliers for smockers.

Chewie? I like the name. One of the bears never went completely under, so he got nicknamed Chewie for the absent-minded gnawing of anything that made contact with his snout--the chocks, the dental elevator, the graduate student... The tooth detail is especially cute. I might have to make something similar for Mom's dog, only with a tennis ball clamped between two sets of choppers. Would you mind if I took your idea and ran with it?

I'm looking at those things on the websites and wondering if they are following the legal regs for anything sold as sterling, or if they are unintentionally misbranding. The snaps on those findings probably aren't silver, just silver colored, so the snaps as a whole may have an issue with being legally marketed as sterling--But, it depends on whether the snap would be an exemption and what the regs are in the state the business is located in. See, the jewelry industry is very tightly regulated as to what is allowed to carry the "ster." or ".925" quality marks. In order for a jeweler to legally market something as sterling, and quality mark it as .925 or ster., the entire "silver" colored portions of the object must be .925 pure silver by weight. That means any portion that is colored similarly or has the appearance of being colored similarly, (e.g., solder, coins, and most findings, stainless steel portions, some buckle hardware, etc.) must be offset by a certain amount of fine silver (.999 pure) so the item as a whole is 925 parts out of 1000 pure silver. A deviance of only 4 parts per 1000 is allowed. This also means that silver colored platings or portions also have to be offset, even if it is platinum--some fine silver has to be added to offset the platinum. The federal regs allow some exemptions (see below), but some states do not--if is it silver colored and somehow attached, the entire object must be .925 pure silver to be marketed as sterling. I believe the regs of some countries are even more stringent and typically do not allow for the exemptions listed below. Most jewelers I know will follow the "pure silver of my jewelery is .925 of the entire weight" and do not try to figure out which exemptions are and aren't allowed in each state, usually because they sell their jewelry in several different states or online. These jewelers offset the solder and findings added to sterling or coin items by adding weighed amounts of fine silver, usually in the bezels, filigree, or ear-wires, to make their item legally able to be marketed and quality marked as sterling everywhere. ---- § 23.6 Misrepresentation as to silver content. ( a ) It is unfair or deceptive to misrepresent that an industry product contains silver, or to misrepresent an industry product as having a silver content, plating, electroplating, or coating. ( b ) It is unfair or deceptive to mark, describe, or otherwise represent all or part of an industry product as "silver," "solid silver," "Sterling Silver," "Sterling," or the abbreviation "Ster." unless it is at least 925/1,000ths pure silver. ( c ) It is unfair or deceptive to mark, describe, or otherwise represent all or part of an industry product as "coin" or "coin silver" unless it is at least 900/1,000ths pure silver. ( d ) It is unfair or deceptive to mark, describe, or otherwise represent all or part of an industry product as being plated or coated with silver unless all significant surfaces of the product or part contain a plating or coating of silver that is of substantial thickness. ( e ) The provisions of this section relating to markings and descriptions of industry products and parts thereof are subject to the applicable tolerances of the National Stamping Act or any amendment thereof. Note 1 to § 23.6: The National Stamping Act provides that silverplated articles shall not "be stamped, branded, engraved or imprinted with the word 'sterling' or the word 'coin,' either alone or in conjunction with other words or marks." 15 U.S.C. 297(a) Note 2 to § 23.6: Exemptions recognized in the assay of silver industry products are listed in the appendix. Appendix: ( c ) Exemptions recognized in the industry and not to be considered in any assay for quality of a silver industry product include screws, rivets, springs, spring pins for wrist watch straps; posts and separable backs of lapel buttons; wire pegs, posts, and nuts used for applying mountings or other ornaments, which mountings or ornaments shall be of the quality marked; pin stems (e.g., of badges, brooches, emblem pins, hat pins, and scarf pins, etc.); levers for belt buckles; blades and skeletons of pocket knives; field pieces and bezels for lockets; bracelet and necklace snap tongues; any other joints, catches, or screws; and metallic parts completely and permanently encased in a nonmetallic covering.

Hi there. I found a stirrup purse pattern here in this thread: http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=1633 I've never seen a wallet-back stirrup though, so I don't know how to help ya there.

Hi wildrose/Holly, Do you have any other needs besides the swivel knives? I also work with youth and might have some stuff I could spare that you could use as well.

Yes, a flap would solve the problem nicely. I like this thread. I'm planning on making my own tool roll as soon as I get back from teaching merit badges at camp. I have it all sketched out and just need to start cutting and sewing.

I can offer some of my odds'n'ends of various latigo laces too. Most of it is in about 3ft lengths, but I have several pounds worth. I have a little blue (but it's not colorfast), some boot-lace type which is pretty nice, some off-white, and a deep dark brown. Lemme know if you want any before Friday--It's gonna be picked over by Boy Scouts working on merit badges, and I might not have any left after that!

You're talking to someone who has seen what Boy Scouts cobble together on the spur of the moment. You ain't gonna scare me!