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Everything posted by Sylvia
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Thanks for the recipe. It is interesting to me that you recipe is similar to Fiebing Dye Prep. Which is basically water, grain alcohol (everclear) and sudsy Ammonia. But I find that the dye prep seems to draw random dots of tannins to the surface.
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I'm going to fall over if you tell me that you saddle stitched that by hand, Luke. It looks really nice...
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N00B Question About Identifying Leather
Sylvia replied to OldManDan's topic in Leatherwork Conversation
Well, since it's summer... why not try to make yourself a pair of sandals? Here's a link to an e-book on how to do it. https://www.leathercraftlibrary.com/p-1153-sandal-making.aspx? -
ha! Well at least you don't have to worry about her stealing it from you. Happy Birthday.
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It should be noted that Gum Trag can act as a slight resist. (It's also used in dying fabric with indigo dye to create a lost dye effect) Dye doesn't penetrate it well and I don't believe that it has enough tooth to allow acrylic paints to grab. Slick with saddle soap and water. (wet, soap, slick) Then experiment with some scrap with different acrylic paints. Spinner uses model paints for his projects... and they are beautiful... then seal the whole piece with something like resolene, Good luck I hope you find the perfect solution.
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Blues: I also had trouble with that.... gribbles are an issue... but I also found that when my granite piece's cut edges were not filed down, I would get scratches from the rough edge of the granite as I moved my piece. I've since ground, sanded and filed those edges over... rounding them off.
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Yw... the resolene can be thinned up by 20% (8 parts reso, 2 parts water) that will help control the shine a little. Don't forget to role your leather to the skin side to get the wrinkles.
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CC: Depending on the guitarist...... there's gonna be sweat. You'll want something like your sheen to protect from that. You can dye through saddle soap so basically it would be the same as fresh veg tan. With my distressed strap, I dyed then sanded the wrinkles you saw... then re-oiled... allowed that to dry... then put resolene on it when that was dry, I re-sanded lightly.
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Traditional Buckstitch is done with white or cream leather thong (lacing). Tandy has discontinued carrying it but you might get lucky and find some in their clearance bin. There is one source still available... just have to remember who it was. Ok, here you go... http://y-knotlace.com/yknot-store:21568/show/id:25676/ You'll also need a "Thonging" chisel or two (typically 1 tine and 4 tines) and a locking lacing needle. Have fun!
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I'm pretty sure you can rewet a raw hide to finish the work. I know of another forum that has some pretty good instruction. Check your PM (upper right) I'll send you the link.
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You may find your Teen will balk at the idea at first, but if it becomes a chore that he or she does on Tuesday and Thursday evenings... it won't interfere too much with their social life and if they get a small wage for their efforts they will be more amenable to the idea. If you choose to do this, the first few shipments will require your overseeing the process, print your shipping labels and packing lists, show them how to set up their work area and to check off the items as they go in the box. (when it comes time for them to have a real job in the real world... they will have something to put on their resume. :D ) You can recruit your little one too. He or she can help with some things like sweeping up the shop, emptying garbage, sorting scraps, etc. Make sure they know that the more they help dad during the week, the more time you'll be able to spend with them doing something fun on the weekends. Be sure you let them know they are doing a great job... that little bit of praise will go a long way toward their self esteem.
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The Next Victim! Vintage Tele Wrap And Tool!
Sylvia replied to chancey77's topic in Musical Instruments
I think I have an idea that might work. You have those conchos carved in... so why not carve or stamp a Diamond Shape (like on a deck of cards) in between each of those. Heck you could alternate each of the cards symbols in between the conchos.... so it would be Concho, Diamond, Concho, Club, Concho, Heart, Concho, Spade.... that might be a bit much but you could just go with diamonds or spades.... -
The Next Victim! Vintage Tele Wrap And Tool!
Sylvia replied to chancey77's topic in Musical Instruments
Chancy Have you considered making leather bullets? Wet form them and glue/sew them on? I personally like the sides the way it is now with the carved conchos. Sometimes less is more..... -
Good Golly, Art... you feeling ok? I imagine most good folks would realize these things happen and move on with life without feelings of being "miffed?" And if they are a reasonable and positive person who feels they need to, they could just give Tim a call to see if he is willing to honor the Father's day price. If he is great.... if not, oh well. Syl
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Wow! $110 for Father's Day? That's a good deal. (Normally $140) I still can't afford one right now.....
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Ah... the ever present Work-Live debacle. The only way to do this is to decide that you must have some time off. These are days you choose to NOT work. That means no regular job AND no leather work or related things. I recommend scheduling yourself 2 days OFF a week... and recruit others to help you so you can take the time off. If you would normally ship 6 days a week for instance. Change that to 2 times per week. Just simply say... I ship Wednesday and Friday and let it go at that. That alone will help you "find time" during the rest of the days. But remember if you make a schedule... you have to stick to it. If you have a teen in the house... train them to do the shipping part. They will gain knowledge of how it is done and you will gain a helper. If you are the food preparer in the house.... use your crock pot more. It doesn't heat up the house and 10 minutes in the morning while you make your coffee can yield a pot roast supper in the afternoon. Also think about how you can turn this "roast" into a second meal the following day. You'll not only save time, but you'll also save money. Use your regained time off to do something fun. Go to a movie, go for a hike.... get out and go fishing! Good luck.
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Ray: Just like any machine it takes some time to learn to run. As the others have said... start slow, practice on scrap, keep the fingers out of the way.... but don't be too afraid of it. It's just a machine. As for High Speed internet. You might want to consider Satellite DSL. Here's a link to one provider. http://www.hughesnet.com/residential-satellite-internet/plans.cfm 1mbps is plenty of bandwidth to watch some videos online. sylv
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LOL! Cute little buggers.... and I think it was prudent of you to increase the distance between you and the little guy.
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LOL yes even the oldest sewing machines foot controller will do the very slow stitch.... they are all variable resistance controllers. Only the "industrial" clutch motors are full speed or off. And, no you are only supposed to do simple things until your skills are strong enough to do the more elaborate ones. In the old days of live-in furniture maker apprentices... the apprentice's first projects were small... a tool box... a stool... until they were skilled enough to be trusted with a small table... years later they were skilled enough to do elaborate pieces. Baby steps... stretch your skills a little each time. Don't dive into the deep end... until you can swim.
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I really like the yellow and black one with the little corset
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Try to keep it simple CC... don't get too elaborate... because it will only end up frustrating you, yet again. The covered bridge could be drawn with a ruler, fairly easily. You don't have to include the picnic part.
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Living in the heart of summer: I suppose that could mean many things to many people. I'm going to list a few that say "summer" to me. Maybe that will help. Camping fishing swimming wading gardening, flowers, fruits of the garden copper tone babies Kids running through sprinklers Lemonade stands Cherries and berries Covered bridges ocean, lakes and river scenes
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I guess folks are having issues getting started on this one.