MochaMint

Well I guess to start I'd be making untooled or minimally tooled bags and armor from simple patterns I can find online. I liked the relative simplicity of the wet-mold design bags I've seen so far. My budget... Well I wouldn't like to spend more than $200 max on an initial investment, later on when I have more hours/another job I can spend a little bit more. I might also be able to get friends to make some 'donations' in exchange for making them things eventually.

I've decided to give leatherworking a try. This year I started LARPing (Live Action Role Play) and I'd like to work my way up to makng authentic bags and armor that I can use myself and sell to friends in the community. I already make jewelry and chainmail but I'm interested in expanding my skills as far as crafting goes. Right now I'm wondering what kids of tools and materials I should buy for practice and starter projects. I'm a college student working part time right now so I don't want to spend more than I have to, but I'm willing to invest the right amount of money on some quality tools. I guess what I'm asking is what tools do I need for bare minimum leatherworking, plus some basic design tooling and sewing? I can always buy more later if I want to do something else, but I don't want ot spend more than I have to getting started at this time. Also, what kind of leather should I be starting out with and where should I buy these things from? Any other knowledge you can share would be great, I still dont know much about the different kinds of leathers and thicknesses and whatnot. Thanks in advance for any help!