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I can agree with everything except #3. I think the decision to build your own website, depends greatly on if you have the skills to do it. Just because you are pounding leather does not mean that that is your only skill set and that you can not create a great functional website. If you have no idea where to begin, nor the desire to learn, then by all means yes farm it out, but how can you just say "Don't build your own website"? If you use that logic then why craft handmade goods out of leather, why not just farm it out? We weren't born leather workers we learned and honed the skill and the same would be true for building websites. Comparing root canals and building websites is like comparing bananas to mangoes. A bad analogy IMO, and I like how confident you are that anyone that attempts to build their own website will "screw it up" as you stated. That statement couldn't be further from the truth. As a web Designer myself, I have seen a lot of horrid sites done by beginners, but I have also seen a lot of really great ones, also done by beginners. I am a Moderator on Web Design Forum and I get asked daily to critic websites. I tell them how they can better the site, and for those that are way off, I simply suggest they farm it out. You have to know your limitations. Building a website is not nearly as hard as people think as long as you understand and follow the simple rules. As for elance, and the other gazillion similar sites offering those types of services, make sure you do your due diligence. I have had several occasions where sites I made for clients were copied by members of elance. They copied the design layout, even lifted the images off my clients site, but what they did not know is that I hide tracking info in my images and if they are stolen and used elsewhere, I will know it! Karina oops...didn't realize this was an old thread when I posted.

I have the Leatherworking Handbook that "suggests" 4oz leather preferably from the side or the belly for making masks. I am new at this so I honesty have no idea if that is the best as I am simply just stating what is in the book. Hopefully someone that has actually made one will chime in here and let you know what has worked for them. Karina

I am new in the leather working world and I am having the same issue, even with one whole out of line it is noticeable to me so I purchased this gadget from Black River Laser on Ebay. I am working on a phone case now and it is a big difference compared to the one I did when I did not use this tool. Looks much neater and more professional looking to me. http://www.ebay.com/itm/140887893932?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649 Karina

Thanks, the pic helps a lot! Karina

Wow I bet that's nice. Getting a laser engraver has been on my list for 2 years now. I am looking at the Epilog. I have been playing around with tooling the leather and I am terrible at it so I was thinking that a laser may be a better way to go for me. I watched a few videos of it being done on leather and the finished product looked really nice. The stencil method you will be using is similar to what I am using now. My tooling looks like caca so until I get the hang of if, all my designs are either airbrushed or painted on using the aid of a stencil. I am just testing to see what works with the materials I have on hand before I run out and buy a new product. That is how I came to test out the sticky flock. I am thinking the wall vinyl will leave more residue than the flock but I will get around to testing this weekend to see if that would be an option as I have tons of it lying around the shop.

I found that odd as well since it does not leave one when using it on a flock station, but I just assumed it had something to do with the veg tan natural leather or something. (then again this is the same roll I bought nearly two years ago so it could just be old flock - don't know if this stuff goes bad or not) I used a leather cleaner I had on hand and a soft cloth and it wiped right off. On a side note I did use it to test a design for airbrushing onto the leather and it worked great. Clean crisp lines and the fine detail in the design was great. I am going to test vinyl wall decal next for airbrushing as that would be a much cheaper option.

This is just my opinion but I think that sticky flock, which I use on occasion for making rhinestone templates when my automatic rhinestone machine is busy with another project, would be a very expensive option for leather pattern making. Also because sticky flock is flexible, it has a tendency to give when tracing intricate designs which leads to distortion, and left adhesive residue on the leather when I removed it. At least that was my experience when I tried it although I was able to remove the residue. I tried it because I had scraps lying around but I definitely wouldn't buy it for the sole purpose of leather template making. Manila folders would be a much cheaper and easier option, and works great. Just imagine the amount of flock you would use to make a purse, briefcase, or even a wallet. JMO. What I have been doing lately for items that I will make over and over is using my cutter/plotter to print the design on craft paper first. (You can get a roll at Lowes for $7 - it is generally used to cover newly installed hardwood flooring and comes in several thicknesses.) I load it in the plotter just as I do a roll of vinyl. Then once the pattern works and all adjustments made, I will cut the template out on stencil blanks or card stock using the cutter. Much sturdier and won't distort and will have a long life. For one time pieces, I will be using the Manila folders as I already have so many in my office.

Thanks for the pattern, definitely something I can work on as I learn leatherworking. Do you have a picture of the finished project? As a complete newbie, it would help a lot to see a pic of the finished design so that I will have an idea of what it "should" look like.

For ideas check out Etsy.com and search leather camera straps, you will see many examples of how it can come together. Many of which use only leather for the entire project. I have a camera strap for my DSLR on my to do list as soon as I figure out what I am doing:).

I print my shipping labels through Paypal and the USPS website. (Where Signup is Free unlike Stamps.com) Also you don't have to go to the Post Office and wait in line, just schedule a pick up by USPS if you have the volume, or as stated above give it to your own delivery man. Also if you have the postage affixed to the package already, you can just drop it off at the post office or politely walk up and hand it to the worker while they are assisting another customer. They don't seem to mind and do it all the time in my area. You will be in and out in a matter of seconds. I have a scheduled pick up by USPS and they stop by my office every weekday between 3:30 and 4pm. Because I ship A LOT of packages, we have a bin next to the door with all out going packages. He walks in grabs the container, scans them all in with his hand held wand before he leaves so that the tracking will show that the Postal Service received the packages, throw his hand up and out the door he goes. I ship on average about 350 packages a month with the postal service and I loose about 10% so now all packages must have insurance, and I no longer just drop the packages in a postal slot and leave, they MUST scan it in. (By loose I mean USPS loose track of, misplaced, send to a different country, end up in someones car, etc.) If they do not have a record that they received the item, then they will not pay for it when it goes missing so I always have them scan it in. I order all my shipping supplies online at USPS and they are delivered to my Office by my postal carrier. As stated you get a small discount for printing online and free tracking which is the best part of it all. Karina

Very nice, how about a pic of the inside.

I have experienced that a few times lately too but I use Avast so when I attempt to click on the link, Avast alerts me of possible Malware and blocks the site from loading so my system is not harmed. Being that you your system was "locked in a loop" as you stated I do think that you may need a better Antivirus software installed. Avast.com has a free version that will do the job. Before installing I do think you will need to clean up your computer, if you do not have any experience go to bleepingcomputers.com which is a site dedicated to helping people cleanup their computer from viruses and they will get you straightened out. On the other side of this: I am a member of many forums and the moderator on several, and we have been getting these types of messages from members on several of the forums I am a part of and I honestly think it is more likely the website/Google that has been hacked not necessarily a virus on the users computer. (Although in the posters case I do think his computer is infected if it locks up the computer) I for one have gotten a Malware message when attempting to click on a link found in a Google search, and I know for a fact as an X-computer technician my computer is not infected. This only happen to me a few times when searching on Google, I did the exact same search on Yahoo and Bing and the links opened fine. If I had a virus on the computer it would do this regardless of what website/search provider I used, but it only does this when I click on a leatherworker.net link. Google is aware of these issues because people are screaming about it in the Google groups but of course they are pointing the finger at the user and doing nothing to help. Karina

Very nice bag, I am simply loving all the work you have posted.

Awesome! Thanks for sharing!

That is really nice bag!! Love it! :)

I would have to agree with all of the above post. I am new to leather working but I am somewhat of an old timer in the Apparel Decoration business, Embroidery, Screenprinting, etc, and I have gotten a A LOT of my design elements from coloring books from the dollar store, as well as subscriptions to clipart services. There is a clipart collection you can buy online (Amazon) for about $10 that comes with a 1 year free subscription to iClipart.com, and I also use graphicsfactory.com a lot too. Vecteezy.com is a good free one that I get design elements from as well. Do a Google search of free vector images and you will find a bevy of sites. Because I can't draw a lick (My stick people look fat ) I use vector programs and a graphics pen tablet to do all my designing, then print it out on vellum, then I can transfer it to the leather. My program of choice is CorelDraw, not because it is the best, but because that is what I first learned when I started my Embroidery business so I just stuck with it. I do have and know Illustrator but find myself going back to what I am most comfortable with and that is Corel. I am sure that if I had the skill to do it freehand with a pencil and paper I wouldn't need any of the tools I use, but since I was not blessed with such artistry, I get it done this way. The programs have a steep learning curve but once you get the hang of it, if you can imagine it you can design it. Good Luck! Karina

@TapTapTap, thanks for that info, I downloaded the ebooks of those two books you gave and will read through them today. @johnatl..To start I got a the regular airbrush kit. Not the deluxe one but the one under that one. If I get the hang of this then I will give this one to my son to use on his model planes and trains, and I will step up to a dual action gravity fed one. As for using a mask, I learned the hard way, I tested a few of the techniques given in this thread and I breathed in so much dye and glue fumes I had a headache all the following day and much into the night. My shop is 2100 square feet and I had the roof vents going so I surely thought I had enough ventilation but I pulled out my respirator and change out the cartridges and I am ready now. @JL Sleather I am hearing over and over how easy it is to do and for a person that has been doing this for a long time I am sure it is but for a complete newbie to leatherworking...not so much. My spray booth is scheduled to be here on the 5th so I will do some playing around on the weekend and post pictures of the results and hopefully I too will be saying how easy it is to do. Thanks everyone for sharing your knowledge, Karina

They are all lovely pieces and I sure those that received them as gifts were overjoyed.Beautiful work!

Thanks BillyMac. I found a spray booth on Ebay for $30 that has a fan & vent hose that vents to the outside so once it arrives I will give it a try. I have been watching tons of videos on airbrushing and I am thinking it will be much easier to achieve the look I am after as well. Thanks again, Karina

Thank you all for sharing and I have tried quite a few different techniques except the airbrushing technique and my skills suck big time. Everything I did looked like caca! (LOL) Too ashamed to even post the pics (ha,ha,ha,) I did pick up an airbrush kit but I was hesitant to use it in my shop around the other shop equipment. I am thinking I may need to build a booth of some sort to contain it, or go outside which I am not too keen on.(It's cold out) I did learn one thing though.....wear a mask!! I breathed so much contact cement and dye while tinkering yesterday I still have a slight headache. That won't happen again. I checked out the Springfield video mentioned above and I have some of that goof proof on the way as well as some leather because I am almost convinced this leather I got from Tandy is part of the problem. I am super new to leather working but I am sure leather is not supposed to be this rough and discolored. It feels like if I bend it too much it will snap in two. Again thank you all for your help and I hope to post a pic of the project soon (X'd fingers) Karina

Thank you very much Chief for the information, exactly what I was looking for. I guess I will pickup an airbrush kit at harbor freight tomorrow and test out on scrap leather as suggested. Thanks again, Karina

Thanks for the reply, I am not looking for the exact effect in the picture, my question is about the technique to achieve this look. I am making a bag and the dye I am using is mahogany. I want the outer edges of the bag darker than the center of the bag, my question is do I simply add more coats of mahogany to the edges or should it be a different color all together for example black. Also I am using Fiebings pro oil dye, is this the right die to achieve this look? Thanks, Karina