Rawhide

Thanks guys. I appreciate the confidence booster!!

Most folks that cut their own lace end up splitting it anyway, but for those who don't, a 2/3 oz should suffice. Marlon

Thanks Grumpy, I never thought the end was coming. The belt is 1 3/4" wide and it's just a tandy belt blank (so it's a hair thinner than actual 1 3/4"). The lining is a 2 oz calf. Marlon

Thanks for the compliments. The border was done with a Barry King 1/8 inch beader blade, modeling tool to finese it a bit. the Ceramic double line blade is way to small to create this bead. If you don't have a beader blade, you can cut one boarder line with a swivel knife, then use a wing divider to scribe a parallel line the width you like, and cut the second line with the swivel knife and round the bead with the modeling tool. Marlon

Whew! Yes I did. Thanks for the compliment. Marlon

You may have to cut your own from a side. Marlon

Thanks guys. I definitely see lots of room for improvement, but I'm happy with it. Marlon

Here's a picture of my belt. A lined and stitched basketweaved belt. Marlon

Here are a couple of new belts from Mr. Main. He gave me permission to post this here for you to see. Enjoy. Marlon "Hello, ...here are a couple of belts just completed. The top one is a 1 1/4" wide and is filigreed, featuring sterling silver and gold conchos...the first concho either side has a ruby. The belt below is 1 1/2" (not filigreed), and it also has sterling and gold conchos. The tips shown are just for fitting purposes...they will be replaced with new tips matching the conchos." Peter

It's the original formula of listerine. It's a brownish/gold color.

The diamond chisel is meant to punch through thin leathers. the overstitch wheel will not match the chisels. It's best to use one or the other. I like the overstitch wheel with a stitching awl because the diamond hole is much smaller than with the chisel. that way your holes disappear when you stitch through them. Marlon

I use distilled water as well because I have well water too. I figure the with the distilled, there's no chance of the water reacting with tannins or such and fouling the project. Marlon.

If you're antiquing, I say antique before you punch, because the gel or paste antique, gets into the holes and can be difficult to get out. Plus if you're stitching or lacing with light colored thread or lace, the antique will stain it. Marlon

No, no...those folks are calle wing separators!

WOW 24"!!! You must be making a 4 foot clock Bruce. I've got a pair of 4" friction dividers from Jerimiah and the pair they sell at tandy. Marlon

Ray you can also try this...take a farily large scrap piece and divide it with a marker into fourths dunk one end (one fourth) in warm water. Use a sponge to wet one fourth with plain water, a spray bottle with plain water, and a solution mix (your choice) on the last fourth, let them get to the point of carving and run your swivel knife through them all in a straight line without stopping. See which one has the least resistance. Then try some of your favorite stamps and see which burnish better. Happy carving. Marlon

I like the procarve for two reasons. The most important being mold prevention. The second, the smell. It smells good. I don't know much difference between pc and plain water. I have tried the lexol baby shampoo formula and I like it. Just haven't used it much. Marlon

I got this method from Peter Main. What it does for me is prevent me from having to add water. Once it's cased, I can carve and stamp a small to medium project, without having to re-wet it. Once you begin to re-wet, Leather tends to get a little harder to cut, Because the water, pushes out the fats and oils used to tan the hide. Not nearly as much as say a spirit dye, but if you use enough water it will dry out the leather. The glass is just a method to keep in the moisture for a long period of time, so if I'm carving and I want to quit, I can cover it with glass. the only way for the water to escape is through the edges of the piece, hence why I wet the edges with a loaded sponge. This will last for about a day, add a little water once a day and the piece can stay cased for a long time. I have use the refrigerated method and it works as well...Only problem is my wife thinks leather is "in the way" most of the time. Marlon

I usually mount my leather to illustration board to prevent stretch. You don't necessarily have to do this for 8/9 oz leather, but a 2/12 oz will stretch, no matter how little or how much you wet it. M.

I use Pro-carve Casing solution. I wipe with a loaded wet sponge evenly in one direction, then evenly 90 degrees to the previous direction. I do this until the leather quits absorbing very quickly. Once the leather begins to turn to it's natural color again, I place it under a sheet of glass (glass cutting board). I leave this overnight and it's cased. I can also maintain this cased state for several days by using a lightly wet sponge over the middle, and a heavily wet sponge to the edges, then back under glass. You can do this once a day and keep it cased. I have had a piece cased for over a week this way. Marlon

Twin, It is made with a real stirrup, just the hard plastic version, not the wooden ones. I'm sure they would work, but I use the plastic.

Thanks Art. I know what you mean about making things for yourself. It's hard to get anything done for you. Oh well, so goes the territory. Marlon

Craftsman, It is made from a pattern, but not a kit. I got it from hidecrafters. I can try and scan it for you if you like. It came with a video though that has construction information, but if you've covered a stirrup before, it probably won't be a big deal. ....thats why peter main is my hero!! DITTO!!!, He makes it look so easy, I aspire to be about half as good as he is. Marlon

thanks Tom. I notice that a fair amount of masters of our craft tend to do some scroll work on the interior of their projects. So I figure it can't hurt. Marlon

Here's another stirrup lamp I made for my uncle. I tried my hand a dying on this one, got a lot to learn with dying. Marlon