midwestislander

What a beautiful design, carving and dye/finish.

Looks good' She will be a very happy wife/mother.

Hey Oliver, beautiful bag. Nice execution. I am not telling my wife about seeing your bag yet, as I have another project I want to finish first!

takes talent to do a ball! nice.

Pretty interesting, especially the expanded view of the leather. Sometimes you look at the beauty of the piece of leather and forget about what it started out as. I better not use one of those magnifiers to look at my own skin.

One of the better looking holsters using kydex.

Thanks for posting the pattern. I know this will help many, and give others ideas.

Thank you, John. Not wanting to Hi Jack the thread, but wanted to say that before the Eric incident, dealing with John and Horween was a good experience with top products of its kind.

I was excited when they set up Tannery Row over a year ago. My good friend used to order from Horween and was referred to Tannery Row. Has had nothing but trouble when trying to deal with them. The guy that is supposed to be in charge (Eric) doesn't respond, is inefficient, never returns phone or emails. WTF.

Very clean design, nicely doneI liked the way the flap design integrate with the straps..

I have used pigskin for wallet pockets and exterior of credit card holders. The pigskin I have gotten are thin and works well in multi-layer applications. I have used it backed with 1.5-2 oz veg tanned calf.

Welcome. You definitely will find a reference point. There is a wealth of knowledge and skills that are available and willing to help. Just remember if you post something, that most of the members are busy with projects, businesses or other facets of their lives for an instant reply. They are a great bunch of people.

looks good!

pretty nice for being "whipped up the other day"

No, not too thin, good quality leather will withstand use...(abuse? depending if you are talking about hard use or dropping it in a shredder). your choice of type of leather has as much to do with that.

Welcome salty. you've come to the right place. Look through the "How do I do that" section, and the wallet subsection further down on the list. When you follow a link, at the end of the thread, scroll to the bottom and you will see a "related subjects" sections that will lead you to more posts about a (wait for it...) related post that others have questions about. Another good place to look at is the "critique my work" forum, where people (if they want) can get feedback about pieces they have done in order to improve. you will find answers to questions you didn't even know to ask about relating to what leather weights to use, dying, stitching, edging, finishing, etc. Good luck and enjoy, and be prepared to get lost in a search for perfection!

Yes, veg tan.

Don't know if you are still interested in 1-1/2 to 2 oz leather, but I order 1-1/2 calf from Garlin-Neuman leather (603-595-6319) A side cost less than $50 between 10-12 sq ft. Very nice, I use it for wallet pockets and interiors.The thinness makes it a lot easier to sew, dyes nicely and feels rich. I also use pig (and kangaroo when I can get the bundles from Springfield Leather), but I prefer the 1-1/2 calf from Garlin-Neuman.

What a bag! nice.

Really cool stuff. I like the different design innovations that you have done in blending leather and hardware. excellent.

Great read for the craftsman.

It looks to me like you use a soft, stretchy leather. If you don't go to a firmer leather, what I would do/have done is to apply clear packing tape (like used for sealing boxes to ship) or cheap self-stick shelf paper (doesn't stick as tenaciously - good thing in this case) to the back of the strips when you cut. The other thing I would do is to use a round end at the end of you insert cut. Like use a punch at the point o your cutout, then start your long cut from there. do you stitch around the insert?

I did notice that when the alcohol flashed off the Fiebings. so often I will use a light coat of neatsfoot or bee natural oil and let sit before dying. I also use fieblings carauba crème at the end of the project.

I Agree with all of the above. There are mistakes that are "acceptable", on a piece, but not up to the quality that we are striving for. The difference is what level you accept. Finish the piece, strive for perfection on the next. That appears to be in the middle of the piece so is not as apparent.

Looks really nice. Brain tanning your own leather gives you a greater connection to your work, doesn't it? Start to finish kind of thing.