oaksidesaddlery

That looks like the back of single-hand stitching. What does the other side look like? Haven't got a clue about the thread. It looks well waxed! Si

Oops! I think I started something there! Lets try and answer and explain some of these points. My reply is the traditional way of making straps (a belt is a strap). The traditional way is exactly as I said. It is definitely not wrong Dwight. Let me explain. Many, many, years ago the local leather worker/saddler/harness maker, gets an order for a leather belt. He goes to the local blacksmith and asks for a buckle two inches wide. Some days later the 2 inch buckle arrives. Quality control not being the same then as it is now, the saddler doesn't know how wide it really is because practical rulers haven't been invented yet! So he marks his bridle butt leather the width that will fit in the buckle and cuts his belt strap, squares the end, makes his loops with a bit of the off-cut and stitches the buckle in to place. Using the customers' old belt the saddler knows how long to make the new belt and marks what will become the middle hole. As he has no ruler or divider he picks up the off-cut and uses the width of the off-cut to mark some holes before and after the first mark (5 because it looks right) at the point he uses the width of the off-cut two and a half times (again because it looks right) and cuts his point. This method is what I use whether I am making a belt, dog collar, or a bridle. That's not to say that everybody has to do it, it is just an example of the traditional method. Try it you might find that you like it. That is the beauty of hand made – you can make what you like! Hopefully that makes sense. Chief, I trained for 5 years in saddlery and harness making, hardly anything was written down it was all practical. There are a couple of good books around, check out 'saddlery and harness making by Paul Hasluck' it is old, originally written early 1900's difficult to understand for a novice (and for a professional!) It gives no measurements what-so-ever and is all “take a piece of leather and cut it to the desired length”. An easier series of books are by Robert H Steinke. He covers hand stitching, tools, and some projects, makes for a good read. Si If you want to check out my stuff then visit oaksidesaddlery.co.uk and oaksidebelts.co.uk

I make quite a lot of padded items. They can look good, but they are a pain to make as the padding moves so much! I use neoprene about 5mm thick as the padding and a variety of thinner leather to wrap around it (upholstery, basil, and the like). I will tack stitch this at the back to stop it unwrapping. You wont see these stitches as they lie between the two pieces of leather. (trade secret.... use double sided tape to hold it together). Think about how you want to finish the ends of the padded part as this makes a lot of difference to the finished article. Hold (stick) the padding to the front and stitch together. To get a rounded effect to the front either skive the back edges down where the padding will be leaving it full thickness along the middle, tapering to half thickness along each side. Wet it and then, use a rolling block and a tool handle push the middle down until the back is level. (not sure if that makes any sense). Or the bridle in the picture has a smaller piece of leather inserted between the padding and the front to make it raised. Hope that helps Si

The technically correct and traditional end length is 2 1/2 times the width of the belt. This is from the last hole to the point of the belt. In fact to keep traditional, belts should have 5 holes space the width of the belt apart. The middle hole being the desired length and the two either side for show. There should also always be an odd number of holes. If the belt is very narrow then maybe punch 7 holes to ensure you have enough spare length. Si

Double sided sticky tape works well