Hi all!
Thought I'd might as well introduce myself...
I'm a norwegian, almost 40 years old...
I'm new to this kind of leatherwork, I have dabbled a bit with our traditional style knifesheats etc, but never used a swivel knife or stamping tools...
I have bought some of the tools I need (Probably crappy and wrong stuff... lol) But since I'm a toolmaker by trade, I also plan to make some of them. Not because I have to, but because I can... (And that's kind of all the reason I need )
Still haven't tried any carving etc yet, but I'm not in any hurry... At the moment, I am getting the tools together, and reading anything I can find about stuff I find interesting.
My ultimate goal, is to be able to make GOOD quality gifts to family and friends. Maybe sell a few pieces down the line to finance more leather etc, but this is just a hobby for me. I have made quite a few knifes, various woodwork, a couple of flyreels etc before, and I have a genuine interest in most things handmade... (If that made any sence... lol)
Guess it comes from working in the car industry, and getting tired of all the massproduced stuff around us today. Proper handcrafted stuff, regardless of what it is, is something I find fascinating.
And thanks to my mother, who was one of the best in the country regarding Hardanger embroidery, I have learned to appreciate the craftmanship, talent and effort that goes into quality handcrafted items....
Unfortunatly, we don't really have the "leatherworking communty" here in Norway, that you have in the US. But thanks to the internet, it gets a bit closer...
Anyway, I am looking forward to learning a lot here and buggering all you experts with my silly, newbee questions!
Regards
Christer
P.S Oh yeah, since english isn't my native language, I hope you can forgive all my spelling mistakes etc...