Greybeard: sorry about the reply a year later, but here's the rundown on my process
First things first is the leather. The tanning process is really important, and the two main processess are Veg tanned and Chrome tanned. You need to be looking for Veg tanned leather, It'll hold the ink and keep the lines clean. Chrome tanned leather tends to just bleed out and doesn't hold the ink (I've had mild success with this lately though, I'll update on how it goes) For the Ink, I make up a special blend that i developed. But I would recommend (if you cannot get a hold of proper tattooing ink) indian ink. It holds well, It's not too thick. It just works well. Next thing you need is Vaseline. The ink will stain the leather and to stop this, put down a thin layer of Vaseline. As you said you tattooed in the past this next part is pretty easy. It's basically the same as regular tattooing. I use a 5pt Line needle for most of my work. I run the volts pretty high (Veg tanned leather is usually pretty tough) and this keeps the lines smooth. I don't know how much you know about customizing your rig, if you're interested I can walk you trough the modifications I have done on mine. I don't use transfer paper. I print out my design on paper, lay it over the leather and then use ballpoint inscribers to go over the design, it leaves an indented line that you can follow easily. Wipe away the excess ink regularly. and make sure you keep applying a thin layer of Vaseline to the areas you're tattooing, otherwise you'll get stains and smears and all that. With my jacket patches, sleeves and outdoor stuff that is exposed to the elements I use a mix of oils, dyes and beeswax (I use different oil and dye mixes to get different finishes eg. lighter, whiter, darker)
I am doing a load of bags, purses, wallets and books all tattooed up out of leather to sell in a design exhibition in a month's time, I'm hoping to have chrome tanned leather tattooing sussed by then.
(I sold out of stock in last years show, It's an instant hit with many people)
