tcs77

Alright, I'll go find a more helpful and less condescending site

Other than some brief activities in scouting (basic wallets, pocket knife cases) I've never worked with leather. The other day I was watching How It's Made and saw how leather attache cases were assembled and really fell in love with the idea of leatherworking. I'd like to make things like briefcases, wallets, maybe even loafers or moccasins when I know what I'm doing. There doesn't seem to be a lot of info on the internet about this sort of thing, especially from a beginner's perspective, so I'm hoping to get some guidance. What are the must have tools? Not the fancy things that make it easier, but the basic toolset that I can get by with while I'm learning. What's a good book for getting into this kind of leatherworking? There's a lot of options for carving and otherwise tooling leather, but that's not quite my cup of tea, at least for now. Thanks for any help! edit: I should mention that I think I want my first big project to be a laptop bag, something that I can put my laptop and a few accessories in and really get some use out of. Any advice on patterns and materials for that would be much appreciated!