Johanna

First of all, you guys are sweet to think about ways to help LW. I hate asking you wonderful people for money to keep the lights on, so we're trying to sell ads. Do me a favor- click on the ads, and when you place an order with any of the fine companies up there- tell 'em you saw their ad here! Second, I have a romantic Tandy story. My second husband, John Henry, had a store in Rockville, MD and I was a manager in Macon. We got sent to a meeting in Ft. Worth where we "met", and discovered we came from towns in PA about 5 miles from each other, and knew many of the same people, and both of us wanted burnt kielbasa for supper that night instead of Texas barbeque. Long story short, we had a long distance romance, fell in love and he quit his job in MD because I wasn't leaving Macon for DC! We had two children together, and if it weren't for Tandy...well, we might never have known each other. Here is my belt buckle. I won it in a contest, but I can't remember what for. It's on my favorite redneck belt (you know, it says "Johanna" across the back!) Johanna

1995- Springfield MO 1996- Columbus Ohio 1997-Ft Worth TX 1998- Michigan City

The Rocky Mountain Leather Tradeshow is sponsored by the Leathercrafters and Saddlers Journal and is one of the best attended tradeshows of our industry every year. I think this is the 16th year, but don't quote me. This was my first year, and it blew my mind. I'm an east coast girl, so I was surprised to see no trees. A few scrub pines, but no trees. I've only seen this above the tree line in the Appalachians. Hmmm...I rented a car and drove from Billings into Wyoming. The land is achingly beautiful, but there are no trees, except some scrawny things by ditches or creeks. I saw antelope and buffalo, but no elk. I went to Custer's Last Stand battlefield. I remember reading somewhere that the Native women pierced his ears with their awls because he didn't listen anyway. I got to the hotel and it was full of vendors setting up. I should have taken pics right then and there, because it was too crowded and they were too busy ever after. People carried armloads of leather out the door and hundreds and thousands of dollars of tools. When you walked in the door, there was Jerry and Dave from Artisan, and next to them was a room of Bob Douglas' vintage tools which was jam packed every time I peeked. One of the finest stirrup makers was in between. Walking down the hall one way gave you your choice of leathers from several vendors with a booth by Jan Schoonover and his wife, with his magnificent art for sale. The other hallway went into a room divided into two circles of folks. Hidecrafters with Ron and Eric and a rising star, Carl Suvaco, were in the corner. Bob Beard and Jeff Mosby and Cherl Goliger were down one way, Hansen Silver and Barry King the toolmaker, Chuck and Lana Smith and Vernon Weaver were the other way. There are also 30 people I'm leaving out because I don't type too well. Tandy had a nice set up, too. If that wasn't enough, the whole atrium was divided into boothes too. Cobra Sewing machines was there, as well ans Wickett and Craig, Bee Natural, Jim Downey the Australian lace importer and Hermann Oak and Osborne and Paul and Rosa Zalesak of Leather Wranglers, and Keith from Chaylor-Fanelli and lots more. I needed a pass to get in because the hotel wouldn't let me check in yet, and so Dot gave me a "Johanna- She's Okay! Dot" pass. I went to bother Jerry right away. My laptop battery had died and I needed an outlet. He graciously made room for me, of course. Later I checked into my room and got dressed for the King Saddlery Museum cookout. The food was delicious, the company was fantastic, the museum is fascinating. You could spend a week in there and not see everything. Mr. King made sure things were tagged and explanations are all over the museum. Yes, that is Al Stohlman's workbench. Ann wanted it to be in Don King's museum. A very nice lady whose name I didn't catch walked me through saddle basics, patiently explaining why they were special or different. A few days with her and you could have a college education in saddles. I don't know why she picked me to teach, but if you are reading this, pretty lady with the long hair, thank you again for your time! Then we were entertained by the Bugle and Drum Corp- what a party! What an amazing collection of tools and saddles and collecter pieces. When you look at the pics you might think there are alot of guns. Well, there are, but I took pics of a lot of them because I know more about the guns than the saddles. King Saddlery Pics The next day was Friday, and I was up bright and early (thank you Eastern Time) and I got to see the competition room. It was very full of people and I couldn't get good pics so I came back later and took these. I did the best I could. The room was crowded and the lighting was awful. The work was outstanding, and would really kick things up a notch at the IFoLG shows. Competition Room Pics Friday night I got to go to the party at Sheridan Leather Outfitters and then over to Barry King's cookout. A very nice evening with some special people. Saturday I slipped out in the afternoon and drove into the mountains that had been calling me, about 25 miles to the south. A Fed Ex driver drew me a map of which roads would be open to traffic and where to get the best views. There was snow up there, and quite a bit for a pretty May day! I went to the Fetterman Memorial outside of Story and walked the path around the battlefield. There were no white survivors of that one. I can see why the land was fought over so fiercely, and I wondered how hard it must have been to be out there in the open with no cover, no comforting trees. I had dinner with Harvery Lutske and his wife, and Paul and Rosa, and then spent some time just exploring the town. I didn't go to the reception where the awards were given and I didn't ask who won the award. Maybe someone else knows? Sunday I headed home, back to Ohio. Wade met my plane at midnight, and he insisted on carrying all my stuff. Here are some pics: Yaklady (Kathy Flanagan) and Bert (Clay Miller) Jim Linnell says he's proud to have Carl Suvaco as a student. Jim and Pat Hay were there, as well as Mrs. Linnell. And Rosa, Paul Me and Harvey courtesy of Sharon, Harvey's wife. I do have some video...gimmee a bit to get it uploaded. I got a little behind here at home while I was gone. All in all a wonderful trip, fantastic people and a great time. (smooch >Kevin<) Johanna

The show Allan is talking about was the Prairie States Leather Guild Spring Show a couple of weeks ago. I seem to remember taking a bike seat that won a ribbon or two... Allan has been teaching classes for years at Guild shows, and he is also the president of the Buckeye Leathercrafters of Central Ohio, hosts of last year's Federation (IFoLG) show in Columbus. If anyone is interested to learn how to do geometrics or stamping patterns, sign up for one of his classes this fall at the IFoLG show in Indianapolis. I'm sure they'll put the list out soon...Edd? Are you there? Johanna

Your membership has been validated, so you should able to upload pics. The books, patterns and stamping tools are going to generate the most interest. I'm hoping the experienced members give you an idea of thedollar value of what you have so that you don't take too little $$ for your collection. Good luck, and welcome to LW! Johanna

(Where is the dancing banana when you need him?) Freak- that is WONDERFUL news! Hugs to you and Minnie & S- hope every report from now on is just like that! YAY!!!!! ~J

I live in Ohio. You go south on I75 through Ky and you're in Tennessee. Keep on going, you wind up in Georgia where I have some dear friends. Plus, Randy & Claudia invited me to Nashville. What more reasons could a person need for a roadtrip? ~J

I have no idea what living in England is like, but the Smoky Mountain region is one of the nicest places in the US, and I would move there, given the chance. Winters are mild, summers aren't too hot, the scenery is beautiful and the people are friendly. If you want the property checked out, I will be glad to make a roadtrip recon mission for you. Johanna

Here is a supplier list. Most of the sewing machine companies carry needles and threads in different sizes, including Artisan. Springfield Leather and Hidecrafters also sell needles and thread for hand sewing and for machine stitching (they also carry sewing machines). Perhaps other people will chime in with where they buy their supplies. Johanna

We always stuck to "custom leather"- eliminating the hand (which can signify "not enough money for a machine to do it right") part of the phrase. People were delighted when they booked us for shows that we didn't require any electrical outlets (well, lights helped!) because a mallet was our main tool- no external power required. In the US "craft" carries the connotation "not serious". A crafter is enjoying a hobby, not working at a profession. If I still had a business doing leather, I would call myself a "custom leatherworker", meaning I can fix your saddle or make you a belt. Whether I use machinery or electrical tools then becomes irrelevant. Johanna

Would this be the Jason that did the targe patterns some years back? I am sorry, your name escapes me, if I am thinking of the right person. Congratulations! I have a friend in Plymouth who will be glad to drive yo your store, and I'll be sure to tell her. Johanna

Yep- you may even want to go into the control panel> device manager and uninstall the touchpad, reboot and reinstall the drivers. But do what Dave said first. IE isn't so bad, though I can't say I see big improvements with IE8 here. Johanna

I'm gonna miss you, but that sounds like a dream vacation, and I hope you have a wonderful time. I'm glad you let us know so we didn't get the FBI looking for you after a few days. Don't do anything I wouldn't, okay? Johanna

If your customer takes an old belt that they wear and that fits, and measures from the fold where the buckle hole is to the hole they use for the buckle, you will have an accurate measurement to work with. That number becomes your center hole. I usually go 2 up and 2 down to give them a little "wiggle room". Womens pants will vary by style, so the belt might be at the natural waist or right at the hips, and there can be quite a few inches of difference, depending on the woman and the pants. It's got to be frustrating trying to work without being able to do your own measuring. People either lie or get it wrong. I've had customers insist on a size, I've measured them and shown them the correct size and they have argued with me. If in doubt, I would make the belt too long. You can always shorten it, but you can't make it longer. Johanna

I never heard of him, so I sent him an invitation to look at the site and join us for coffee. Monty- if you see this, glad you stopped by! Johanna

On your website you could put a "sign up for our newsletters here!" and when they fill it out you have permission to email them. As keeper of the world's largest leather mailing list, I would not sell, trade, or lose LW's list, or use it w/o conductiing LW official business. Definitely put a "unsubscribe" feature on the emails for the people who don't want to receive the extra mail any more. Check out a newsletter service (Topica is a big one) to make it easier on yourself and help you get through the spam filters with a multi-address mailing. People are funny about email. They will throw away 2 pounds of garbage the postman brought, and complain bitterly about an email that takes one click to delete. Johanna

I was poking around on Kevin's website when I ran into this FAQ sheet. Being an ex Tandy manager, and having visited Kevin's store, I snorted coffee out my nose laughing so hard. Kevin's been around a long time and has probably heard every question a thousand times. And no, he doesn't sell any magic products you saw on TV that are going to iron your couch back together when your pit bull has shredded it. He is not going to encourage you to try to dye your sun faded leather seats in your car. But people are going to do it anyway! I've seen them completely disregard expert advice (I wouldn't stick that suede jacket in the dryer, honey!) and they get stuck on an idea (I can microwave my leather to dry it out!) Here is the Stump the Chump FAQ from Kevin Hopkins, Springfield Leather Company, Springfield MO. Johanna

The person on the billiards forum is just jealous. For example, LW is also a team effort. Just because my name appears as "admin" does not mean I do all the work or take the credit, just the blame. You were right to sign your name to the case- it's YOUR team that built it. Having your chief tooler sign his too shows your (the leader's) respect and adds value for the eventual customer. Don't let them drag you down, John. Your makers stamp was appropriate (after all, who sold and who funded this adventure?) and well within standard craftsman practices. Sounds like you ran into a troll on the billiard forum. Johanna

John, that is one good looking cue case! I especially want to thank you for introducing us to your team. We are fans of your whole team, and we love seeing what you folks are doing. Thank you for sharing! Please tell them all that we appreciate the hard work and skill that goes into their creations, and that they rock, however you say that in Chinese idiom. Johanna

Okay, fly into Billings, rent a car, go to Sheridan. Now I gotta find the money. Doggone details! ~J

Leatherlady.net is the umbrella for LW and all its sister sites. Kate and I decided that if we were going to do ads, we were going to have our own ad server and host it ourselves, because, hey, you all know what can happen when you type "leather" into a search of anything. We decided against third-party ad servers, and are counting on our friends with trusted and reputable companies to want space. Please keep giving Kate and me feedback- we're trying to make sure we have everything in order. Thanks, Johanna

Okay, I'm thinking about going. What airport is best to fly to? Looks like Denver is still quite a ways from Sheridan. Help me out here, locals! I thought about driving, but Google is saying it's about 1200 miles. one way. Johanna

Kate and I are experimenting with the new ad server. Tandy and Artisan didn't mind being beta-testers. I will post more info as I figure it out. Johanna

Pics don't do this justice. I took a close up of the tail swirlies. Wade picked it up and said, "How did he get his makers mark on the back?" I said, "It's two pieces of leather, back to back." Wade looked at it closely under the light. The edges are so well burnished you can't really see where one leather stops and the other starts. Burnished holster style like that, no one would know it was two pieces of leather unless, like Wade, they thought, "Hmmm...why is there no flesh side?" So somebody get Bob to explain his burnishing technique, because it's very good, as well as all those perfect swivel knife cuts. Wow. Johanna

This was a gift from our Hidepounder, who knew I admired his entries in the recent Leather Wranglers finger cut contest. I have to show this off, and I will always treasure it! Thank you, HP! You are a sweetie and a star! Johanna