Johanna

Pando is "peer to peer" (P2P) file sharing done over Bittorrent. Both sender and receiver must have the Pando software installed. Because of the legal and privacy issues associated with P2P, I wouldn't recommend it. Johanna

I count about 80, at least half left their names. And poor Romey is all by himself, raising cows on ice in Greenland. Johanna

I just reread this whole topic, and I figured someone better mention Dr. Jackson's Hide Rejuvenator from Tandy. It is the easiest add on sale in the world, and can new life to dried out leather. That's how you sell it. Do one small section of a customer's leather item, and they will buy the magic potion. It has saved a lot of neglected biker gear for me, and baseball gloves love that stuff. It will darken the leather slightly, but it absorbs well, without making the leather mushy. A little goes a long way. I use sheepswool to apply it, and dry sheepswool to buff it in when I am done. It will clean leather furniture on a dishtowel. (One end wet, the other one dry to buff.) I have no idea what's in it, but it smells good. It comes in a little tub, and looks like buttery Vaseline. Never put petroleum jelly on leather. Never use mineral oil (baby oil) either. There's probably a chemist here who can explain exactly why, but it's not good for the leather, and it shows. Johanna

What I always saw are guys looking for a good comfortable fit in their hand, and a pointy or whatever shaped end desired. You can sand horns, but don't let them bind in a Dremel, because burnt horn stinks. Johanna

If you get the seat done, David, I'll carry it there. Who is the Cincy Tandy manager? Think there is enough interest for another Ohio guild? I wish Tandy wanted to have a store in St Marys. Johanna

I saw some stencils in the new Tandy catalog, and I know Hobby Lobby has a bunch of stencil patterns in stock. Like Clay said, just watch that you aren't taking out too much and damaging the structure, and you can make a filigree pattern. (Do a search on here for "Vera"- she and her husband do some awesome filigree work!) Johanna

Freak, who let you play with one of Kate's chess boards? Put that down before something gets broken! Who else is going? Guess I'll have to take a zillion pictures... Johanna

Oh, goody! I love steak! I'm planning on getting in sometime early Friday from Panama City Beach. I don't know how I talked my mother into watching my kids, but she did agree. Looking forward to seeing old and new friends! Johanna

Click the map once or twice. It's javascript, same as we use for Live Chat. You may want to update Adobe Flash Player to version 9.0.47.0 here. Johanna

Elwood Turner-ClayB & CitizenKate just did oak leaves for everyone. Would you be willing to do something like this too? Pretty please? Your saddle is lovely. Johanna

SkipJ- their software will adjust the picture. Ken, it works here and on my kids' computer. Are you allowing Java to run? Johanna

We've got people from all over the world, here! Put your pin on the map! Add your picture or logo, too! Include a link if you have one. Let's see where everybody is at! Johanna http://www.leatherworker.net/frapprleatherworker.htm

Tandy used to sell a nice heavy chap leather called, oddly enough, "Blacksmith Leather" which was perfect for aprons. It had a thorough conditioning of oils and waxes, a soft but rugged hand, and came in earth tones. It was the kind of leather that just wears better over time. I wonder if they still have Blacksmith Leather? Anybody know? If not, what do they have that is comparable? Johanna

Freak, that is a pretty snazzy oak leaf! :beer: Clay is a good teacher, huh? Wouldn't it be fun to get him and a few other naturals in front of a video camera, You-Tube style? Anyone want to be an Internet star? Johanna

What are the advantages and disadvantages to marketing leather goods through eBay? Is anyone having success using eBay as a primary marketing strategy? Do you use it to draw attention to another website, or sell product directly online? I've heard of romances from eBay and fortunes made from garages & attics on eBay, but I want to know if eBay is useful for a custom leatherworker, and in what ways. Thanks for any insight you can share. Johanna

(edited for correction and clarity!) More masks here: http://members.aol.com/mdtiger11/index.html Good find, JustWakingUp! Johanna

Sometimes with patterns like Dragons Pearl describes, you can just make a fancy border and keep the size. It just depends on the style you are looking for, and how much variation you need. A half inch difference is just two quarter inch borders. Johanna

Hey, Tim, that's some nice airbrush work! Could I talk you into doing a tutorial or an explanation of you do such pretty work? Johanna

A coat of clear nail polish (or Neat Lac in a pinch) will take care ofthe green-toe problem. Johanna

If you click on a name to the left, a little arrow appears with a drop down menu of choices. "Send message" will open a PM window. Johanna

Here is another gallery of pictures from our friend gtwister09. These are from the Al & Ann Stohlman Museum in FT. WORTH TEXAS, where the 2007 "Legends in Leathercraft" International Federation of Leather Guild's annual show will be held in a few short weeks. This collection has quite a bit of Stohlman originals, and I see a few by Christine Stanley, Jim Linnell, Kat Kuzak, Robb Barr and others, too. Enjoy! http://leatherworker.net/tandymuseumpics/index.htm Johanna

Mike, there are a couple of ways to beat the lace down. I use the wooden end of my mallet, or a smooth faced cobbler's hammer, and hit it hard, on the marble or another flat surface. When I do the stitches, I place them just a hair towards the top. This leaves a nice flat edge that usually I can't see any light through. Some people do this with a piece of scrap leather in between the lace and the hammer, to reduce the possibility of breaking. (Deerskin works well, too.) Generally, good quality goat or roo lace will not break. Any lace that is starting to dry rot may break, and calf sometimes does just because. If the lace does break, I do a quick splice and figure that was just a weak spot waiting-to-break anyway. Sometimes I use a belt wheel to edge the lace, too, especially if it is a flap of some kind. Other people use rolling pins, round mauls, regular hammers and so on. I like the look of beaten lace, but some people don't. I think what I like about it, what makes it look "finished", is the uniformity of the stitches and the slight burnish effect. Two checkbooks: this one was a kit (round lacing holes- yuck!) and this one has flat chisel lacing holes: I'm not an expert, by any means, and other people probably can explain this better. Johanna

You can post wherever you want, Kevin, just keep on posting. You are doing some really attractive work! I would guess that tan is pigskin (look at the dots on it- those were the hair follicles). Nice contrast and combination. Seems like all the wives are getting nice wallets, and yes, I will be sure to point that out to my husband. Johanna

Wow, Mrs. Mike is a lucky lady! I really like the depth and texture of the carving, and the natural looking color. Only thing I can see (and perhaps it's just the picture) is that you may want to beat the lacing down. I know what you mean about the reddish-brown tint in some photos; I've noticed it, too. I think it has to do with lighting, because the pieces don't appear that way in real life. I've also noticed some really dry ratty looking leather in some kits. I don't think that the better vegetable tanned leather is even considered for those kits. Maybe the vendor feels that it would cost too much to include quality leather in a kit, or that the novice won't know the difference? I wonder how many potential leatherworkers have been turned off by the results of working with the inferior leather? Johanna

Jim, can you give me a specific link to the post the is causing the problem? I can't seem to duplicate the error you are describing, and I want to get the issue sorted for you ASAP. Thanks! Johanna