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Johanna

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Posts posted by Johanna

  3. Posted · Report reply

    My friend Horace made lots of these, and gave me one. I find it handy for my drivers license, insurance cards, AAA, registrations, etc- keeps it all in one place, and the magic and a dollar delights bored children. The lacing is what makes it so clever. You place the bill in, close it, open from the other side and the lacing will always "catch" what you just added.

    CajunMoney.JPG

    Johanna

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  4. Posted · Report reply

    What kind of skiving? Big area, little area? Scoring for a fold, or splitting latigo? For general all purpose "skive it so it lays together nice and neat" jobs, like buckle ends of belts, the cheap Tandy skiver with the replaceable, easy-to-get razor blades is fine. For splitting saddle skirting, or doing big jobs regularly, there are a few specialized machines available. Maybe describe what you are trying to do to get a more specific answer, because I'd bet we all have a couple of favorite different tools to use for different situations.

    Johanna

    (My spell check didn't recognize any variation of the verb "skive". I wonder if skiving is unique to leatherwork? Any woodworkers out there? Well, I guess skiving would be "planing"? Off to look it up now...)

  5. Posted · Report reply

    I can't remember if I posted this pic here, and if I have, please forgive me. My first husband, Little Jon Alger, carved this in about an hour from a Stohlman Craftaid one day while bored at the Tandy in Macon on a piece of scrap. I strung it in a hoop, and hung it in the front window for a few weeks. The Georgia sunshine gave it the patina. There is no dye or antique on this piece. It's as if the sun burnished it smooth. It's one of my favorite pieces of his, even though he would surely disagree. I am partial to natural looking stuff, though.

    Johanna

    Leaping Deer

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  8. Posted · Report reply

    Some of you have noticed the Rawhide Gazette banner at the bottom of the forum page. If you are interested in leatherworking, please visit the PSLAC (Puget Sound Leather Artisans Co Op) site and consider joining. As a benefit of membership, you can view many instructional and educational articles, well written and illustrated, and chock full of useful information. PSLAC is an established group with an excellent reputation, and many of the member names will be familiar to you. The archive is just one of several benefits of joining- look at their site for more information. Leatherworker.net is pleased to cross link with PSLAC, and a special thanks to Robert Stelmack for making it possible. (PSLAC members are also reminded that they are welcome to use the "Live Chat" feature any time they want, and can have their own private channel, if they wish.)

    If you are interested in learning more about different leatherworking styles, and having access to more educational material, I encourage you to check out the PSLAC website. For a small fee, you can even get back issues of the Rawhide Gazette on CD. Enjoy.

    http://pslac.org

    Johanna

  9. Posted · Report reply

    Hey, Bill... you know my email addy, and you know I'll be glad to assist any way I can. I'm sorry that your thread got hijacked, and that there was unpleasantness (whew! You should see my Inbox!) If you want me to snag a domain name for you, I'll be glad to. (I like "texasholsters.com", do you?) By the way, no website is ever "done". If they were, they would be boring. I will be happy to guide you through the process to build you a nice portfolio, or do it for you and teach you to manage it. It's the least I can do after all this yucky stuff. Your work is good, but it's not going to get found by the search engines very well (if at all) on geocities. Please accept my apologies for all the drama, and let's all get back to leatherwork, promoting leatherwork and having friendly conversations.

    Your friend,

    Johanna

    Alex, thank you, too.

  10. Posted · Report reply

    Robb Barr's Embossing VHS at Hide Crafter are on sale. They are now $24.95 each. For this special either e-mail me at anne@hidecrafter.com or call 1-888-263-5277 and ask for me.
    The late Robb Barr was a truly gifted leather artist. If you are interested in figure carving and embossing, call Anne and ask about the sale. (I wonder whether his instructional videos are available on dvd as well?) Johanna

  11. Posted · Report reply

    A domain name is the URL (Universal Resource Locater) The URL is registered to Domain Name Servers so that when people type in the URL or click the link, the user is directed to that page hosted on a specific server. Domain names should be simple, yet descriptive.

    Texasholsters.com

    Texasleatherwork.com

    handmadeholsters.com

    for example, are all available right now. A domain name is purchased through a registrar, which may or may not be the webhost. When you choose a webhost, look for "features". This site has a cPanel and all the extensions. It is possible to build a site on the cPanel and upload it to the webhost, or to do it on different software. A good webhost should provide stats (visitor counts, browsers, resolutions, geographical area of ISP, web pages viewed, length of visit, referral links etc) This helps you tweak your site.

    These are also things to consider:

    Unlimited POP3 Mail Accounts (email)

    Unlimited MySQL Databases

    Unlimited Mailing Lists

    Unlimited Email Forwarders

    Unlimited Subdomains

    Unlimited Parked and Addon Domains

    Unlimited FTP Accounts

    chatrooms, bulletin boards, storefronts and other goodies

    Webhosting will vary by features and contract terms. If you allow other ads to be placed on your site, or use a "subdomain", (which is what you have, and why you have a long URL) like geocities, can get a free or very inexpensive site. If you pay for your hosting yearly or quarterly, you may get a better rate. If you want complete control of your site, you buy your own web space with a webhost, and then prepare your site. You can use the tools the webhost offers, or programs like FrontPage, Dreamweaver, and dozens of other softwares designed to build sites. (Google "website building") WYSIWYG is a useful acronym to know- it means "what you see is what you get" which allows simple prompts and drop and drag. Some people can code sites in HTML, the language of the web, in Notepad, which comes on a Windows computer by default. There are sites that will teach you to do this, but it's not practical for a portfolio site like yours. It all sounds more complicated than it is, really.

    Hope this long winded explanation helps some.

    Johanna

  12. Posted · Report reply

    There are services like TinyUrl

    http://tinyurl.com/

    that do free redirection, but many people don't like to click on those links because we can't hover the cursor and see where we are going ahead of time. Sadly, unscrupulous people abuse the anonymity of these services (there are more, but TinyUrl is the most popular).

    Bill, I can get a domain name for you for about $10, good for a year, and I'll host your site for free if you'll link back to the forum. This offer is good for any leatherworker- I have unlimited webspace available.

    Sorry if I misunderstood the original question.

    Johanna

  13. Posted · Report reply

    :welcome: Ann, I am so glad you made it here, and thank you for sharing your pictures!!!

    That was one of the best IFoLG shows I have ever been to, and what made it so great (besides the hard work "behind the scenes") was getting to hang out for awhile with people like you.

    Johanna

    ps

    My daughter will not go to school without her special necklace! :lol:

  14. Posted · Report reply

    I'm paraphrasing, but I really like how Phil LeDuc explained, "The more you practice, the smarter your tools get."

    Thanks for taking the time to share your experience with us all, Bruce. I like learning, and I appreciate it when the folks who know more than I do weigh in on a subject.

    Johanna

  15. Posted · Report reply

    I'm moving this to "show off" because not everyone can see the adult section of the board, and your work deserves to be seen. WOW!!

    Your work is fantastic, thanks for sharing!

    Johanna

    ps

    You can use the thumbnail feature of the board (don't click "add into post") so that people on dial up internet connections aren't inconvenienced. You can also upload pics directly from your computer, and you don't need to host them on a third party server if you don't want to. (That way they are preserved on the board no matter what happens to the other host.)

  16. Posted · Report reply

    If you are really serious about improving your tool collection, look here:

    http://www.gomph-hackbarth.com

    The tools are handmade by Ellis Barnes, and the dealer (Phil LeDuc of Stonehenge Leather) is an experienced leatherworker and a really good guy.

    Another toolmaker worth mentioning is Robert Beard ("Bob" to friends) His line of tools is called "Pro-Series". His swivel knives are perfectly balanced, and he makes hundreds of carving/stamping tools.

    http://home.earthlink.net/~kenhale/proseries/proser.html

    http://www.robertbeardtools.com/index.html

    Please be seated when you see the prices, and do not have a stroke. Keep in mind that these are very high quality tools (not "disposables") and with proper care, can last for generations. They are investments. If you get a chance to attend a trade show and hold one in your hand, you will immediately understand why the prices are justified.

    Hidecrafters in Ft. Worth Texas carries "Pro Crafters" tools, designed (but not made!) by Bob Beard, Jay Gore, Ellis Barnes & Barry King. They are more moderately priced, and better quality than Tandy's Craftools.

    The Japanese tools you came upon are probably Kyosho Elle (and that is likely not spelled right) I don't know if they are still in business. I met some representatives from their company at the 1997 IFoLG show. They supplied Hidecrafters for a time- perhaps George Hurst (CEO of Hidecrafters) could give you more info about them.

    Hope this helps.

    Johanna

  18. Posted · Report reply

    Most of the details about the magazine are spelled out in Writer's Market, available at

    most libraries. What we at The Journal are always looking for from our subscribers

    are how-to, step-by-step leatherworking articles of projects for all skill levels. Here is

    our suggestion for article guidelines. We call our article guideline the "Triple Four"

    formula.

    1. Text

    2. Patterns

    3. Photos

    Each of these three steps is divided into four parts.

    1. Text: Please type in lower case, not in all capital letters. Save text on disk and

    include a print out.

    a. Short autobiography about yourself in leatherwork.

    b. List of materials

    c. List of tools

    d. A step-by-step description of what methods work best for you in

    completing this project.

    2. Patterns: Draw pattern(s) using black ink on white paper, not on disk. (camera

    ready)

    a. The overall pattern(s)

    b. Carving designs and patterns

    c. Alternative design pattern (where possible)

    d. Show sequence of tooling and/or coloring

    3. Photos: Digital camera photos need to be in pdf, jpeg, or tif format. Preferably set

    at 300 dpi.

    a. Submit good contrast photos (no slides)

    b. Photos of project pieces

    c. During-construction photos (or illustrations)

    d. Photos of completed project

    How to E-Mail the Article: Type article in simple text only - not all capital letters,

    cursive or layout. E-mail digital photos as separate, jpeg attachments. Include your full

    name, phone number, and e-mail address.

    These are the guidelines only, and it is hoped they will you in preparation of your

    manuscript. The better the article is prepared, the better the consideration that it will be

    printed.

    We want only articles that include hands-on, how-to, step-by-step information of a

    Project Oriented nature. These pay $20.00 to $250.00 ...depending on several factors:

    How "camera-ready" is it?

    How complete is the article?

    Are patterns finalized in ink?

    Are disks, photos and hardcopy provided?

    Over-all necessary length.

    Are alternate patterns provided?

    Is the writer also a subscriber?

    These and perhaps other considerations are used in determining the price. We buy First

    North American Serial Rights.

    http://www.leathercraftersjournal.com/Wanted_Articles.html

    The Leathercrafters and Saddlers Journal is available only by subscription and contains "how-to" articles, advertising for suppliers, Leather Guild information and more.

    Johanna

  21. Posted · Report reply

    When I was a Tandy manager in the 90s we carried them in the stores. They were difficult to set up and tweak, and customer service after the sale was nonexistent. I will say that by the time it is threaded and set for a particular project, you could have sewn half the project by hand. I have seen the Boss do some heavy duty work, but I have also know that in addition to the threading and leather feeding issues, operating the machines is tedious. It is a sizable investment, so my advice to you would be to "test drive" one from the person (dealer) you plan to buy it from, and ask for references from his past customers to make sure it will fit in with your plans for use, and that they received after-sale help. I'm not disparaging the machine, for it has some advantages depending on the intended use, but I think you are wise to consider the purchase carefully. By doing your research, you will be able to determine beforehand if that machine will suit your needs. Welcome to Leatherworker.net!

    Johanna

    :cow:

  22. Posted · Report reply

    Tom,

    I know you said you have no interest in web based mail, but for anyone else reading this thread, especially those of you who would like to see attachments but dislike the sheer volume of mail associated with some of the Yahoo Leather lists, GMail is the answer.

    GMail groups mail by topic title, which means when people reply and do not change the subject title, you can read "conversations" neatly grouped together. GMail indicates which ones you have read by opening the newest one which is very efficient when you'd like to review the rest of the earlier discussion. One click and the thread is expanded. Your entire mailbox is archived, including attachments. It's easy to make folders and get organized, but you don't really need to bother because a search is quick and easy.Your outgoing composed email has all the bells and whistles for customizaton on the toolbar. Attachments can be archived or downloaded. Spam is filtered accurately, better than any other service I've seen, bar none. I have got nearly 10,000 messages stored on one account, many with attachments, and I am using 30% of my alloted space. GMail was the only way I could get my Yahoo Leather list mail under control, and those of you who belong to the same lists can certainly understand being overwhelmed with leather related mail, especially when most of it you don't care to read anyway. Gmail even uses >> signs to flag you of "list" mail, so you can distinguish what is personal with a quick glance. Yes, I'm a fan. But I enjoy seeing the pictures that come over the Yahoo lists, so the digest or reading mail off the web wasn't an option for me. Meanwhile, Outlook Express was bogged down, and I couldn't find what I wanted to when I needed it anyway. (Outlook Express was never intended for storage). GMail is the best way I've found to handle the Yahoo mail associated with those Yahoo leather lists, because those groups won't be adopting a more sensible or realistic method of communication like this style of forum any time soon.

    Johanna

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