Hi Im Joe

I use a cheap tandy screw creaser and have found that you have to get it pretty hot first. Then press pretty hard.

^This. A ton of time went into designing a pattern for that backpack. I would be surprised if someone just willingly gave away a pattern that took them hours upon hours to figure out and then fine tune.

Ouch!

I hear you there. Then you are sitting there wondering how you could possibly be so stupid. At least I was.

I use a log just like that as a base for punching holes. It works really well. It's ugly though because I can't put lacquer on.

^ This OMG. I cook a lot. I mean a lot. I have cut myself non-seriously many times. I have only cut myself really bad once. On a ing onion. I have chopped prob thousands of freaking onions. Was holding it the wrong way cause I was in a hurry and took a giant chunk out of my thumb. I can still feel where the flesh is missing. I wrapped in a giant wad of paper tows and duct taped it very tightly. My wife got home 45 minutes later. It was still bleeding profusely. Had to go to urgent care. Stitches suck. Especially when they put the anesthetic right in the damn wound. I have not made that mistake again. I now chop much slower.

Thanks man!

Man that's a pretty knife! What's the damage?

I agree its not the best solution. But for really thick leather it's do-able. I like your workarounds a lot!

I'm so glad you love this wallet! I think you can charge what you would normally charge for any wallet. I mean if you look at the market prices for wallets are just all over the place. Pick something you are comfortable with and don't undervalue yourself!

Oh man I bet! If that was my wife I can't imagine how many flowers and how much chocolate it would take...

That's a great idea. I was going to say if you have a drill press you could drill the holes.

That's freakin awesome!

Yeah they max at 8.5 stitches per inch.

Pics of your wife's foot or it didn't happen!

Pics or it didn't happen!

For sure! I do plan on using my osborne pricking iron in the future so hopefully I'll get better at it!

This is exactly why I have gone to the japanese pricking irons. They are much more consistent. It is damn hard to get every awl hole perfect from front to back.

Soft leather is definitely a challenge to work with. But it isn't impossible! You just have to really pay attention and adjust your methods. You can't tension the thread nearly as much with soft temper leather. You have to really hit that butter zone!

Thanks!

You should first decide what type of iron you want. The vergez, dixon, and osborne irons mentioned in this thread are meant only to mark the leather. You then punch your holes with an awl. The japanese ones (I have a Seiwa that I absolutely love) are meant to be punched straight through the leather and actually create your holes. If you decide on the former my vote is for the Osbornes. American made and much less expensive than the alternative. However, I have both the Osborne and the Seiwa and I think the Seiwa is much more effective for someone who doesn't have a ton of experience with hand stitching. Its just more consistent. Which leads to better stitching.

Thank you! I'm trying to learn as much as I can. I soak up a great deal of knowledge from this website and its very helpful members. Thanks Aaron! I've been really trying hard to lock down my stitching skills It's much harder than it seems at first glance.

Patience. That's the one Iesson I still need to learn!

Thanks! I used .40 Maine Polycord in I think tan.

LOL! I'll buy it. First customer is free right....right?