DJole

I love the comfort of Docs... but yes, the Chinese-made ones are garbage. Of the four pairs of Docs I own, two of them are Chinese made, and the leather is garbage -- the heel leather has actually ripped on one pair (horizontally just above the heel). I, being a leather guy, patched it up so I could still wear them. The two non-Chinese ones have fared MUCH better. One pair I have is about 16 years old, and pretty beat up, but the leather is still strong. The other pair is a discontinued low boot I snagged from a thrift store. I don't know how old they are, but hey are still going strong, although the cloth interior is ripping from wear, right where it meets the heel. Oh, yeah...we were talking about awls, that's right! I wish that somebody from Tandy, way back in the late 80s or so when I purchased my first awl there, had explained about polishing and sharpening. Of course, I didn't ask, because I didn't know, and there was no internet yet. I should do that, though. Looking at it just now, I had no idea it was so broad in width! The Osborne awl next to it is much narrower.

Gorgeous work there!

I'm curious to know how double-sided tape would fare in a situation like this. It's great to stick things together when sewing, but does the join last like a solvent glue join does?

What was the brand of your original "dye?"

Different bevel tools also create different lines. What beveller are you using? It looks like your backgrounding needs some practice too, to smooth out the visible tool imprints. (Rather than "stamp" with that tools, it's used like a smoother, walked over the surface, using lighter strokes to make the pattern.)

That worked out really well! What about using a backgrounder tool to add smooth texture to the darker spaces?

World peace? That's a tall order, ma'am! I'd better get that mallet out and start working on it right away! The other things -- you've got an excellent start on that here.

Many hours of careful tooling there. The width change at the buckle and tongue is a catchy design feature. Where did that interlace buckle come from?

Welcome to the forum! That's a big, ambitious piece for only the third time tooling-- you fell into the common trap most of use did: most novice leatherworkers start off big, then realize that perhaps they should work on some things! ;-) And if you think this piece is okay, wait until you see what you do later on.

Heh! Don't forget to throw those tabs back because in another thousand years they might be museum pieces... I'm always amazed at what turns up randomly in British farmer's fields, after a few hundred or thousand years resting in the soil.

Nice tutorial, too!

ooh, those are SO nicely done! No photos of the backs, though? pretty please?

Welcome to the Forum! I know nothing about machines, but this forum has many friendly people who are experts with machines.

Are you using the Tandy Satin Sheen, or something else? I am betting (but I am not an expert) that water based dye for your two-tone project isn't going to work, no matter how long you let the dye dry and set.

That's like the Cadillac of stitching horses you got there!

Hey, you've re-invented the curved-haft awl! And it only took TWO bandages? All kidding assigned, it's a lovely tool which I bet is a pleasure to (1) look at, (2) hold in the hand and (3) use for making diamond holes.

Maybe Angelus has a dye color closer to what you need? Their main website is here: <https://angelusdirect.com/collections/angelus-dye-1?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=1.3 Brand - Dyes - CPC&utm_content=Angelus - Dye - Leather - Colors&utm_term=angelus leather dye colors&msclkid=b47447fed1311e75146918e1e4ecd963>

I wouldn't recommend using a Dremel tool (or equivalent) for sharpening -- they go so fast that it's too easy to remove a lot more metal than you want, especially if you're a beginner. A set of sharpening stones in progressively finer grits would do what you need-- and you can use them to sharpen any other knives, too! If you're really concerned about that bevel, then you can take a flat wooden stick (same width as the cutting edge) and glue some of your fine grit sandpaper to it and then carefully shape it. I also have a stropping stick which has a strip of leather the same width as my French edge skiver which I use to strop it.

One way to choose a glue might be drying time: The water based glues take a lot longer to set. This may or may not be a problem. The Barge type of glues set quicker, and there is a "tacky" stage during which it is possible to pull the pieces apart, re-align them, and stick them back together. I found a Barge cement which has a non-Toluene formula, so the toxicity is much lower. I have recently discovered the wonders of double sided tape for doing small projects like wallets. It's excellent for holding the pieces together securely to make stitching holes and during stitching. The tape isn't meant to be a load-bearing, permanent bond.

I use various design programs on the computer to compose and place designs. Then I print them onto paper. I then do one of two things: 1) lay tracing film over the paper, and trace the design onto the film. Then I carefully fasten the film onto the cased leather, leaving enough space to tape on the back side of the leather, and transfer the design with a stylus or a ball point pen. 2) I lay the paper pattern directly over the cased leather, and continue as in (1). How do I make designs and styles? Well, that's a complicated question, since I don't really do Sheridan or Western floral work. Instead, a lot of my work comes from medieval woodcuts. Woodcuts work very well for leather, since the techniques for both are so similar. I also have a few pattern books for designs, like the easy to find Dover pattern books. I have George Bain's Celtic Art text, and a couple books which contain line drawings of actual Celtic art (not the knotwork stuff) from museums.

Ning Bags for the win! My wife's family has an heirloom, a Masonic sword with a leather carrying case, about 100 years old or so, belonging to a great-grandfather. When it came to my brother in law last year, after a death in his family, I was asked to restitch the leather case. The original thread was likely cotton or linen, and had nearly all deteriorated. So I matched the original thread with some Ritza synthetic thread (no reason to keep the "authentic" thread type, since it's not really a "historic" piece), and re-stitched the entire case. But there was turn lock on the case, which was missing the turning piece. I could not locate a match -- all the ones I could locate online (The Buckle Guy, Ohio Travel Bag, etc.) were 1 inch or larger, none 3/4 inch in width like this one. But today, on a random search, I struck gold, and I found the turn lock in the right size and the right color. The pieces will fit seamlessly in the current slots on the leather, and the case will be completely restored.

Welcome to the forum! To add pictures, you need to reduce the file size, of course. Open up your BIG picture in another program that will let you resize. (I use Microsoft's basic Paint program for this, just because it's there, it's quick, and works fine for just resizing. There are many programs that people use to do this.) What kind of leather did you get? Is it chrome tanned or veg tanned?

Those have a quiet, understated elegance to them. Nicely done!

You guys run out of potholders or something?

That's some lovely work on the stitching pony and tool chest! Looks like you're having a grand time and keeping busy. Next step-- put down the wood tools and pick up some leather! Welcome to the forum.