YinTx

I am really close to Corpus, and the weather is exactly that. But then, that's why folks come here for vacation? YinTx

I really like your designs on these, well thought out! Welcome to the forum, btw. YinTx

Alex, If you want to know exactly what is in it and in what proportions, that information is here in the wiki page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Museum_leather_dressing I have seen it for sale here, although I have never purchased any: https://www.restoration-materials.co.uk/product.php/british_museum_leather_dressing_-_125mls/?k=:::612290 (if you are in UK) http://www.archivalaids.com/rsm/6/products/leather-treatment/british-museum-leather-dressing-with-beeswax-lt01 (with and without beeswax) Brian, Considering the intended use, this may fit the bill for you. As discussed in another thread about making leather treatment, there is some controversy surrounding using leather dressings. National Parks Services has a write up here: https://www.nps.gov/museum/publications/conserveogram/09-01.pdf. If you are interested in conservation, here is a good write up, and it includes information on how to make the British Museum Leather Dressing: http://nautarch.tamu.edu/CRL/conservationmanual/File7.htm Perhaps try some out on a lesser piece in worse condition and see if you are happy with the results before utilizing it on the case? Hopefully all of this is somewhat useful... YinTx

Thanks much, Kiwican! and I just noticed... the mosquito in the second photo... trying to cover up the entire "L" in the word "Love." I thought I deleted all the skeeter photos. Gotta love South Texas! You lose weight every time you step outside! YinTx

Heirloom? I might be... now. And thank you for the compliment. And the fingers and arms... they do hurt. Ice on the forearms every night lol. Not sure how often I can do that! I can't imagine folks that do nothing but tooling all day every day for some of the large saddle makers, etc. The pain must be unbearable at night. YinTx

Thats a generous and thoughtful gift! And a nice bag, to boot! YinTx

How about an action shot with the end product in it's native environment instead? I like the grommet idea, I was planning to make a few to get the feel for some of my stamping tools, but worried about getting them to fit various sized cans/cups/mugs/etc. YinTx

All I can say is give it a go! I put this off for some time too, now I have a few more planned. I think I'll try a simpler one with a binder strip to reinforce the corners. Yours may have come out better than you think if you are anything like me. I was hesitant to even share photos, since I can see all the flaws, but it appears at least some people like it! YinTx

Bikermutt, It was a bit of an undertaking, more than I had expected. Thanks for the compliment! Rohn, At the end, I was wondering if I had enough patience! Was glad to see the last stitch go in. Bill, A new skill for me, along with the tooling. Something about using high contrast stitching and tooling that makes you focus more intently, see errors more easily, and seek improvement more readily! Sheilajeanne, As I have mentioned in another thread, I can barely draw recognizable stick figures... so I am happy to have accomplished something that someone finds artistic! The box measures 10"x7"x4.5" Thanks! The hinge is a strip of suede, which you can see on the inside back. That is one part I was not happy with. It tends to push the back of the box lid up, instead of letting it sit flat. I won't repeat that technique in the future. The closure belt across the top and front is not integrated with the hinge. Rick, Thanks for that! _____________________________________________________________________________ I really appreciate all the positive response to this work. Truth is I was a bit down and out about it, since as usual I am my worst critic. I was happy to have learned the new skills, but I see so much room for improvement, and wonder if the quality I achieve on my pieces is something folks will be willing to pay good money for. So again, thanks for the emotional lift! YinTx

Not sure how I feel about this one, now that I am finished. Over 1 month in the making. I debated putting it in the "critique my work" section for a while, since this is the first box stitched trunk I have made. For sure, a learning experience, many things I would change on a next piece. Not too happy with the back "hinge," so I am off to the drafting board again for that design bit. Also picked out a different basket weave, and it was an entirely different beast to manage! And oye, the wayward camouflage tool! I'll get it under control some day! Took me three different types of awl blades and about 14 hours of stitching to put this together. Thread was heavier than what I normally use, 332 Campbell's Satin Laid Linen in yellow. Blue suede lined, very heavy veg tan - I think 10 or 12 oz. This little box is pretty stout and heavy. So.. many.. corners... so. many. stitches... ! Anyhow, hope you all enjoy..comments welcome as always! YinTx

I think if it's suffered dry rot, its past the ability to be rejuvenated. However, before you go about eviscerating it, might be worth a go at with some British Museum Leather Dressing. It's designed for just this type of situation. Not sure how you would go about cleaning it, perhaps just some water with a soft toothbrush? I'm currently making a box, and I've seen others like yours, and I wanted to see how it went together, would be cool if you could share more close up images, and shots of the inside? YinTx

Nice job not getting any of the edge dye on the back! YinTx

Version 2 is completed, I made it to match a cell phone slip case I carry... also added a pocket to the inside, and a pen holder (for the paper in the pocket...), complete with a bad stitch to make sure it is clearly hand stitched.... Enjoy, comments welcome!

So if I read this right, you used the Bordeaux water stain, then the Mahogany antique to get this color effect? Not just Mahogany antique? YinTx

Got the book, got the paint brushes, and did some work with only Clear-Lac. Worked almost too good- couldn't keep the antique down in the stamping from coming out when I lightly wiped the piece down after antique! So I supposed you could call that success. Now to try Clear-Lac on parts of un-dyed leather, then antiquing the whole piece for that "two tone" look! anyhow, here are some images of the results, much improved, thank you everyone for alleviating my frustrations! For anyone reading this trying to figure out why they can't get antiquing to work how you think it should, here is the process I've landed on, tried and true by so many others in the past as mentioned: DOPCAC: Dye (Fiebeng's Pro Oil), Oil (Neatsfoot), Paint (decorative - Angelus Acrylic paint), Clear-Lac, Antique (Fiebeng's Antique paste, Angelus Acrylic), Clear-Lac. (Tan-kote does not work well on top of clear lac: peels off later and looks horrible. Don't ask...) I've also successfully used Aussie after the Neatsfoot oil (or paint, if you are using it), without issue. Using resolene or bag kote or Tan kote or Eco-flo super sheen, or Angelus Acrylic finish, etc all met with less than stellar results. Do-able, but not great. This item used Angelus dye, Clear-lac with Angelus Black Acrylic antique, Clear lac top coat. I also have a small pistol case I am working on that was done with Fiebing's dye, and Fiebing's Sheridan brown Antique that worked out really well. YinTx First wipe down, no top coat yet.

Just, - man. You have it going on. Awesome. YinTx

And here we are all ordering stuff from Abbey England.... Great pointers, and a lot of these or similar items are available here in the US - awesome lolipop or "tongue depressors" tip! I've used the metal clips as they have more strength and wider gripping area than the small clips. YinTx

I am guessing it is not vegetable tanned tooling leather or even bridle leather, so as such I would assume you can not tool on it. A photo might clarify... YinTx

Heh, the whole time I was watching your video, I was thinking, yeah, the mom's gonna be the one using that! sure enough! Thanks for sharing, great story, and I like the song too! YinTx

Put..put it in a frame on the wall... YinTx

I'm liking this velcro idea... not traditional leather but neither is a phone! I think it will work really well... I'll try it on my next version! YinTx

Those all came out really nice! YinTx

As I noted in my post linked above, The Atoma 1200 sells for around $75-$120. The Cerax 1k/3k 1000 grit/3000 grit soaking stone sells for $55 Total I paid was about $130 for both the Atoma and the Cerax Combo. As you noted, all I had ever used were cheap stones. Stepping up in grade was one of the best things I ever did. I've sharpened exacto knives and new razor blades, not to mention my older knives are performing wonders. It was a bit of a learning curve, now everyone has scary sharp kitchen knives that I used to practice on before I attempted anything on my leatherworking knives! I even rescued an old cleaver - makes short work of chickens these days. A gentleman by the name of Ricky Tran has a channel on youtube called Burrfection that is a good place to start if you want to get immersed in stones - he has in depth reviews of many of the best stones and the budget stones out there, along with kitchen knives. YinTx

Don't know much about the dmt, but I did quite a bit of research on Japanese knife sharpening, and a universal opinion seemed to be that the Atoma diamond plates were extremely well made in that the size distribution was very uniform and placement of the diamonds on the plate was patterned, resulting in much cleaner edges in the blade. Poor size distribution on most diamond plates results in uneven sharpening under magnification, it looks like big rocks and little rocks nicking the edge, giving an uneven profile. I ended up with both an Atoma 1200 and a Cerax 1k/3k combination stone, I couldn't be happier. I have a lot of babble about it here: hope that helped any, YinTx

Wow, that just looks like a bloody mess about to happen. I was cringing the whole time. YinTx