roo4u

got a freezer? you can store them in a freezer till your ready...

that did come out nice...did you do anything to the beets? mash them or anything?

hmm interesting so you dont braid your cores just braid over however many strings you need to make the size you want? do you fasten them together in any way?

your english is fine....probably better than mine, i wish i could help...i wonder if some of the difference between just braiding a core and using an old reata is that a reata has been stretched

curlyjo...i think you misread his question....hes not happy with his own braided cores and is trying to figure out how come his braided cores are coming out so soft.

ive read that alot of braiders like to use a piece of an old reata as a core....

very cool....what kind of scooter do you use? im thinking about something like this for roading my show dogs....

thats kinda neat lookin who makes those?

yeah thats not the right kind of cutter...you can use a lacemaker from tandy....good for cutting lace from circles. an aussie strander ive never used but lots of people do...check out this link for lace cutting how to...

i agree a pic would help us figure out your problem....are you having trouble going from single layer to double layer?

that is a basic 4 strand braid. http://myriam.dakotabraiding.com/Tutorials/Leash/Leash.html this is a link to a good tutorial that should help you

i would say more like a #2 beveler...

try y-knot lace....just google it...they sell alot of colors

hey all....just thought id let you know that i tried using the easter egg dye on a bit of my goat rawhide...i got some very good results. the dye penetrated through the lace completely....i did mix the dye tablets with the white vinegar as suggested for brighter egg colors. i will post a picture of the results a bit later...i got an amazing orange, yellow, a nice red...a very nice green and a dark blue....im going to try diluting for a bit lighter on some of the colors and maybe mixing colors to get some more variations. im gonna hit the after easter clearance sales... oops forgot to say..i tried it on drum stuffed natural roo and got a nice cantaloupe color out of the orange...

the thing about using the chicago screws is they are bigger than rivets so if your collar is smaller then it will look funny..plus because they are screws there is only a couple different thicknesses so if your skiving the leather down fairly thin they will not be tight.....perhaps just change the length of rivet you are using or go to a higher quality rivet....

dang....i wish i drank coffee so i could try that...may have to buy some just so i can...thats a really nice color. .can i ask where you got the horse rawhide? i would love to try some....

knothead...did you use anything else in the water with the rusty nails? im thinking about trying the vinegaroon to get some black rawhide. i would also like to try the beets to get a nice red like i have seen in the argentine rawhide needlework.

i have never used anything on my roo and probably wont for less than 16 strands or so.....i understand why the whip plaiters use braiding soap but if you are only doing 4,6 or 8 strands why would you need to? roo is so nice and soft, unless your using dry hides or commercial lace. in which case you would definitely need to do something.

the svastika was used as a symbol of luck . the wikipedia entry has a photo of a piece of greek pottery that is from 780 b.c. that has that on it.

split braiding like that is the way bruce grant shows how to do them in his books.....

you dont have to put saddle butter on roo to roll it....before i started beveling my lace i just would braid and then roll it on the clean kitchen table with my hand...thats all it takes, especially if your lace is that thin. as far as the braid not looking crisp i think it needs to be tighter....thats why whip braiders use plating soap...so that the braid can be pulled up tighter...that might have helped some with the quirt not being as stiff as you wanted. where did you get the lace? have you ever cut roo lace before? if not then i suggest you watch bernies videos here is the link....http://www.youtube.com/user/bernie46 his two videos on cutting, stretching and preping roo for lace are very good.