Crystal

Coffee - dark roast with cream and sweetner. Crystal

Yeah, Kevin - that has me a bit concerned... he offered to allow me to move to the "war room" with my stuff to get it out of the dining room. But I did notice that MY work space is beside the antique 1959 oil furnace and also (not pictured) almost on top of crates of ammo. Think I need to call and see what my insurace policy is currently valued at? I am going down and doing a bit of cleaning this evening - at least putting anything flamable away. Well- maybe cleaning up a bit more than just that.

I will be sure to tell him!

Happy Anniversary, Pip! Beautiful roses, Wildrose!

Well- I don't know if I will win the prize for the messiest. I have to admit - this is bad, even for me. I usually leave everything out until I am done then do a cleaning. The hubby and I share the basement for our projects. My area: (Did anyone hear Alex hitting the floor?) His area: (Please take note - everything is labeled...) Crystal

Wow- awesome, Tom! Everything looks great! I'd have never known the double braid wasn't intentional. I think the colors are spot on. I'm ready to see the "how to" pics! Either that or, since I need a vacation, how about I come to Sweden for a lesson or 2? (Yeah - I wish!) I love the inside piece's birch effect - that is just too cool! I used the saddle tan on the doggie photo album. Since I don't follow instructions, I didn't put the sheen on before the saddle tan. I just put it right onto the bare leather and gently wipe off and keep reapplying until it gets darker. (Fine line between getting it darker and it wiping completely off.) I think I ended up with more of a red than an orange. Not sure if this helps answer your question. I think the colors that you do have ended up perfect. Crystal

I really like the rich brown you got when you mixed the Java Brown and Dark Mahogany. Gonna have to give that a try. Crystal

Beautiful! Seeing your work inspires me to work harder. Crystal

Thanks for showing this, Kate. I saw your pictures and thought about the quilting frame that I have. I will never hand quilt a quilt, but it may be useful turned into a stitching frame. Won't be the best thing for space, but I'd be able to work from either side if I wanted. Thanks! Crystal

Hi- I will be getting there sometime Friday morning - staying Friday night, but have to leave Saturday... Crystal

Wow! Please, PLEASE, tell me these are FULL SIZE. Crystal

Since it's leather, I hope it can get thrown at a wall and survive... Not that I'll actually do that. Thanks! Thanks, Spider!

Thanks for the additional info, Tom!

Thanks, Windy! After the thumbs up on the texture I'll have to budget shop more bad hides. I think the saddle tan antique gel made it look better.Crystal Thank you, Clay. Thanks, Johnny! It takes me so long to do anything - I would say the carving took longer. I get sore hands when punching the holes, not when lacing. The lacing gets done in front of the tv, so I never pay much attention to the time.Crystal Good tip- using the black sharpie. What kind of sealer do you usually use?Crystal

Thank you, Linda!

Thanks, Tom! I put the antique on top of the gold leaf and it made the flakes stick pretty good. I used a deglazer on a few of the spots and it took off the antique but not the flakes?? I didn't try just a damp cloth. Will keep that in mind for future boo boo's. I think I will put a sealer over the leaf before anything else next time. Crystal

Thanks, Art!

Jordon, those sandles look really comfy! Great job. Neat idea to use the sewing machine for your stitches. Crystal

Thanks! I have a few things to work on yet - like using a bargrounder. Crystal

I had gotten this piece a long time ago, internet order. Wish they would list sale hides with a number scale as to how much charater they have. At least it was useful for something! Crystal

Thanks, Hilly! (No special technique - that is the hide I am working with - poor shopping.) Crystal

Hi All! Finally made this into something. I was stuck - couldn't figure out how to fix the gold flaking problem I had and ended up just mixing some paint to match the antique and painted all the darn flakes. Before Fix: I think I will change out the white paper for black paper. Thanks for looking! Crystal

Beautiful mask, Linda. Great job! Crystal

Superb, Tom. My favorite of yours so far. Crystal

I didn't even think about that. It shows up empty, gets put away empty....mmmm... That may be the missing key to getting inspired to cover it. He didn't say he wanted anything with straight lines... Crystal