Leerwerker

Now I have the second side stamped, this time completely symmetrical, whole project covered in X-1 dressing and the brass domed rivets put on what will be the bottom a 'legs' for the bag to stand on so that the bare leather will be somewhat protected ...

If you are computer savvy enough, you could scarcely do better than to get a Powweb account for less that $100/year (www.powweb.com). I have one and it gives me unlimited bandwidth and storage. They will even throw in a free domain registration, but I register my domains through DNBuy.com Hope this helps ....

Hi Toot, The tool is an off-the-shelf Craftool 6511-00 You start in the very corner with very closely spaced impressions and then move them further away as you go further from the center of the circle. Here is a close up

The remake of the Craftools stamps are well in progress and the new models are some even better than my pre-1975 tools. There is only one I am not happy with - the 902 very pointed beveler - my old one has straight sides and is good for the ends of hair and very sharp corners. The new one has more a miniature pear shader form... Stamping tools is a highly subjective issue. Don't criticize any one set of tools or a tool maker - just do not buy it, I am sure nobody forces you to buy any particular line of tools. And for some perspective, look at the tools Stohlman started with (my picture is not very good - it was taken to show the display and here I had to just give you one corner of the picture) Note the two swivel knives at the top ...

With a gmail account, you simply start your own google group and deposit the files there and make the people you want to share with, members of the group. You can also make webpages where you can put links for them to download the files from.

I am looking for patterns for these - can anybody point me to the right spot or help me with these? JOhan

Here is another part of the same project - don't quite know why I did not do this part last?

Here is what the insides look like ...

Wow, this is just very much fun! No rules! No pre-planning - it just evolves .... I am talking about the stamping you can see on the photographs. The project as a whole is very well planned - in my head over many dreams ... it will be a very practical item I am making for myself.

If they did not sell today, I'll post the insides soon ... other wise I will do a tutorial on my way of ponyless one-needle handstitching for easy and awkward work.

"hot", No! That will harden the leather as in Cuir Bouilli ...! But oil, Yes! NOT mineral oil, but any plant or animal oil is good. Cod Liver Oil is one of the main ingredients in dubbin, a century old leather conditioner - I have used and made dubbin myself and it works like a charm. No smell. In fact, guys on the Leather Chemists Forum told me that the traditional romantic smell of leather came from its treatment with various fish oils. I have soaked a piece of leather in cod liver oil and after about an hour there was no sign of fish left in the smell. Hope this helps.

One of the very first pages I discovered on the internet in the early nineties (before there were graphics on the web), was a definitive page about Cuir Bouilli by Marc I Carlson - You can still read it at: http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carlson/leather/hl.html Marc's other page about leather is at http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carls...ther/leath.html These are pages to bookmark!

If I were you I would change browsers - either Chrome or Firefox - sounds like a typical IE (microsoft) problem.

Dr Jackson's Hide Rejuvenator!

Hi Arts, Thanks. I used the Eco-Flo Timber brown for both - the new water based dyes really works so much better in an airbrush. These are already sewn in a dark brown braided cord. JOhan Oh and I forgot to ask you all:- for this type of slip cover, what do you think my asking price could be? What would you charge?

You can go and look at http://www.fingergloves.com/ for stuff made for the purpose - they work very well!

Almost like water, spirit based dyes, and other liquids, the vinegar will cause the fibers to stick to each other depending on how it was tanned and how you let it dry. All of that will have nothing to do with how hard the leather will eventually be (if you did not add heat to change the leather chemically). What determines the hardness of leather is what you do to it after it had dried out - if you add lubricant in the form of oil or fat or Dubbin or Dr Jacksons or Aussie - it will still not soften the leather - UNTIL you manipulate it so that the lubricants get to work on the fibers and the leather goes soft. Hope this helps!

Just finished these two - the one a very old Craftaid (praying hands) and the other a design I got long ago from a very old leather Bible cover ....

One South African delicacy I have not seen in the USA is jam / preserves made from watermelon peel - is it made anywhere here?

You want to see cultural confusion? I was born in South Africa as an Afrikaner, with a lot of British English influence and a lot of American TV influence. And now I live in the Midwest - and I am very happy here. But I will confess to missing a few things: REAL chocolate made by Cadbury, (Flakes, Crunchies, Lunch Bar, Chocolate Logs) and also the Nestle Chocolates. REAL pancake, that you eat with cinnamon sugar and lemon juice, rolled up. Fish and REAL chips, not crunchie 'fries'. And a few more.... No wonder that all the visitors from South Africa visiting ex-pats here in Minnesota brings at least one suit case full of sweets ('candy') and other edibles. Will write about morte of these as I think about them...

Hi Russ, Once the dye is dry, it is not relevant whether it was oil, spirit or water based when you applied it. All finishes can be used on the eco flo dyes once the leather is dry. Hope this helps!

Yes, in its simplest form, you apply a liberal amount with a dauber or rag. Make sure it gets into all the tool impressions and then wipe it all off - do not let the hi-liter dry on the leather - I use a paper towel to wipe the excess off. Wiping off with a damp cloth will get it lighter. I am not sure if the same will work with the hi-liter, but with the new gel antique - if I want a darker application - I do not wipe any excess off - I just keep on working it around in circles until it is very even. I did the background of my anatomy study that way. Hope this help!

This description is what caught my attention: I do not think a forum is the ideal place for an online store or to showcase leatherwork to outside buyers. I am certainly never going to look at a forum if I am looking to buy something. JOhanna, can you tell us what you are busy designing for LW?

OK, now I am confused. I was reading this link from the beginning and suddenly when I am ready to post my items to the new site, it splutters out and dies ...! I understood that leatherworker.net is a place for leathercrafters to get together and talk and exchange ideas and show their work and get inspiration and learn from one another. I don't see how Collins' site conflicts with this site. Or is there such a shop here somewhere on leatherworker.net that I missed?!?

Remember that these guys cannot buy lace for their projects! They have to make it - luckily they can still get thin leather to cut lace from, but then it has to be split a bit thinner to be ideal to use around billfolds and such ...