Sheilajeanne
-
Posts
2,691 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Blogs
Gallery
Everything posted by Sheilajeanne
-
Help salvaging a project with USMC black?
Sheilajeanne replied to Gabriel Rasa's topic in How Do I Do That?
Needless to say, I don't think you will ever use this dye again. I've heard nothing but horrible things about it on this board! -
Starting another Briefcase
Sheilajeanne replied to ComputerDoctor's topic in Satchels, Luggage and Briefcases
I needed a specific weight of leather for a project, and the young guy at Tandy's who was helping me pulled out a leather thickness gauge, and made sure I got what I was looking for! NO EXCUSE for not being able to give a customer that information!! And a gauge can be a lot simpler and a lot cheaper than the one shown above! https://www.tandyleather.com/en/product/leather-thickness-gauge C.D., that green alligator print looks really cool! Can't wait to see the finished briefcase! -
1) Make sure your knife is properly sharpened and stropped. A dull knife will stick in the leather 2) The moisture content of the leather could be part of the problem - the knife will stick if the leather is too dry 3) When beveling, the beveler has to go with the edge right in the line you've cut with the swivel knife. You should tilt it a bit so the whole tool face doesn't touch your leather and leave a mark 4) Suggest you check on line for basic leather carving videos that can help show you proper technique. Nothing beats actually seeing someone else do it. This one will give you a good start: 5) It takes quite a bit of practice to learn how to control the swivel knife. Get a few pieces of scrap leather, and use them to practice on. Don't give up - anything worth doing takes time to master!
-
But of course! Verry nice work! (Had to roll the 'r' to imitate a Scot's accent... )
-
Since schutzhund is a sport I enjoy and take part in, I should probably concentrate on that as my niche. Most people who do dog collars do the fancy ones for small dogs, and that is not something that interests me. Still trying to find my niche, though. I really enjoy the creative aspect of leather carving, and that's not something you can do with collars, leashes and harnesses!
-
I have zero interest in guns, having never owned one, if you don't count the cap pistols I had as a kid! (Dating myself here, I know...) So far I've made dog collars, leashes, coasters, wallets, belts, and bags. Planning to make a purse next and an eyeglass case. Oh, and my cellphone case didn't turn out as well as I liked, so a new one is in the works. When I get more confident, I may try wet-moulding some cases. I would also like to do a water bottle holder for hiking, and maybe try a 'bum bag'. The one I use when I am walking my dogs has several features I'd like to improve on! Also in the works is a dog harness for protection training, similar to this one:
-
Although you need more practice with your stitching, and need to learn how to make nice finished edges, your carving and tooling are amazing for a beginner! There's a sticky thread on edge finishing here:
-
Glad to know that! I'm sure the goat doesn't care... I am a bit surprised you didn't put a D-ring in the collar. I guess you just loop a tie rope through the collar when tethering him in the trailer?
-
Blemish? If you can find a blemish on that collar, your eyes are better than mine, and the last time I had them checked, they were 20/20! I AM kind of wondering why you punched so many holes in it. If this were a young, growing goat, I'd understand, but the neck of a mature billy isn't going to get any smaller!
-
Okay, someone has to give this the response it deserves... [slaps immiketoo]
-
leather techniques Secrets from the Workshop
Sheilajeanne replied to Dangerous Beans's topic in How Do I Do That?
As a lefty, this is one of my favourite plays on words: The left in Canada (meaning the political left!) is more gauche than sinister. BTW, as someone who is seriously hearing impaired, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT play background music in videos!! And if there is some way you can include accurate closed captioning, that's a wonderful benefit as well. Many of the closed captioning videos I've seen are a total joke. -
Singer Leather Sewing Machines
Sheilajeanne replied to Trevor Baret's topic in Leather Sewing Machines
Stole this from the Canadian Leathercrafter's FB page...sorry, too funny not to share!
-
Yes, training a dog not to pull is done mostly with treats. I don't even bother with a leash at first, because I do the initial training indoors. But once you move outside, a leash is necessary for safety. For a full grown large dog that's a determined puller, I use a prong, then, like you, transition to a regular collar or choke chain once the dog has learned not to pull. Harnesses are MEANT for pulling...that's why huskies wear them when they are working! All that B.S. about a flat collar, choke chain or prong damaging the neck? How about a dog in a harness pulling its owner out into traffic, or towards another dog, and starting a dog fight? Believe me, I've seen it happen! TEACH YOUR DOG NOT TO PULL, then it won't matter what it's wearing! Like you said, show leads are like shoelaces - if the dog pulls, the lead is going to break!
-
I can send you a PM about that. I do some pretty advanced obedience! :D
-
Large dog collars need to be pretty thick. Also, I would use bridle leather or latigo, as these have a harder temper, are designed to resist the elements, and are less likely to stretch. Oh, and you can also teach your dog NOT to pull. That helps, too! :D Edit: just realized you want to tool the collar, which makes my suggestions invalid. Darn! So, my revised suggestion would be to use a heavier weight of veg tan, then treat it with any of the numerous products available for making veg-tan resistant to the elements. Ask 5 people, you will likely get 5 different answers. Being a former horse person, I would clean the collar with a sponge that has one of those mildly abrasive nylon scrub pads on the back, then apply saddle soap. I find my dog's coat is oily enough that I've never had to use Neatsfoot oil to soften the leather. I have a plain leather collar, about 7 oz., which has been used on multiple dogs since 1984, and has held up just fine. The stitching is starting to fray, though, and will likely need replacing soon.
-
Looks like you're going to need some Oil of Olay....
-
Hey, Bob, just curious - are you in the town of Simcoe, or Simcoe County (like me - I am near Alliston.) Hope to be there, too!
-
Johanna, that's why I asked what the face of that beveler looked like. Not sure I want to wait a year, if I can find a similar one from another tool maker... Bob doesn't even have a catalogue on his website so I couldn't check it out there.
-
It sure did, Mike! So, uh, is Bob still making tools? I really like that beveller! What does the surface of it look like?
-
Mike, I'm curious to know where that pattern you used came from! I've never seen one like that before - I've only seen Tandy Craftaid patterns. Great video! I learned a lot from watching you work!
-
Yup, we have a winner! :D I had a huge crush on Chris George, and Gary Raymond certainly wasn't hard on the eyes, either... It only ran for 2 seasons, so a lot of people don't remember it.
-
Here's a sketch I did when I was about 15. Bonus points if you can identify the TV show it's from. I never quite finished the jeep - it was hard to find a reference photo to get the details EXACTLY right! (Pre-internet days...lol!)
-
LOL, immiketoo! I know I have a bit of artistic talent. I used to do pencil sketches of my favourite movie, TV and rock stars when I was in my early teens. My mom was quite surprised because she had a sister who was a professional artist (studied at Ontario College of Art) so she KNEW the human face and figure were one of the hardest things to do well. I really wish I'd kept it up. I also used to sketch horses a lot, but that didn't go anywhere either. I look at what people are doing on the Art of the Horse FB page and feel like I have NO talent whatsoever... But, maybe, maybe I'll get the confidence to try it someday with my leather work... Oh, yeah, and EXACTLY what Bob Blea said above! Even when using Craftaids and other designs from the Net or from Tandy, I often want to tinker with them and add my own personal touch. Maybe it's just resizing the design, or changing a couple of things to make it fit better. You learn by doing this, rather than slavishly copying the same design again and again.
-
Leong, just have to say that is one BEAUTIFUL backpack! Lovely detailing, lovely carving and stitching...
-
I agree with this. My goal in leather working is not to find the most efficient way of churning out dozens of copies of the same item, but to learn how to produce something that is both functional and beautiful. But trying to find that line where craft leaves off and art begins is pretty well impossible.
