swivelsphinx

Thanks Tom! The "triquetra" (that's what we tend to call this particular knot in the US- I don't know if this is what it's "officially" called) is one of the easier knots to do in smaller leather work for me. It's nice and neat and self-contained. It also tends to look good in multiple orientations too! I've done it on bags, horn carvings, boxes, candle holders. I even found a 1/2 inch stamp with one on it! swivelsphinx

Hey! Paper mache is one of those crafts (like leather) that has been around *for ever* but doesn't tend to be appreciated enough for its versitility. These rattles combine wood, paper, glass beads, cloth, fur... and of course leather. The Baron's hat is constructed of veg tan, as are the Scarab's wings, and the Dragon's horns. The Dragon's wings are garment tan leather.

This is an example of one of my favorite things to make for festivals- drinking horns. I line them with beeswax. The bindings are vegtan- I carve, I stamp...they are removable, and made from all kinds of grades of leather

Thanks for the tip! It's always nice to have more sources! -swivelsphinx

I'm hoping to call up the manager at a Ct. Tandy Leather and see if anyone over there has some old catalogs... Thanks for the reply anyway!THis is a very pretty nautical /"eastern" star. I've seen it before. Thanks for the suggestion! -swivelsphinx

Hey All: I seem to remember seeing a Tandy Catalog from the 70's or 80's that had a *pentagram* stamp in it. That is to say, a star in which you could see the lines that connected the points cross each other. Does anyone have old catalogs to check this? Otherwise I'll have to have a 1 inch stamp made. I can carve them, and have, but a stamp would make life easier!

Hey, Welcome to Charlton MA. I have been to the store once or twice. Being in Worcester, it's just as easy for me to get to Hartford as Charlton! Hope to see you in your shop sometime! swivelsphinx

I may be taking a comission on a breast plate. I am avoiding Roman style segmentata, as a large design must go on the front. However, multiple pieces can be used, so long as the frontmost "plate" is fairly solid. I do molded leather and sew, so I am ok with either single or multiple piece construction. However, this armor is for theatrical use only. It will be worn over clothing, and will not connect to anything else. The back will not be covered. I will use straps to attatch it to the person's body- the customer will want to be able to put it on himself. It's going to be mighty flashy- bright white with gold wings on the front, over a cassock- I'm thinking about the look of your typical "St. Michael" depiction.

I know many mask makers who use Krylon products to finish their pieces. Personally, I find that if a mask is going to flex alot it the finish *will* "break" and spiderweb eventually. It's good to inform customers how to properly store their masks. Little thin masks ("lone ranger style") often end up bent up in drawers, or "rolled", which can wreck a poly-whatever finish. At least the customer can't say you never warned 'em! I am not all-against Krylon- I use their products on alot of things. On leather, it's economical, fast and reliable. *However*, spraypaints of any kind can dry out the leather and make it terribly brittle. My masks tend to be single piece half-face jobs. I use dyes overlaid with acrylic. I tend to use finishes like atom wax- they harden a little, but still retain some "give".

Very pretty. Are you using ink or stain for your color? brush or airbrush? If I were going to consider *one* thing on construction, I don't know how long your friend's forearms are. Most men have longer/ wider muscled forearms than their female counterparts. Dancers/Firespinners move around fairly rapidly, often swinging their arms in circular motions. bending at the elbows brings the bottom edge down towards softer tissue which *can* get sore when pressed due to constriction (regardless of the presence of sleeves). I usually like to end my vanbraces 3/4 down the forearm on the inside for this reason. I used the "Cowboy Cuff" available from Tandy for my first Vanbrace model. They were a very practical design, and easy to modify. Thanks for posting!

I admire that you took on an ambitious project first time out-of-the-gate. One thing that might help is making sure your knives are *very* sharp. When I did my first carvings, the blade of my swivel knife was "fresh out of the factory" but not nearly sharp enough- if you are having trouble around curved, sharp corners ( like Mike's wing tips) with having "pinched" or "pushed" bits that aren't cutting nicely, or you are finding you are losing agility because you have to press too hard (this is particularly bad when making circles, I find) you may want to work that blade up some more.

Hey Bruce: I really appreciate you posting a reply so soon! The photographs are really helpful, as is the explanation. The "Celtic knotwork rope trick" must have wowed them- it impressed the hell out of me! I've played around with these periodically, and its hard to figure out how to line them up. Now I have a project that could really use these! Thanks, Tannin S. swivelsphinx

Hey: i used to own a "how to" book which included the instructions for the "R" series Leather Factory rope stamps. I lost all of my leather working books in a fire almost two years ago. I can't remember which one had the article(s) in it! I looked at some posts on lining up basket weave stamps- they were pretty good, but if any of you have any suggestions or detail photos (close-ups of pre-dyed work) I'd find that very helpful! swivelsphinx

You may have found someone by now, but I'd be happy to send you photos of my carving work. My specialty is non-traditional fantsy/occult themes.

if the scales are *not* popping up, I just use a light wax based finish like an atom wax. If the skin came from a larger, older snake, you may need to condition it with something like Lexol *first*. Always buff in the direction of the scale.

Hey. I admit- I don't really like Krylon products for any leather that isn't just going to sit on a shelf and look pretty. Krylon spray paints and finishes are great for things like ceramics and models, but on leather, these products dry and crack the leather in time. When my masks are done I have used: - turtle wax- atom wax- brushable polyeyrothane -satin sheene (and related products) All of then *can* be used in a spraygun. I do not use these products on the *inside* of a mask. Ever.

Well, as a person who is always looking to get the greatest economy out of her leather, I always have a tapemeasure handy. On a full belly (which are often oddly shaped), the greatest length is usually corner to corner- if I *must* have that piece, I bisect the piece *off center* so I can cut a few belts or whatever out of that center piece. Then again, I use vegtsn, usually undyed. I case and sweat first, then press down any areas that are rippled to get the piece as uniform as possible. If you are doing ring belts, you might want to also consider more types of leather/grades that might availavle to you. For instance, tandy is ok for alot of things, but frankly, their prices on "economy leathers" stink. try Wickett and Craig instead. I make *alot* of different things, so even those tough "lobes" that can be found oon the edges get used in my shop. "The greatest length" on a given piece of leather is often on a diagnal if it is not fairly square- but you might want to consider if the remaining pieces will be useful, or waste.

I find that having a variety of burnishing tools is helpful. I have used actual bone folders (I make them out of cattle and deer bone), antler burnishers, nylon "slickers", and folded pieces of light canvas. It helps to use an edger first, and moistening the entire edge slightly doesn't hurt either. I like gum tracaganth on by belt edges and portruding bag seams too! I wonder if an amber furniture wax or bowling alley wax might not give similar results... hmmm....