CitizenKate

Wow, that really got my imagination going! Thanks for sharing! Kate

I finally got the frame and the rest of the finishing touches on my Backgammon board. I decided, for this project, to put together an entire game, including the dice, "checkers", etc. (Usually I just make the boards, and the people who buy them combine them with their own playing pieces). I also made some little leather bags for the pieces. Yes, I thought about making dice shakers, ala Al Stohlman, but I failed miserably! LOL I'll have to keep working on those... Kate

Your test is more thorough than the one I started last year, but I got almost exactly the same results. I've had three samples sitting in a south-facing window, getting several hours of direct sunlight daily since last July. The first photo shows how they looked just after the application of dye and before I placed them in the window. The second shows how they look now. The colors are Cranberry, Sunshine Yellow, and Evening Blue. As mentioned already, the issue with the blue and purple are known by Tandy. Last I heard, they were going to have new formulas for those colors out in a couple of months. That was about 6 months ago. As for the others, if they hold up this well under intense light, imagine how well they will do in average room lighting conditions. Now if they could come up with something this light-fast, AND resistant to moisture, then they'll really have something. Kate

Your basket weave stamping looks pretty good to me. Thanks for the nice photos. Kate

For me, it's Lord of the Rings. I read the novel(s) back in the early 80's and suffered through the previous attempts to produce it on the silver screen. When Peter Jackson made his version of it, I thought someone had finally done it right. Before that, it was Star Wars. I haven't played it now for 3 or 4 years, but I used to have an annual SW Marathon! Kate

Hmmm... pigeon dung... and at no point does anyone ask, "Isn't there a better way to do this?" Kate

Itemized vs. Standard deduction is either/or. You take one or the other. That is fairly clear in the instructions. Kate

Wish I could be there! Hope you plan on posting photos from that event. Kate

What a nice piece of work! Kate

Fine work, Deneken - glad you signed in, and look forward to seeing more! Kate

Nope, it peels off easily and leaves nothing behind. The more coats you use, the easier it is to peel off. I used 2 coats for my demo, and it all came off just as easily as you see in the photos. Can't wait to see the results! Kate

Hi Ian, I presume you're airbrushing your colors? I use a number of different ways of masking my artwork for spraying dyes. One is to use liquid latex. I posted a photo demo on how to do that here. Another method is to get some of those Avery (or generic brand is fine too) full-page sized labels. Print your artwork on the label, use a Xacto knife to cut out the shape you want to mask, then stick it to the leather. It goes on and off with little problem, and since this material is somewhat absorbent, it prevents bleeding over the edges. You can use a modeling tool to manicure the edges of the mask into your cut lines to help prevent any overspray from drifting underneath. You don't want to spray the dye too heavily; work in multiple light passes until you have the color you want. Cut lines do help stop the spread of dye on the leather, but you still want to go in light passes. Your strategy of starting with lighter shades and going to darker is good. Hope this helps. Kate

For some reason, the first "Men in Black" movie comes to mind. LOL Cool piece, Tom! Kate

Very cute, and very nice workmanship! Kate

Okay, here's the latest progress. I really intended the colors of the points to be somewhat more intense, but I had to re-apply the antique (for pieces this size, putting on antique is a crap shoot), and the extra work took out some of the color. Still, though, the more subtle shades are nice, too. I painted the little diamond thingies with Createx pearlized paints to create a nice antiqued metal appearance. Kate

That does it. You are now on my list of people to watch. That goes for your wife, too. Kate

Ha! You GO, little victim! Kate

Same here. Dealing with piece-parts is one thing, but dealing with raw material is another. So far, I've been able to set up my program to keep pretty close track of things like leather. Dyes are a little less cut-and-dry. I told my accountant that the amount of dye I use not only varies from one identical piece to another, but for some pieces, I portion it out not in ounces, but in drops. Her response was, then you need to track your dyes by the number of drops. I asked her if she was out of her mind. No way am I going to sit around counting drops of dye all day long - I'd never have time to make anything. (Maybe that's where the term "bean-counter" comes from.) So what I do is estimate as closely as possible, how many ounces of dye I use for each item, and I set up the system to deduct that amount automatically whenever I make the item. Then periodically, I do cycle counts on the dyes I've been using the most, and make inventory adjustments. Kate

LOL I wish I had four hands! Actually, what I did was set the camera up on a tripod, and set the timer so I was working when the shutter went off. Kate

Hi Ed, The built-in tutorials are the best place to start. Those were pretty much all I needed. Kate

Hey, what are friends for? Can't wait to see what you come up with. Kate

I see what you mean about the separation. But overall appearance has a very nice texture to it. That braided handle is gorgous! Kate

Yes, in fact I can show you something similar.... take a look at the work of Les & Kimball Beery. Love their work! Kate

It also may help to remember to keep your cloth flat while wiping off the excess, so that you don't inadvertently remove antique from the impressions. Kate