LatigoAmigo

Does it look like this?

I must admit that mine could be out of adjustment, one of my big challenges. It's a home-made laser, and has a few "issues." Is yours a CO2 or a diode laser... big difference. I've considered upgrading, but I got my machine at bargain basement pricing. And what type of leather are you cutting? I know I'm not supposed to, but I cut mostly chrome-tanned leather (I do use a fume extractor), some of which is considered "stuffed." It weeps oil and is a real challenge to laser-cut.

Did you seal the paint with anything? After applying stain or paint, any people here seal the leather with Fiebing's Acrylic Resolene Leather Finish. There are other options, so maybe someone will chime in with their favorites.

Had I received what you did, I would contact the seller right away to see what they could do to remedy the problem. They probably don't want to lose your business. My two favorite suppliers are The Hide House in Napa, CA, and Maverick Leather in Bend, OR.

This may be out of your reach due to your location, but Campbell-Randall in Texas carries clicker mats in various sizes. I don't have a clicker, but use one of theirs for punching. http://www.campbell-randall.com/shop/clickers-presses

In the his 1950 book Leather Braiding by Bruce Grant, he refers to this as a "Stairstep Applique of One Thong."

Post a picture so we can see what this looks like. Also, what type of paint did you use?

For about $10 you can buy the book on Amazon that inspired me and opened the doors to doing leatherwork over the last 50 years. By Bruce Grant, it is simply called "Leather Braiding." A great place to start. https://www.amazon.com/Tandy-Leather-Braiding-Book-6022-00/dp/087033039X/ref=pd_lpo_14_t_2/145-1872454-7290226?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=087033039X&pd_rd_r=ccc71bae-2187-442e-a331-e0cdd39da7cb&pd_rd_w=qiYp5&pd_rd_wg=aWXHn&pf_rd_p=7b36d496-f366-4631-94d3-61b87b52511b&pf_rd_r=WD965AMQZBR1RAZPY2BH&psc=1&refRID=WD965AMQZBR1RAZPY2BH

I know that people on this forum have expressed concern about cutting leathers that have been tanned with chromium salts. I cut and engrave chrome-tanned and latigo leathers with a laser cutter, so to address those concerns I've invested in a fume extraction system. So far, so good. It gets rid of the burnt leather smell too.

In the drawing the lace looks a little on the narrow side. Wider lace might just give you the look you want.

I'm not sure if this is exactly what you are looking for, but it might help you see what could be going on here. It is Bruce Grant's book "Encyclopedia of Rawhide and Leather Braiding." I've done this braid with punched holes, but straight cuts could work too, depending on the thickness of the lace. His drawings show oblong holes, so he has split the difference.

Good point. From Wikipedia I learned that "line" used to be (and in some cases continues to be) called "ligne" which is an old German button measure equating to the width of a round wick folded flat. Used to express the diameter of buttons and snaps, it was not exactly 40 lignes to an inch, but has evolved in the USA as 40 lines to an inch. So for snaps manufactured in the USA, a line 20 snap has a diameter of 1/2". For ease of conversion, a line 24 snap is typically shown as having a 5/8" diameter, but is actually slightly smaller. Your reference to this has allowed me to understand there may be some variation in the interpretation of this measurement, resulting in some deviation in the manufacture of Line 20 and 24 snaps, which why some of my snap-setting die sets don't work with all of my snaps (the cap gets lodged in the cap-setting die). Here I've posted a page from the Ohio Travel Bag catalogue that displays some of their offerings, including assorted post lengths. Hope you find this more helpful than confusing. Ohio Travel Bag 2018 404.pdf

The Buckle Guy offers a wide range of snaps. Here is a link to that site. When you click-through on a snap you will see the dimensions you are seeking. My suggestion is to study what they have then give 'em a call if you have any further questions. https://www.buckleguy.com/brass-snap-fasteners/ You probably already know this, but you will find that the bench-style snap/rivet setter will be your best friend when setting snaps. It is hard to get hand-style setters to set evenly.

If you live in the USA, you might start with The Buckle Guy... https://www.buckleguy.com/ ...good website, wide selection, great service.

I do all of my designs on a computer (then laser cut the leather), and so I shrink the width of the pattern a little more than the height. I also tack down the lining on the bottom of the bag, and also on the front, back and side pieces. Kind of hard to see here, but if you look real hard you can see that the lining is tacked down to the bottom of the bag with dark thread. I typically attach it in 10 or 12 places so that it opens up with the bag as much as possible. I would like to get the lining hug the bag better, but since it is a drop-in liner, I don't know what else to do except to use a stiffer leather, which I prefer not to do for the inside of a bag. I'm not unhappy with this method, but I'm sure that there must be a better way to do it.

I've only used Adobe Illustrator, and it took me a while to figure out how to get the results I wanted. I know nothing of any other software.

The clicker will punch out the material probably faster than the laser could cut it, but that is only the first step of the job. The coasters I make are two layers sewn together with the top layer laser-engraved, so since the clicker will not engrave or punch the stitching holes, I will have to vote for the laser.

I bought my laser with the sole purpose of cutting leather because I wanted my edges to be perfectly smooth, and to be able to manage the size and spacing of my lacing holes. I think that I have be successful. I think the issue is the size of the laser. Mine is a 100 watt CO2 laser. Although it does a fine job cutting, it does not do fine etching very well.

I can't draw a straight line, much less cut a straight line. So when personal computers became affordable, I jumped right in (late 1980's). Now days I use a laser to cut and etch all my work, and could not do it without the help of Adobe Illustrator. A pretty long learning curve and much money spent, but all I can say is that I'm very happy with the results.

You can buy leather that is vat-dyed black.

They are fragile and would certainly be compromised through daily use.

@WHS Check this out:

You might want to know that actual images are preferred on this site, as they don't get "un-linked."

Try The Buckle Guy. https://www.buckleguy.com/rivets/

That lucky guy! Those are beautiful.