Handstitched

There is also ' Oxalic Acid' ) ( *Rhubarb juice) , but could be a bit extreme....its also very toxic. Heres a bit of info: http://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/25558-oxalic-acid-and-cleaning-leather/ I think I'd rather have the ' patina' HS (* I hate rhubarb & custard, still do ,my Mother tried feeding it to me as a kid ......she failed !!)

@battlemunky I have used a beveller on my tri-weave on occasion to make it look ......' normal' HS

G'day, I did get a reply regarding their 'pricing anomaly ' . Here is my email to them : " In your ad for the " Business & Manufacturer " Flyer code 1810BUS, the price for " Oak-Leaf Lightweight Veg-Tan Saddle Skirting 10 to 12 oz. (4.0 to 4.8 mm Item #9047-05 " is $185.99,however , in the current " Sale " ad on your web site, , you have "Oak-Leaf Lightweight Veg-Tan Saddle Skirting 10 to 12 oz. (4.0 to 4.8 mm) Item #9047-05 is at $168.99 for the exact same product.I know which one I'll be buying And their reply : " They are on sale at the moment for $168.99 plus gst .If you would like to order some. We only have 1 in store at the moment. We have more on order and should be instore early next week. If you order today we can hold them at that price for you . " No apologies, no acknowledgement or a " thank you for pointing this out" about their pricing difference . I wonder how many businesses unknowingly paid the higher price ? @canonitr We in the West of Australia , have to wait up to 2 weeks for anything to arrive from the east. I can only dream for stuff to arrive in 3 - 5 days I have in fact received parcels quicker from Pennsylvania to WA than from the east.....go figure ? It reminds me of a line from the movie " " O Brother, Where for Art Thou" " Well ain't this a geological oddity....two weeks from everywhere " . Welcome to Western Australia ....So funny Marino Leather in QLD ( @Rockoboy) are the best, they send express post, 3-5 days guaranteed. I have only bought from Packers on rare occasions over the years, but they seem pretty good to deal with. I had no problems with them . HS

Get a leather scrotum, kangaroo, deer , whatever...... ' human size' ,..... fill it out and set it up to make it look as ' human' as possible, hang it up , with an accompanying sign saying, " This is what happened to the last person that stole from me" That might work HS

Me and ' basket weave & tri weave' have this.... " love hate relationship " . I love doing it and the lovely pattern it creates, but hate it when it all goes wrong Unless someone knows leather, no-one would ever notice. What colour dye are you going to use ? It looks great HS

I'm still using XP.......don't laugh. Two words....' it works ' I use MS Office Picture Manager. At the top of the page is " Edit Pictures" . At the bottom of the selections is " Compress Pictures" . It reduces the size of the file suitable for emails, uploading etc. Also, I have set my camera to a small file setting, for just that. Luggage tags are good for using up off cuts, scraps etc. for sale or for practice, experimenting, doodling etc. . Key rings & book marks and similar small items are good for that too. Nice HS PS: Theres no such thing as a ' stupid question ' on here. You're amongst friends on here and we're here to help.

I've never had to remove ' Resolene' ,we don't get that here in Australia. Is that like Neatlac ? I have removed a sealer using alcohol spirit like acetone on an old handbag, ..... it wasn't pretty, but it worked. However, saying that , after cleaning up the mess I made and letting it dry, and re-applying an antique dye & sealer, it didn't turn out too bad. But it was a darker dye than the original . I too do markets, fairs, country shows etc. I do make sure my stock is out of direct sunlight, even if it means moving some stock around during the day as the sun moves around, or adding extra shade to my stall. HS

G'Day, I never really gave my sewing tables that much thought , but heres mine . The tables are the same ones that came with the machines . The only ' custom ' part of the table, is that daggy looking bit in the corner, just above the drawers. ( I'm not a woodworker, as you can see ) I did that because I do horse rug repairs, some canvas , & shade sail repairs, and the extra bit of space became helpful. I could do with more, so I will later add a bit more to it with an extra folding extension right at the end going the full width of both the machine table & bench , as space is a prime , so when I get a sizable job, I can fold it out. I will also make a flat piece to fill the gap to the right. I just need to get a " roundtoit" ,...... never seen one in the shops though The drawers on the right , is where I keep my threads. HS

Quite nice , well done . Perhaps finish off the edges a bit , but otherwise quite nice. The ' Gator' has a nice shine . HS

G'Day, This is very similar, but I don't leave teeth marks on the bottom. https://www.tolindsewmach.com/images/2500-stitches-2.jpg https://www.tolindsewmach.com/images/2500-stitches-1.jpg these pics came from here: https://www.tolindsewmach.com/cb2500.html Theres info in the 6th paragraph. I must have my tension adjusted just right , but I also use a stirrup/ holster plate HS

@JazzBass MattS pretty much nailed it. I measure <--------------> this much thread, from one hand to the other I have three hand made ponies of different size openings . The other is an antique saddlers stitching clamp . And remember, its hand made , so don't worry if the overlap is visible or if a stitch or two is a bit off. They're called humanity stitches, as I was once told by a quilt maker. It lets us know that we're humans...not machines Good luck & Enjoy your hand stitching JB HS

I sometimes use a large H/D ring 5mm on flat leather, belts etc. , and a H/D square ring on the nooks and crannys on some leather knife/ tool cases, and gently rub over the affected areas, that does help....with a bit of elbow grease. I have a 441 clone, and I'm not too keen to back off the foot pressure too much in case it leaves a 'bullet ' hole in my roof, Ha !! HS

G'Day, This is my....messy...arrangement for my dyes etc. It used to be a lottery/ scratchie bench from our local newsagent, that and the grey rubbish bin to the left...( for the losing tickets ) . I use small plastic kitchen/laundry baskets to store them . Most are water based, with some added spirit to assist in drying. Some are oil based, ' Raven Oils' , the small glass bottles (out of view) . When my dyes & sealers etc. arrive from my supplier, I top up all the smaller bottles using the larger 1 & 2 litre bottles you can see on the bottom left of the shelf. Its case of ' not putting all my eggs in one basket ' . Its well ventilated, but also away from windows & direct sunlight....and well away from the main work benches. You can see my air compressor to the right that I sometimes use for air brushing. The red hand pump to the right is for transferring acetone from a 4ltr tin to a 1ltr. tin, otherwise its a messy & costly affair using a funnel. (Its also for my kero heater) . HS

Yep, I agree. I only buy from Tandy when theres a genuine bargain , although quite rare. I have also pointed out their ' pricing anomaly '. Just waiting for their reply. I've had accounts with Birdsall for 14 years, and NSW Leather Co. ( agent in Perth) I also purchase from Adelaide Leather . Even Leflers Melbourne can be a bit pricey. Never bought from Austanners , I might try them out. Theres also Packers Leather Narangba Qld. only bought from them rarely . There is ' Western Leather Craft in Perth (WA), where my leather journey started , I know the current owner, he's gone all ' medieval ' and not so much staying true to leather craft per se', and I knew the previous owner ( not nice) ...and the one before that ( his mother....so much nicer) , but the shop is now physically inaccessible . He needs to move . Trying to get wholesale pricing from Tandy is not easy. With the exception of my leather supplier in Perth, its a case of ' two weeks from everywhere' if I want something. HS

The difference of $185.99 " Premium Price for businesses " , and $169.00 " Sale Price" , doesn't sound like much , but every $$ counts as a sole trader . We have 10% GST ' Goods & Services Tax' in Oz . And the Aussie $$ keeps hovering around the low . 70's . Not good for buying stuff from the US. It has to be at least .85 - .90c to make it viable. I did my tax this week, I'm way down on sales on last year. But thankfully, all my bills are paid and I'm in the black But, costs keep going up, so I'll be putting up the prices of my plain belts ( and few other things) next year , first price rise in about 10 years HS

You're not the only one. They know nothing about ' continuity ' . http://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/82275-tandy-catalogue-from-australia/ (go to my latest post) HS

G'Day, yet another gripe about Tandy. Spot the ' anomaly ' between this: ( business to business ) for Oakleaf , https://www.tandyleather.com.au/en/eflyer/1810bus-au?utm_source=Tand-E-mail+from+Tandy+Leather&utm_campaign=8056bfae80-2018-10-09-TandyLeather-1810BUS-AU&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e267c11fde-8056bfae80-75657005&mc_cid=8056bfae80&mc_eid=d54954bb79 (sorry for the long link) .........and this: ( from their latest October catalogue ) https://www.tandyleather.com.au/en/product/oak-leaf-lightweight-saddle-skirting-10-to-12-oz-4-0-to-4-8-mm Same ad, same product, size , thickness description etc. but with one substantial difference between this and their so called " Premium Specials" for businesses . I haven't told them ....yet. I'll give them the opportunity to correct it. HS

I started doing a hat pattern last week, I wasn't happy with how it looked ,so I screwed it up, and, (with an expletive ) I threw it in the bin . I did another pattern.... " ditto" .... I'll get there eventually HS

G'Day, Very nicely done I hear you when you say " When you amaze yourself " . I made a lovely bag for a client a while ago , so nice I wish I kept it Ha ha HS

As space is at a prime, I used empty cleaned butter containers for all my hardware. See pic, centre left, on top of the shelves . thats only half of them. Not the ideal solution, I know , but it works. http://leatherworker.net/forum/uploads/monthly_2018_08/5b869fe92624f_WorkshopPics2018.gif.30864d7b0338c9d6d3e500212dc11254.gif HS

Nothing wrong with that , looks aged , nice I have known people to modify an old screw driver, sharpened , to use as swivel knife. No different to modifying the ends of nails , bolts etc. to use as stamps . If it works and does the job.....? Like stetson912 said, you don't have to use all the fancy tools to do the job. HS

G'Day, I had a quick look around, and, just looking at this pic , I thinks it does, see the lever on the right ? : https://auctions.afimg.jp/item_data/image/20171010/yahoo/r/r211605064.1.jpg However, I also found this: http://parts.singerco.com/IPinstManuals/16U288.pdf It makes no mention of reverse. And this: http://www.industrialsewmachine.com/webdoc1/singer/16u.htm once again, no mention of reverse ? Hope this sorta helps, HS

We can have a virtual coffee instead Flat white no sugar, thanks But feel free to ask us anything about leather. Its pretty much guaranteed that someone on here can give you an answer/s to whatever you need to know. HS

That has happened to me, mainly due to over saturation of oil. I have also found , from experience, that there may have been something on/in the leather that has caused it to soak in too much in one spot. It 'might' soak in a bit more if you left it a bit longer, try it . However, if all else fails, then yes, try dying it using a slightly dark antique, but it may also still show through a bit , depending on how many coats you apply. Nice tooling though HS

Makes me want to go to my workshop right now and practice my basket weave skills......which are not as a nice as that . Lovely colour HS