britlet

Zuludog the leather was from http://www.thechesterfieldcompany.com/ I visited their showroom and apparently they do often have leathers hanging up that they sell cheap. JLS yes you're right. Measured it and it is a 2mm one. Quite soft (in my inexprienced opinon) and flexible. Can I ask, is a stitching pony something I need to buy right at the start? It appears to be one of the more expensive tools.

zuludog your criticism is welcome and thank you for being honest. I have taken your points on board and have already ammended some areas such as profile info etc. I do frequent various forums for my various hobbies and yet i still seem to forget and fall in the newbie trap. Definitely not the kind of guy looking to be spoonfed though And I am very grateful for the great advice from both you and LD2. Thank you. My first post was abit generalistic and not very detailed so i'll try and give a bit more info. As a person I tend to like the preparation stage (i.e. having the basic knowledge, tools, etc) before starting. I am not a brand junkie however I do like to buy something half decent from the start that will last me. I'm a firm believer in the "you get what you pay for" saying. Now at the same I am conscious of how easily one can fall for hype created online and end up buying tools or items that will never get used so I'm trying to avoid that if possible. I am thinking of starting with the basics needed for cutting and stitching (and then I can buy specilised tools later as and when needed). I've already got a copy of the Al Stohlman book and am starting to read it tonight. TandyLeather is one of the websites which I found a couple of years back during my searches and although I havent bought from it I did save it in my favourites for later use because it looked very good and with a comprehensive range of tools and materials one needs. I do have a Japanese water stone which I purchased a couple of years back when I started to buy Japanese chef's knives. I assume it will be ok to use? As for the leather it is a whole piece which I bought in Manchester in a shop which makes sofas and armchairs. When I visited their showroom they had a few hides hanging up and I asked if they were for sale. The chap said yes and I was bracing myself when I asked how much. To my surprise he said £40. I assume this was one of the hides that may have had some faults and which they could not use for making sofas. Perhaps my 2mm estimate was generous. 1mm is more likely and the leather is quite flexible. I am not quite sure if it is chrome or vegetable tanned though

Hi all. I have just started into the world of leatherwork and joined the forum. I am an amateur and I intend to start with a couple of 'simple' projects (I hope). The first one is to saw a leather border on each end of a thin wool rug (70cm on each side). The other project is to saw together a removeable simple leather cover for my notepad. Could you guys give me some advice as to what tools do I need to start with please? Also if there is any literature I may need to buy (some sort of leatherworker's bible suitable for beginners) and/or videos/websites to watch and visit? Any advice would be much appreciated. PS: By the way I have already purchassed a large hide which is about 2mm thick