Big Papa Leather

I'm digging it. Sweet bag. Allen

Ok long story behind this one. Won't go into it but I will show it off. Carved skulls. Bison leather body. Sticky non-slip rubber under it. Thanks for looking. Allen--Big Papa

Is Ross a skinny little freak? I'm sure he's the same guy. Trained in the Austin store. If so tell him I said hi! Allen

Aww come on who we trying to kid here? I need to warn you folks about Paul. This is a prime example, . This last October at the boot and saddle show Paul took a perfectly almost sharp knife I was carrying and sharpened it to a razor edge. Can you imagine such an individual? On top of that, he wouldn't give the knife back for like 10 minutes as he improved the cutting edge on his stones. He did this without expecting anything in return... See somethings wrong here. This isn't what normal people do. It's weird. Kind of scary huh? Beware of these folks. Be afraid, very afraid! All kidding aside Paul and Rosa are good people. They are examples of the best in this industry. Best of the best. Thanks for doing what you do guys. Allen--Big Papa

JLS-- I am always willing to learn and am interested in seeing some examples of your work without antiquing. Not questioning if it can be done, just wanting to see examples that I can make an informed decision. I think there are times that designs lend themselves to be done a certain way. In florals and especially sheridan style I think antiquing is required or the sheridan police will pull your carving card and suspend you from the club till you show you can follow the rules. Hook us up with some photos so we can see for ourselves! Allen--Big Papa

Thanks for the comments. The more I look at the koi, the more I wonder what upset him so? Lol Allen

I go mine from Interstate Plastics. They are kind of local to me so I had no shipping, but they were reasonably priced and cut to order. I got thier textured cutting board plastic and it's the bee's knees. Doubt I can every cut enough to need another. Click me Good luck on your search. Allen PS No fiscal connection to Interstate plastics. Just liked my experience.

First up, a Koi wallet. My daughter said this is a creepy koi. Not sure what a creepy koi is, but he is a bit sinister looking. Then a Red/Orange Dragon: And finally a Cayman Crocodile with a lizard inlay Thanks for looking. Allen

Yes, swivel knife, I sometimes use a hair blade for finer texture, but not on this one. I airbrushed the entire thing, used two browns to get some contrast in the wood and then a light coat of black to give it an aged look on the rest of the wallet around the tiki. Allen--Big Papa

Tiki Wallet. Cool angry tiki cloth interior liner. Mission pig interior. Thanks for looking. Allen--Big Papa

I carved this hippo a few months back. I have just started to find interest in figure carving and creating more realistic pictures. I took a class about a year ago with George Hurst and we did an eagle head and it was very informative and lit a spark that lie smoldering for a while. I was thumbing through a Leather Carving book and came across this hippo. I decided that I would try to carve it and this is the result. I have it mounted in a frame and it is ready to go onto the wall. I can not take credit for the dying on this one. One of my fellow guild members who has a back ground in water colors did the dye work. He used Eco-Flow dyes and not a single drop of acrylic paint. For those who know about a lot of the leather art you see it is often done with acrylic paint. Danny did an amazing job. It took him FOREVER to get it back to me but the wait was worth it. Let me know your thoughts on this piece.

Like them a lot. I have always had issues with buckles. Too much math involved I think. Lol Great work with them.

Ok today I made this one. Black shrunken bull shoulder. Iron crossed are inlayed with red frog. Then stiched the larger iron crosses. I lined this one with a 4-5 oz veg tan due to cutting so much out of the middle of the strap. I wanted to make sure it does not stretch.

Thanks for the comments. I have really enjoyed making these straps. It is a good diversion from making wallets. Still allowing me to be creative and honing my sewing skills. Allen--Big Papa

A while back, my son asked me to make him a guitar strap. He plays in the church Praise Band and he wore the strap to a couple Sundays and Wednesday youth performances. That lead to a couple straps for others in the church to one donated to a silent auction. Here is the one I made for him. I just finished up this one. Made from the same shrunken bull and some pull up leather accents. What ya'll think? Allen

I just got my new custom head knife from Richard Epting AKA rgepting (Click here for Profile page) Really sweet knife. Made from O1 tool steel. The handle is made from Olivewood and features a Nickle Silver Bolster. The handle has three mosaic pins. I am really impressed with the knife and sure it will become my go to knife on the workbench. I also got a nice sheath to park it in. I was gonna make on for it, but since I came with one... Yea for me. You can check out his knives and stuff by contacting him directly or through his website www.eptingknives.com or Click above for the profile page and send him a pm. Thanks again Richard. Allen--Big Papa

Thanks for the comments guys (and gals). I was kind of concerned about how it would turn out, being the first wood grain I have done. All in all it turned out well. I learned a bunch on this one. I orginally beveled the planks with a smooth beveler... Nope, not a good look. I then remade it using a modeler to "smoosh" or round the cuts. The rest was cuts for the grain with a thin bladed swivel knife and I used a leaf liner for a bit of added texture and more subtle grain. I shot a light coat of medium brown through the airbrush and put a couple darker planks and wood stains by re-shooting those areas. (same color just extra coats of dye) I used RTC as a resist and a light coat of Coffee Brown antique as I did not want to accent the cuts too much. Allen--Big Papa

The Popsicle comment was a joke. The size and relative shape of the carved wooden planks reminded me of the Fudge Bomb Popsicle sticks. Allen--Big Papa

Close up of "grain" Thanks for looking. Allen--Big Papa

This machine is sold! Thanks for looking! Allen