Double U Leather

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Here's the latest order out the door. It sure seems like I've had lots of bronc halters ordered here lately. Guess everyone is gearing up for the spring and summer rodeos and horsey type things. Anyway, I'm glad to have the orders. I really liked how this one turned out. The customer wanted more of a mahogany/burgundy overall look, incorporating a heart in the center. Take a look and let me know what you think. Thanks for looking, and keep your eyes looking upward. Be blessed gang.

I'm with Cyber. I stand by all my work, and if it's something I did wrong, I'll gladly fix the problem, re-do the order, or give a refund. However, if I've done what the customer ordered, and can prove it with e-mails, etc., I'm pretty hard pressed to give their money back. Chances are, as was mentioned, even if I do give the money back just to alleviate a conflict, the customer will or already has bad mouthed my reputation and integrity. That being said, I would keep the money and at least I would have something to show for the brain damage. Maybe being a broke ol' rodeo boy makes me a bit more sensitive about my money, but I darn sure am not gonna eat someone else's mistake. I'll eat my own, but not somebody else's. Anyway, just my two cents.

I make quite a few belts that are both stylish and heavy duty at eh same time. I'm not sure if my customer's are wearing holsters on them, but it wouldn't surprise me if some did. At any rate, most of belts are 6/7 oz with a 2/3 oz. lining. That makes the entire belt 8/10 oz. On rare occasion, if someone wants one thicker, I'll make the belt out of 8/9 oz. and then line it with the same 2/3 oz. leather. I use a veg tanned 2/3 cowhide for my liners. Hope that helps.

Thanks Raven...I appreciate it. And as for the shrinking leather, jeans, etc., I've called Wrangler, my leather supplier, and everyone I could think of, and oddly enough, they don't seem to take me seriously....LOL. Be blessed.

Thank you very much. I appreciate it greatly.

LNL....thanks for the nice words. I don't know about the "good, long time" part, but the customer did call me when he got it and was very happy with it. As for the "good, long time" part, lots of times belts, pants, etc., shrink over time...at least that's all I can figure why some of my stuff doesn't fit like it used to...LOL. Thanks again for the compliments, and stay blessed.

Bluesman...Thanks for the compliment.That is sewn with nylon 138 thread. My stitch groove on this was 1/8". Ms. Renee...I applied 3 coats of Clear Lac after I dyed it, and then lightly antiqued it with mahogany antique.

Thanks for the compliments. The customer should have it in his hands today, so we'll see what his reaction is. I hope he likes it.

Here's the latest order done. This was the first time I'd ever tried the two-tone look. I was a tad nervous with that much dyed area when I put the Clear Lac on it. I had visions of previous Clear Lac disasters when the dye smeared all over the whole project! This time though, no smearing at all. I really think it has everything to do with using Angelus dye instead of Fiebings. Anyway, take a look and let me know what you think. The picture makes it look a lot more red than it really is. It's actually a dark maroon...almost like a red latigo color. Thanks for looking and stay blessed.

I echo everyone else's thoughts. When I get to a place where I feel like I've "arrived", in that instant, I'll stop growing and challenging myself. I think that holds true for just about everything in life. I have never turned out a project that I didn't wish I'd have done something a bit differently. 99.9% of the time, the customer never notices it, but it screams at me. In my opinion, perfection is an unattainable goal, but excellence is the goal I shoot for.

Dadgum......I don't know how I missed this. Very good work. This thing is smokin'! As the rodeo boys say, "This is rank!!" Hats off to you amigo...you knocked this one way outta the park. Nicely done.

Here's another floral bronc halter out the door. This customer wanted a dark blue background on a blue halter. The blue was a bit darker than I thought it would be, but nonetheless, I still think it turned out pretty good. Take a peek and let me know what you think. Be blessed ya'll.

Wow....thanks gang for the nice words. It humbles me to know that my peers think highly of my work. I'm very grateful for your compliments, and feel extremely blessed to have this gift. Thanks again everyone. Remain blessed all.

Here's the next order done and out the door. This is the first time I'd done a full leather bronc halter. Most of the time, the customer just wants the bronc nose band. Occasionally, I'll get an order for the nose band and cheeks. This time around however, the customer wanted the whole thing leather. Was a learning experience, but I am happy with the way it turned out. Take a look and tell me what you think. Thanks for looking, and continued blessings to ya'll.

Thanks again for the compliments ya'll. They are much appreciated. LNL....sorry for the delay in responding. Have been out of pocket for a bit. At any rate, the jeweler's glasses I have are called OptiVisor. They have a number 3 lens in them. I actually bought them at a flea market a couple years ago and spent like $2 for 'em. They are a life saver for sure.

Thanks all for the kind words. One of the young men that won one, actually called me and thanked me for making them. That always makes a guy feel good! GrandpaJoel....I actually have a pair of jewelers glasses? that I use for all of my tooling. They kinda look like welding goggles with magnifying lenses in them. That age thing makes this tooling stuff a bit more difficult...LOL. Thanks again for the nice compliments. They are appreciated. Stay blessed.

Finally got this order done. Have had lots of outside issues to deal with, but thank the Lord, they all seem to be straightening out. Anyway, I really like how these turned out. The tiny little flowers were another test of the tooling and beveling skills, but got it managed. And the good news is, the rodeo that these are for isn't until tomorrow...LOL. Thanks goodness it's not too far away and the guy that ordered them will stop by on his way to pick them up. At any rate, take a look and let me know what you think. Stay blessed.

Thank you all for the nice compliments. Bison...you are sure right about some of the custom orders being a tad challenging. I don't know if I met the challenge or not, but it's what I came up with. Hopefully, the customer likes it. Ms. Rosi...I use Herman Oak 6-7 oz. I think some of the lightness has to do with the photo, combined with my finishing technique. I use very, very little EVO on most items. Thanks again for the nice words. Stay blessed gang.

This is the 2nd photo album for this customer. The first one, I posted earlier. It was the one that was all sunflowers. Although this one is more traditional as far as the flowers are concerned, it was anything but traditional in construction. Unlike typical photo albums that are for 8"x10" photos, this one is for 11"X14" pictures...wherein lies the problem. I couldn't find anywhere to get a 3 or 4 ring binder that would fit. So, I had to get a little creative to figure out how to make it work. Thank goodness for the folks at Hobby Lobby who pointed me to the scrapbooking section. That at least gave me an idea how to build it. All in all, I was pretty pleased with the overall outcome. As usual, if I had it to do over, I'd do some things differently. Anyway, take a peek and let me know what you think. Continued blessings friends.

Thank you Aurelie. The same flow, etc., was used as in traditional Sheridan style, but the sunflowers were definitely different. I'm like you...I kind of like how the flowers look. Thanks again for the nice words.

LOL Renee... I hope now that the Holiday is over, you are able to play again! I'm blessed to have a shop that is separate from the house. In fact, my shop is like my "man-cave". I only wish it were bigger so I could have more toys.

LOL Twin...that may be the best piece of advice so far. In seriousness though, I'd say (at least for me) keep it fun. I know some people in my area who jumped into the biz to make money. Don't get me wrong, I'm all about making money in this. But, I want to become someone who is good at the art of it all. I didn't sign on to become rich. Anyway, I'd say just keep it fun.

Thank you ma'am. The second one for this customer is turning out pretty fancy as well. I'm anxious to get it done and the entire order shipped. Have a blessed Easter!

Bob, That little seeder problem wasn't the only one I found along the way...LOL. I sure enough had to think outside of my "typical" Sheridan box to get it done. But, I was happy with how it turned out. Thanks for the nice words.