Krisleather

Hey! I’m also interested in the HD9. I was wondering if you chose one of those in the end?

Nice! Whatever works for you. There are so many options out there now!

That's gorgeous! I love the gold detailing!

Beautiful!

These are great! Thanks.

The she-wolf raced through the darkness of the trees, her sleek pelt shimmering in the low light and mirroring that of the lush Monstera forest around her. It was a strange place to be, this jungle, but being amongst these green behemoths she felt a sense that the silent guardians were protecting her from the terrors of this man made world. Now, she could feel truly wild. Just completed this archery bracer yesterday. I'm looking forward to taking it on many archery bouts in the future! More views and projects on Instagram: Www.instagram.com/cleathercrafts

Hey all, On this topic, I went out and bought a new hot stamping machine in the market- it's on the higher price end of the "cheaper", Chinamade machines, but worth a review- so here's the vid I made on it:)

That's handy to know, thank you for the informative pics:) Sorry I didn't reply sooner! They're all quite pricey aren't they. Good for starting a business with, I suppose! I wish these companies would stop going out of business

Hi all, this is a shot in the dark, but i'm looking to convert the treadle mechanism on an old Singer table(broken machine removed) to power a wooden burnishing head. Has anyone ever done this before? Do share your ideas and pics if you've been inspired to make one before as i'd love to try! Thanks! Chris

It is a really nice machine too:/ In the middle price range (For these machines anyway!) and also a recently built machine. Ah well.

Really nice machine:) Will you make a smaller version at all?

That's an interesting insight to hear! I think there's still real gold foil out there but the ones I've bought have been the fake gold rolls which are definitely more affordable. Thank goodness for new inventions, eh? I was originally considering the handheld press- that's good to know. It seems annoying having that much space taken up by a stationary machine but I suppose it's worth it for the consistency!

Good to know your experience with the company! I think they've called themselves WorkonLeather on Etsy as they're using all their brand images etc. I've tried experimenting with a soldering iron so far without much success. I suppose the best way is to just keep experimenting!

Hi there! I won't be much help for a solution but i'm in the same boat- albiet i'm just doing leathercraft for a hobby rather than a business, so don't need such a hi-tech machine for lots of work. What I can offer is my own observations in my hot foil research! So I've been looking in to all sorts of machines as well. The China made ones, as you say, are in abundance everywhere and people generally have good feedback on them. One prominent maker of these is called "Zonesun" and they also offer making fonts of the machine too. This is good as you know whatever they make will fit in to one of their machines. Even better, the China made ones are all on the lower end of the price scale which is great. But! I totally understand how it's hard to say if anything you get made elsewhere will fit in to their machines. And also it seems you might need something hardier as you're producing alot of products. On the opposite end of the scale we have all the Kwikprint and Kingsley's and well known brands. As you know- they're expensive and actually hard to source and when you can, they can sometimes be very old. Not something you can totally rely on. Here's a bit of a grey area- all the brands in between. The best selection i've found is on Etsy. There's one or two independent makers of these hot foil machines. One is The Lederer who i've already purchased types from. They're based in Hong Kong and I believe they've upgraded one of Zonesun's machines and have made this walnut and brass box. You're talking about USD$400-600 for one of these. The Lederer are going to release an upgraded model soon which look like Zonesun's first version. I've yet to try it out but will be soon. They also offer custom making font sets which i've review on my Youtube vlog. These also look prettier than the cheaper ones to boot- so something to consider if you're going to do live embossing. One more thing to note is the fonts that i've purchased from the Lederer are much too small for any of the high end machines like Metallic Elephant(UK) and Kwikprint. The high end ones need dies that are quite large. So in conclusion I think it's important to invest in a machine that will give you longevity. The fact that the China made ones have gotten pretty good reviews and also offer custom fonts is a good thing. Not to mention, you will probably make back your money on these pretty quick. I think i'd personally go for a cheaper one, see how it goes and when the time comes invest in the larger ones. Hope that help's somewhat! -Chris

Thanks @Dreamstitcher! That'll be useful.

Love these. Keep it up!

Hello Simone! I'm visiting Tuscany later this year. Do you provide tannery tours? If so, i'd love to visit and possibly buy some veg tan later. Thanks! Christine

Hey all! I'm planning a trip to Florence and Tuscany later this year. Planning to visit the leather school but also want to visit a tannery if possible- maybe even buy some veg tan at the source! Has anyone done this and do you have places to recommend? Thanks!