RidgebackCustoms

I'm assuming it will be at the college / same venue as the show? Sounds like a good time.

Is that just for vendors? I haven't heard anything about it. I worry I stretched myself thin, but since I'm only going to be there Friday, Saturday I signed up for classes both days. Friday doing Tooling Realistic Portraits in Leather with Annie Libertini, Saturday doing Fearless Swivel Knife Use with Jim Linnell, and Saturday Afternoon doing 3D Inlay Patch with Lea Wagner. Hopefully I left myself enough time for shopping. The leather community is pretty sparse on the East Coast, so very excited to head west for an event! I was thinking about bringing some of my previous work to try and solicit feedback for improvement. Is there anything else I can do to I'll be sure to stop by and say hello. Thank you!

I'm going to the Rocky Mountain Leather Show for the first time this year! Very excited and taking a few classes from the talent there. Has anyone been before? Does anyone have any tips for getting the most out of the trip? I live in South Carolina, so this trip is definitely not something I can do every year.

Not personally looking for production work, but wondered if you looked into Mexico? A lot of hand tooled work I see from production shops originates there.

You can also start with water resistant leather. Hermann Oak makes some good stuff on that front: https://makersleathersupply.com/products/expedition-water-resistant-leather-hermann-oak?_pos=2&_sid=3f4924a06&_ss=r

I've used the 8 to 10 oz double buffalo butt from Springfield leather for belts and some 4 to 5 oz (unknown origin) for a purse. The 8 to 10 oz I think is combination tanned, so not a pure veg tan and the 4 to 5 oz was probably chrome tanned. The 8 to 10 oz is very dense per square foot and I wouldn't use it for large square footage projects because it would just be too heavy. I personally use a single layer buffalo leather belt almost every day for the last 2 or 3 years. Buffalo is strong, but tends to stretch more than cow. For belts I wouldn't use it for heavy use belts / utility belts such as full size gun belts, but it works just fine for general use and light duty (I carry a multitool every day). I notice more stretching at the belt notch than with cow, but nothing I'm concerned about. I wouldn't have it under constant tension, i.e. using it to cinch your pants super tight. Burnishes super easy and patinas well. The 4 to 5 oz purse holds up well. The thinner leather and smaller design control the weight. Burnishes super easy, so the purse develops a patina easily. Person I made it for likes it because it looks a decade old and you can see where the side of the purse has burnished just from brushing against their side consistently. If you want a design that looks pristine for longer, I wouldn't use it.

Thank you! 25 hours all in on just the tooling work.

Greenville, SC area

Hello all! Long time lurker, but trying to participate in the community more. Been doing leatherwork off and on for 7 years. Got more into it and trying to turn it into more of a side business since I got out of the military (Army vet, 6 years). I've made a little bit of everything, hoping I would find something that would resonate with people. Currently settled in on purses and duffle bags, hoping that works out! www.ridgebackcustoms.com Links to social media, etsy, etc. from there! Thank you for reading!

The original pattern for this duffle came from a vintage Harley bag in the mid-70s. I remade the template and made my own custom bag. Went with a theme to show off some extensive tooling. Leather process: Tooling, oiled using Neatsfoot oil compound, tankote, antique apply with damp towel cleaning up the excess, then another layer of tankote. All brass hardware and no stitching anywhere on the bag.