TomE

I've added a thread lube pot for sewing Biothane on my 441-type machine. The lubrication helps pull up the knots. Biothane is PVC coated nylon webbing that generates considerable friction on the needle. I don't use lube for sewing leather. Plastic add-on lube pots and thread lube are available from sewing supply stores.

Thank you, @BlackDragon! "Trapunto" gives me lots of in roads for exploring. I also found the Stohlman book on embossing leather as a free download at the Tandy website. He describes using linen thread as a filler for small raised designs with parallel edges, but he doesn't stitch around the borders of the embossed designs. Facebook revealed that Catrien Coppens made the bridle in the picture. She's a saddler at the Royal Mews who has won numeous competitions. She does tutoring and will be teaching classes this month at the Walsall Leather Skills Centre. Think I'll get in touch to see if she's willing to do some long distance tutoring.

Does anyone know what this style of decorative stitching is called and how it is done? I'm interested in how they created the relief in the decorative design. Any resources for learning this technique? This example is from the Society of Master Saddlers national saddlery competition. Thanks for looking.

I've been to Bergen. Flew into Oslo and took a train to Bergen where I spent 2 days before we boarded a ferry for a scientific conference in a beautiful fijord setting. The conference honored a well known (to us) deceased Norweigan scientist who had trained a legion of scientists in the field of DNA repair. The hide glue produces good results with less work (no sanding once the edges are leveled). The edge readily accepts wax or acrylic finishes that I am testing out for a weatherproof finish.

Sounds like good duty inside. We're having uncharacteristically cold weather this week and horse care is taking longer, so I haven't done much leatherwork lately. My 1959 model joints are feeling the cold! I did buy some hide glue (pearl glue, bone glue) and have been experimenting with finishing edges. It does a remarkably good job on bridle leather edges without sanding. Since hide glue is water soluble I am trying a few different top coats to seal the edge after burnishing. My favorite so far is beeswax applied with a heated edge iron and rubbed with canvas. Good luck on the ship. Hope you're going to a warm part of the world.

Well done! That is a neat and serviceable repair. Your stitching is immaculate and a lot of thought went into the design of the patch. I guess we see the corresponding asymmetric wear in riding boots.

The bar was low. The old strap was considerably lighter color than the chapes, and it was dry rotted. I'm thinking it wasn't original equipment. The client bought the purse used as a Christmas present. He was happy with the color. Thank you, Jonas. I did sew by hand to complete both ends of the stitch lines. I will look into the Serabraid.

Thank you, gents! I will admit that this was the third try matching the color. I am woefully deficient in dyeing techniques bc I mostly use drum dyed leather. Ended up dip dyeing in 10% Fiebings dark brown Pro Dye.

Happy with Amann Serafil thread from @CowboyBob at Toledo Industrial Sewing Machine. It feeds well through my Cobra Class 26 and is a good color match (color #7766) for this vintage Louis Vuitton purse. Lots of colors to choose from besides my usual brown and black thread for horse tack. Made a new shoulder strap for this old purse and considering making other items in a brown/yellow color scheme.

Beiler's Manufacturing and Supply in Ronks PA has quality brass and stainless buckles, snaps, rings, fasteners, etc. with good prices and service. Quantity discounts when ordering 100 or more pieces. They are geared towards the harness and tack trade. Amish company with no website. Call for a catalog.

Hard to know what's wrong with the foot lifting mechanism without taking it apart. LMC is generally very helpful with advising, sending parts, etc. In my limited experience skiver feet typically need polishing for best results. I have a Techsew SK4 and some additional FAV feet that I polished on a buffing wheel.

Reasons to sand edges include leveling multiple layers, removing excess glue before finishing the edge, and smoothing the fibers as part of the burnishing process. What are you trying to achieve? I routinely sand to level an edge or remove glue, and I avoid it when burnishing. If my regular burnishing methods don't produce a smooth enough edge then I'll sand and do more burnishing. Depends on the tannage, moisture content, the part of the hide I'm working with, thickness, etc.

Turned out nice. I like how you laced the brow band on the crown.

That's a beauty! What caught my eye immediately is the way the vine is woven around the flowers to create a criss-cross appearance, and how you decreased the size of the letters to complement the shape of the point. Lots of neat details. Thanks for sharing.

For tack repairs I match colors by trial and error, testing dye mixtures on a scrap of the same leather I'm using for the repair. I am usually adding a small amount of Fiebings brown dye to their English bridle (yellow-tan) or mahogany (red-brown) dye as a base. The Fiebings brown dyes I've used are, from lightest to darkest, are light/medium/dark brown, show brown, chocolate, and dark chocolate. To my eye, the show brown has a bit more reddish hue than the others. To simplify, I'd get show brown (dark red-brown) and chocolate (dark brown with a black tone) and dilute them in a tan or mahogany base. Based on the picture of your saddle I'd guess that a pinch of show brown in mahogany dye would be an acceptable match. My go-to dye for dark brown Asian tack is 7% show brown in mahogany dye. Your saddle is not that dark. As others have said, oiling and sunlight will also darken the leather to improve the match.