ARTISANe

Hi, based in UK, I've made bags like this, brief cases and satchels. For durability they would need to be made of substantial veg tanned leather and be saddle stitched throughout. I would charge about 200 British pounds each ($300+).

All the above replies, very revealing in themselves, point to a major problem in global economics and what I call 'the corruption of craft'. In order to make money, you have to produce cheap rubbish, sell it in volume, and it should have novelty value. Of course this is antithetical to the arts and crafts movement, but that is the world that we live in--it is presumed, in most training courses, that what we do here in the West is design things, we don't make them, that is done by other people (presumably from the East). So, as is often the case, self-taught artisan crafts people have an uphill battle to find a niche, which is usually the very high end luxury goods market, or the very low end rubbish novelty market. In other words, the heart and soul has been ripped out of craftsmanship by the masters of globalisation. There is a third way however, and it is called ethical consumerism. With more people aware that cheapest is not best, because of the effect on the local economy and the global environment, this is something which can be made to work in our favor. The criteria for ethical production starts with you: a skilled crafts person brings value into the community that you live and work in. Then, it moves on to the materials you use. Ethical leather working means that you source your hides from as local a tannery as possible which vegetable tans its hides (thus avoiding toxic waste, needless transportation costs, and producing a much longer wearing, responsive and hypoallergenic raw material). The methods of workmanship you use are also important. It takes much more time to hand stitch an item using the time honored saddle stitch method, but it's strength and durability are unbeatable. So using traditional methods, you are creating products for life, not for land-fill. Finally, you will be keeping alive a tradition that the bankers and asset strippers have nearly managed to wipe out, so you are working for a cause, not just for money. The next time someone says to you "But I can get that much cheaper at WalMart", just tell them where such products are sourced and how they are made and what that does to the local economy. Almost all leather 'fashion' goods, even many luxury brands, sold by chain retailers are made in Asia with cheap leather, most likely sourced from Brazilian cattle (promoting deforestation) and almost definately chemically tanned. It will be production line made using copious amounts of rubber cement, so that any stitching is purely decorative. And who makes money from its sale?: global brands and retail companies are almost all owned by private equity funds, which are based in tax havens, so all the profit is leaking out of the community, indeed, out of the country, because of the lost tax revenue. It is certainly not going to the poor third-world factory workers, and precious little to the likes of the WalMart employees. This is indeed an interesting topic, and somehow manages to hit the nail on the head of what it means to be a crafts person today. It also strikes at the heart of what is wrong with a global economic system which sees only short-term gain and relies on the exploitation of cheap foreign labor and insatiable western throw-away consumerism. Perhaps my contribution will provoke some more thoughts, if not reactions! But this is not extremism folks! This is reality, and by sticking together we can be part of the solution, because the heart and soul of any community is skilled craftmanship. Jim Hornby

Hi. I make a lot of belts out of veg tan bridle leather. This type of leather, ideal for making hard wearing jeans belts, will be finished on the flesh side at the tannery. So it depends what type of leather you are using. When you source the leather, you should check that it is finished on the flesh side, but if it is remember that you cannot then effectively dye it. Most plain tooling leather will not be finished, which is what you will get in the US. In Europe, we don't do much tooling, so hides often are dyed and finished on both sides. I agree that lining the belts the hole length solves the problem, but if you hand stitch, which is really only the best way to do it, that is a lot of work, but worth it. JIm

I am seeking a good deal on a second hand skiving machine. Uk based so preferably from europe.

Howdy Ya'll, which is about as far as I get with Southern Drawl, but I grew up in California, so there. Been in the UK for 20 odd years, sometimes doing leatherwork as a hobby, but now as a self-employed craftman. My new website is http://permanus.com. Do have a look and let me know what you think. Everything is handstitched, my belts are of 4mm thick oak bark tanned bridle leather, and I also do things in the fantastic Russian Calf from a shipwreck in Plymouth Sound! Recently I made a Kit Bag (erroneously called Gladstone Bags by some). Pics attached. Cheers everyone and Happy Christmas. Jim

The black bag on the right looks just about right, so no retainers. I also have made a few brief cases, and like some of the Aldeney Briggs bags want to use handle plates, but don't know about where to get or make the stiffener to attach these to. Any clues? I have beautiful brass plates and loops for attaching to metal frames, but these type of bags don't use frames--do you reinforce the lids?