Boicie

I want to start a large project, I want to make a vest that emulates a biker vest but has my school logo on the back, I'm a teacher. I also want to have a number of smaller logos on the front of areas that I teach and clubs I am a part of for school. I have made material vests before so I am comfortable with making the pattern and think I can tackle a lot of the simple problems of sticthing etc, but its the actual tooling side I am getting a bit caught up on as I haven't done much of that and am uncertain how to approach it. My mind says to simply tool the back as one piece and do smaller things on the front but that, obviously, means I can't add to it later. I am worried that if I tool a patch and stitch it on, it will be too much weight. I plan on paiting the tooled areas but just want to get my head into how this will work. Anyone tried this sort of thing? Advice? I should add that I've gone full leather for the experience as I've got a heap of cheap stuff that's been sitting rolled up for too long

All.The.Yesses! Thank you so much, that is exactly the way I was thinking. I've got a square knife I got in a kit and never used. I now have to buy that book. Thanks

PM sent @RockyAussie @Doc Reaper I'm thinking about making a jig that has a skiving knife fixed and then a fence that can be walked out, kinda like a manual tablesaw. If I get there I will post pics

Hey there, I'm looking for a wide strap cutter that doesn't cost the earth. I don't mind manual or electric but I need something that will do larger than 4 inches for Bag Gussets and the like. Any recommendations? I live in Australia if that makes a difference so postage can be expensive.

Hey there, Can anyone reccomend an Australian supplier that has Brass Squares? I'm looking for all hardware but specifically the squares that you connect handles to bags like in the picture. I'm also looking for other hardware but these are the more immediate ones. Thanks

Total n00b questions but, frankly, which is better? Punches or those Diamond Tips? From what I can see there are 3 options for stitching leather: Pricking Irons which put stitch marks on the leather that you push through with a sewing awl, Diamond Tip chissels that put small holes in the leather but you still need a bit of force to get needles through to sew and Round Punches which put neat holes in the leather. Other than this, all I know are sewing machines which are expensive, advanced and for a time in my future. I'm only starting out but I've tried both Round Punches and Diamond Tips for making some crappy 'learner' bags. Both were on multi-punch arrangments (2 and 5 puches mostly), both were 5mm separation and both seemed to do the thing well. Frankly, I'm trying to work out the difference between them. All I can see is the round punches leave neat holes while the diamond tips are a bit tighter on holding the leather. I think I prefer the diamond tips but just wanted to make sure I'm not missing something. The ones I was using were crappy, ebay ones but they proved the point. I rejected French Tips/Pricking Irons because I am doing some leather sewing while in other contexts - i.e. teaching at High School - and, franky, 2 needles and some thread through pre-punched hols are much more discrete than trying to force an Awl through tough leather. Is this just a personal preference question or is there a genuine purpose for these I'm missing?

Do you use anything to seal it afterward? I've got Resoline and Oakwood Conditioner. From your username, I think you're the best person to ask :P

I was doing some brousing and came accross something called "Combination Tan" leather. I've had some difficulty with dyeing myself so I was just looking around to see what options I had to buy dyed leather in colours that are not grey, brown, black and white. I came accross a couple that I'll put the links to here but they say they're "Combination Tan". Frankly, what is that and how will it work with other stuff I'm using? My research says its when the leather is tanned with a mix of Chrome and Veg elements giving a softer finish but one that might break down a bit. I've only used Veg tan - so far as I know although looking at this, I'm not so sure now - and was wondering if I can mix this stuff with other Veg Tan leather; i.e. sew a piece of veg onto this. I understand Chrome and Veg don't do well together when you try this. I'm assuming someone here has workedo n Combination Tan stuff, what are the advantages/disadvantages and am I thinking about this stuff the right way? Thanks! https://www.austanners.com.au/product-page/bowden-side-in-mahogany-2-2-2mm https://www.austanners.com.au/product-page/kensington-milled-side-in-olive-2-2-2mm

I don't want to try this... now... but I am curious, how do you get leather white? I'm a history teacher and know that they used to use white pipe clay but I assume we have something better now? I haven't seen any dyes that make leather even lighter so I'm racking my brain. Thanks

Thanks @Dwight my issue is getting things this far outback. I was given some neatsfoot but had no idea what to do with it. I'll give it a try. @tsunkasapa I was hoping someone will say that. I need to get some Iso for cleaning other things anyway, so if it doesn't work, I'll get some proper reducer. Thanks so much for the help guys God Bless

Hey there, Noob question, I've got some fiebings dye and it looks nice but I want to make it lighter. I tried Methylated Spirits but it seemed to make it really splodgy - like I was mixing oil with water. Is Isopropyl Alcohol going to be any better or is there something better to try? I live in outback Australia so anything I order has at least 1-week delivery time. One other question, after I dye it, what's the best thing to seal it with? I've got some Resoline and some Leather Balm with Atom Wax. Frankly, I think I've got crappy leather to work with but, again, noob. I've made some nice things with tannery-died stuff; a really nice mask and I'm sewing a bag at the moment, but I think the leather I got to dye myself isn't very good quality which seems to be a very important factor in these projects. I want to experiment with colours which means learning how to dye and paint. thanks for the help