SUP

Yes it is, isn't it?

@AventurineThis thread is active and will remain active as long as I and, I believe, @fredk, keep a check on the pieces of leather we conditioned with the oils with which we are experimenting and report on it a couple of times a year. Such experiments take time. Your observations on cedar oil and myrrh are very interesting indeed. Do you still have the items on which you used them? How have they aged with those treatments? It would be interesting to know. I especially like the idea of your wind barrier skin balm. What proportions of the ingredients did you use, if I might ask? Good to hear the information about leather care in the past. Yes, different oils and lubricants would have been used, over different times and all over the world. Naturally, it would usually have been whatever was available at hand. I need to determine the leather conditioners used in the East a well. However, this thread was not started with thinking about what was used where and when to care for leather. If you read it from the beginning, my question was about mineral oil and I am satisfied that it does not damage leather in any way and we have come to the conclusion that most oils work fine. Rancidity and odor are not issues either. Now it is just a matter of seeing how the leather weathers over time, with those different treatments. If you would like to join the simple experiment, you are welcome. Even contributing what you have in the comment above, provides further information about oils on leather. Thank you for that.

@Zanshin That is a beautiful desk. Would you share how you made the leather top?

Thank you @sparctek. I'll try that when using chrome tanned leather.

@alfordjennifer producing raw mycelium leather might be environmentally friendly but if the process of making it ready for the market requires treatments that utilize synthetics like PU, it is hardly remains environmentally friendly, isn't it?. Besides, sustainable choices, are sustainable only when there actually are useful alternatives uses for what they are replacing, is it not? What would be the alternative use of the animal skins produced by the beef industry? Instead of people the world over trying to come up with replacements for leather, if they worked to come up with ways of being more humane when slaughtering animals for food, it would be so much better. Ways to decrease their fear, for example. It is so sad, you can actually smell the fear. I have passed areas where there are abattoirs close by and passed trucks carrying animals for slaughter and you can smell that fear. I can't help feeling that mycelium leather fits into the same category as google glasses, self driving cars and other 'nice to have' items that are actually not practical at all. A waste of money that could have been used for things that are actually useful! Sorry! that is the pre-coffee me, so grumpy. @alfordjennifer no offense intended.

Yes, it does. I've not tried pounding it but I've creased it, dyed it, and folded it and it remains transparent.

That looks very nice. And Startso dyes do last. We have been using our dyed shoes non-stop for several years now and they look as fresh and new as ever. I knew nothing about leatherwork then, else I might not have used them, and lost out on a good thing. Sometimes shortcuts work very well.

@Mablung I'll try that. I did rub it down of course, but it was probably not sufficient. I am beginning to suspect that virtually any sticky tape will either leave a residue or take off a bit of the surface of the leather if it is transparent. I don't know about the opaque ones.

@Mablung I tried scotch tape but it keeps coming loose. Must try it again. @DJole My aim is not to protect the pattern. It is to protect the outside leather, what will become the scraps. Sticking the pattern all around prevents it from moving as I punch or cut and the paper gets loose. I usually don't use a pattern more than once. If I can add something between the paper and the punch, the paper will not tear and I can stick it down in only a few places. So something like what you describe. Thank you for the idea.

Very magnanimous of you indeed. It's a pleasure to talk to people with such big hearts. Popcorn anyone? Seriously, if anyone does know about the type of tape I am asking about, I would love to know. All others who are feeling combative, go out into your yards and kick a few rocks.

@TonyV Thank you for your help. You have not looked at any of those videos, have you? I create my own patterns too and one certainly can't do so if one does not know how to create the stitching holes for them! And I learn new techniques as well, from those who are experienced enough to make patterns and teach along the way. Great way to learn. I hope I never reach a point where I think I know everything and there is nothing more that I can learn. How horrible that would be for me!

@TonyV have you seen the patterns available online, along with the instructional videos? I suspect, not. Please do look at them - they are on Etsy. Most of the videos are free, You will get an idea of what I am talking about. When I say that the leather is sticky, It does not indicate a 'sticky mess'. it just means that some of the glue remains behind. A bagful of sticky scrap does not mean a sticky lump; it means scraps of leather which have glue somewhere or the other.

See, when I make my own patterns, I usually design it on paper, trace it on cardboard, mark all the stitching holes, cut and then use that as the template on the leather. Sometimes, I do not even make the cardboard template, like for knife sheaths, which are individual for each knife. When using paper, the paper weights work well or taping to the back, as you both suggest, @Littlef and @DJole. And both work well. Since the pattern is my own, I have an idea of where the stitching holes will be and don't need to punch through the paper. I need the transparent tape for when I purchase patterns - I do that to learn different techniques from sellers who have good video guides for the products, like dieselpunk.ro. I end up with a completed project and have learnt something new at each turn. But he, like others, has patterns that need to be stuck onto the leather and the stitching holes punched through. Punching through paper without the sticky tape layer really can cause the paper to tear. So it is needed. That is where it becomes a problem. I have a bag full of leather scrap that are all sticky. Ergo the question here.

Oh. That looks like it could work. Thank you.

I need translucent tape because I cover the stitching holes with it and then punch through it. Directions from all the pattern sellers, at any rate. Prevents the paper from tearing,

I'll do that. thank you. But I need it to be transparent or at least translucent. Isn't green tape opaque? That is why I have been using masking tape but it makes a mess, especially on veg tanned leather. Cleaning requires saddle soap and scrubbing which, of course, ruins the surface. I've tried every other transparent/translucent tape I could find around here but like I said earlier, they either do not stick of leave residue.

I often purchase patterns to make leather items. I need to stick those patterns onto the leather. with sticky tape and then take it off once the pattern is cut. That is when the problem arises. The tape invariably leaves sticky residue behind. I have tried several different types of tape but they either do not stick well or they leave a residue. I have clearly not tried the correct tape. What would be the best brand to use for this?

Yes. That is a good idea.

I am keeping watch and like your leather pieces, @fredk, mine are just going along, being fine, no fungus, no drying, just darkening, the extent depending on the oil used. I am thinking of updating every 6 months now, unless something changes. The ones with mineral oil and vaseline are very much darkened but otherwise fine. Those I will report on more frequently. The 2nd interesting thing is, one of the boxes in which I kept the oiled pieces of leather, got tossed around a bit and the leather pieces overlapped each other and I did not notice. Now I see that some have darkened more where they are not covered by another piece of leather. I will check whether those darkened more or the ones away from light lightened over time. Anyway, regardless of anyone watching this thread, I will continue updating it. It is an experiment, after all. Most people are only interested in the result at the end (whenever it is, for this experiment), while us poor researchers slog on, unnoticed....

In the 2nd photograph, you have a nice contract of a slightly darker shade. It looks good. I hope you get a good shade that works well with the current color. I used Startso brand too.

And that I always need. My edges always need cleaning up and I am in awe of anyone who get clean edges straight away. Since I discovered Vinegaroon, I have never ever used black dye. it is so easy to make and the matte black results are lovely.

@cottontop, I see your point and the Amazon products worked for me for definite color. If you want a variation in a shade though, the dye might be better. But yes, it is a pain, at least to me! Even after you order the product that you want, I suggest that you check the actual color on something else that is disposable. Sometimes the actual color differs just enough to disappoint. The shoes that I dyed were all of a single color but the tan I initially ordered was awful, so I ordered a different brand.

I used those Amazon coloring products before I came into leatherwork. They work surprisingly well. The shoes that I dyed several years ago are still going strong, look as beautiful too. They have not peeled or faded. I check them periodically and have no complaints so far. Those products work for those who don't want to get into leather dyeing. So @Tastech while it is true that it is probably paint, it certainly works well for leather shoes. I do not know about how they work on anything else, as I have only used them on leather.

I know that when I use dyes on leather, it only dyes on the surface. I am making a toolbelt for someone who works with animals and the different pouches are bound to get scratched and even bitten. Any dye will get scratched away and expose the undyed section. I decided to dye with Vinegaroon. Usually, I just dip for a few seconds, rinse and allow to dry. That gives a beautiful black color, but when I cut into it, the leather below is undyed. So I tried soaking the leather in the Vinegaroon for 10 minutes. The dye gets absorbed through and through and cuts and scratches are not so visible. I'm delighted about this, so thought I would mention it here. Of course, I suspect most people already know this, so it is for those who don't. Other dyes, I presume, at least some of them, if you soak for a while, might get absorbed and dye the inner layers as well, but will make the color too dark, especially on the surface. Since this is black anyway, it cannot go any darker.

My transparent leather is exactly the same color. it's beautiful, very soft and easy to cut. After airing it daily for about month, the smell is almost completely gone.