shaylajade

Alright, so we're stuck. We need to dye a wallet red and black but we're having a hell of a time with the red. The Fiebing's Red is more of a deep magenta then red even with numerous coats. We were hoping for something a little 'brighter' and a little less pink... HELP!!

I love to see how well artists from other mediums transfer to new things. Your work looks far beyond a beginner leather worker.

What are the border stamps used here? Very cool.

I am in New Westminster just outside Vancouver. Grew up here, moved all over the country, and then moved back. The style used here is called Tribal. It is used quite a bit in tattooing.

Your dog is SO cute! Love the harness, we've been meaning to make a prototype since people keep asking us about it. Good work!

Thanks Josh! I appreciate the feed back!

For those of you who use Saddle Lac as your finish/sealer, what is the life expectancy/duration of the finish? It seems the be doing the trick now; it doesn't crack, it's amazingly water proof, doesn't smell bad etc, but I'm worried about putting on say a dog collar, having someone use the collar regularly and the Saddle Lac breaking down, allowing water in, color out etc. Does this make sense? Thanks for any input. I feel like we're ALMOST there!

Thank you so much guys! I'm at work right now so I can't do much experimenting but will definitely get working when I get home. The only reason we did our finishes on our final products was because we THOUGHT we had found the answer. *deep breath* With a much clearer, and drier head - lol, we're gonna take a step back and try all of the suggestions, baring that we can find the products, before we get going at it again. Being that we're in Canada, there isn't a whole lot of leather shops or suppliers up here (well at least not in our area) but I did think about calling some of the Tandy managers in the States, so it's funny that you suggested it whinewine; I'll give them a call if I'm still running into problems. I do think our main problem is the hi-lite. From the sounds of it, the Eco-Flo is crap so I think it's time to move on to bigger and better products. Seriously, thank you for all the input, it has restored my faith that we will find what works for us.

Oh man. I just posted a tearful post in 'how to do it' about this topic. Kate, which water base dyes do you use? Is it the Eco-Flo Hi-lites by any chance? I am so desperate to find a finishing product that works that I would literally move mountains at this point. Do you use the Bee Natural on your products that will be used out or run the risk of getting wet? Any insight would be much appreciated! Below is the link the my original thread. http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=16196

I am literally in tears as I type this, I am so BEYOND frustrated and I don't know what to do. My boyfriend and I have recently gotten into leather working which has been amazing; however, what has not been amazing is ruined projects because of finishes. We have been using the Eco-Flo Hi-lites because we love the way it makes the projects look; defined carving and stamping and the perfect color. However, when it comes to keeping the final project protected from the elements it seems hopeless. Our local Tandy told us to use Carnauba Creme and Gum Tragacanth and that should work; well, it doesn't. Mike has found a way to get the CC on so it doesn't horribly smear the project but it does nothing to protect it. We were then told to put a 'top coat' on the project like Sno-Seal (on top of the CC and GT) but that also does nothing. For example, we just make a cuff and a bracer both of which would never be fully submersed in water but it is realistic to assume that if one was to wash their hands that there is they would get slightly wet/sprayed on. When we tested them the cuff and bracer were left with water marks and all the hi-lite pulled out in the test area. We are honestly at a loss. Our local Tandy could offer no advice and said that it might be the hi-lite and the fact that it is water based. He then offered us a comforting story of a customer of his who now uses the eco-flo and warns his customers who buy his purses that if they get them wet and the color runs that it's their issue not his - wonderful. Is using the water based Eco-flo hi-lites hopeless? Is there something else we can use that will give us the same effect? I'll attach a picture of the bracer and cuff as an example of how we like the projects to look. I'm sure this is a beaten horse thread but browsing through I didn't find too much. Thank you so much!