Fraulein

Thanks so much guys!! I was able to find what I needed with your help!

I have a customer requesting several bronc nosebands, the catch is she wants them to match the style of the ones she already has. I can't seem to find conchos like these or those color dot rivets. Does anybody have ideas on where I could find something like these? Thank you so much for any input!!

Thank you all for the advice!! In the end the customer cheaped out on me and decided the marble inset wouldn't be worth any extra cost lol Thank you all so much for the replies though, I learned a lot that I might be able to use in the future!

I have a customer ordering a new handle for an instrument case. He requested having a marble that was removed from the instrument inset in the handle. It looks to be a standard round marble. Anybody have ideas on how this might be accomplished?

Good luck on you bag! Look forward to seeing finished pics

Very, very impressive work, especially for only a few months in! May I suggest incorporating a pen loop on the next ones? I just love adding that extra little detail to my notebooks.

That's gonna be pretty tough. Maybe just make a cutout in two layers of leather that's quite a bit smaller than the coin? It would probably have to cover up the edges quite a bit to stay secure. And maybe you could contact cement the edges of the coin that you'll be covering up? Hopefully someone else has a more brilliant idea to help you!

I use chrome on bags for the color selections. A lot more selection and richer colors than I can find in veg. Also if your turning it out you have to do a TON of skiving on those edges where you sew if your using a heavier veg or they'll be to bulky to turn. Just my two cents. Like the embossed ostrich idea for the lining! I always just do a heavier duty cotton or polyester fabric for linings.

Springfield Leather Company sells a bag stiffener called bontex. I've used it on quite a few bags. Just cut about 1/4"-1/2" smaller than your bag pieces so you have room to sew and turn out, then contact cement to your chrome. It looks kinda ugly on the inside, but as long as your lining it it doesn't matter. It won't be a a super "heavy" reinforcement but the women I make bags for don't want them to be too heavy. But this will keep your sides standing up.

Thank you for posting! Glad my theory's not crazy about the bad bottle of dye. Did you buy directly from Fiebings? Wondering if they replace bottles bought through other sellers (Amazon, Springfield Leather Company, etc.). Thanks for posting! Were you able to get a replacement when you gave them the bad batch numbers? And if so did you buy your dye directly from fiebings or through somewhere else? Dye is such a a huge expense and I'd like to have peace of mind when I'm buying that I'm not just gambling and wasting my money every time I get a bad bottle.

Thanks all for taking the time to reply!! New bottle of dye finally arrived yesterday and I dyed a few pieces and... It worked! Came out the same beautiful, consistent color it did before I started having the problems. So that confirms my suspicion that it was just that bottle of dye causing the issue. It still just seems so strange that that bottle of dye was so different. I wouldn't expect that kind of inconsistency in such a reputable product as fiebings.

Thank you so much for replying!! Do you use the denatured alcohol with pro dye?

Thank you Dwight that is very helpful! I will have to get some of the fiebings reducer and try it out. Thanks so much!!

Thanks so much for replying!! I don't dilute it at all it's just straight pro dye. The last batch I did I made sure to stir it really good and it seemed to help the color come out slightly lighter but still very streaky and nowhere near the perfect results that I used to have with it. Thanks for the reply Dwight! I may have to try oiling beforehand and see if that helps. Thanks for the tip! It's just so frustrating because I've used this technique repeatedly and it's worked great for me, I don't understand why it's not now!

Hey y'all I haven't been on the forum for a while as I've been super busy with the business side of my leatherwork for a while, but recently I've had an issue with dye. I've bought probably 3 or 4 quart bottles of fiebings light brown pro dye and used it with no issue dip dying large quantities of koozies but the last several batches I've done have come out MUCH darker and very streaky which is not an issue I've had before. It seems this change came about the same time I opened up my newest bottle of dye. I do buy import hides of veg, which I know can absorb dyes differently from hide to hide, but I've tried it with several different hides and seen no difference. I really think it's the bottle of dye but that just seems hard to believe. Has anyone else ever had this issue or heard of bad bottles of dye? Thank you so much for any information you can give me!!! It's so frustrating when you're trying to run a business and can't give customers a consistent product!

I've seen boot purses before and never was too impressed with them, just not for me. But that one looks AMAZING! Great work

Those look great! How did you do the edge on the one with deer lining? It looks like some kind of rolled edge but I can't tell how you did it.

Wow! That's all amazing work!

Awesome! I LOVE the snakeskin one. Is that the cobra skin with the head that Springfield Leather has?

Thanks chuck! The feather you posted looks great! I could see how skiving the edges more would make it even better

Hey @chuck123wapati what length sticks do you use?

It's a little tricky to get the hang of it, but you can definitely do it! Just make sure and do some practice pieces. I've used the basic beginner bevelers and it's turned out great. If you use a checkered beveler the antique paste will stick in a little more around the letters. The pic above was done with a smooth beveler. Either is fine and I use both, just depends on the effect I'm going for.

I do pretty much the same thing. This was made with fonts I printed off, taped, traced, carved with the swivel, and beveled. Just like Gezzer said (Blue spot there to cover up last name, per customers request for privacy)

Stunning work! The carving is beautiful. Your work is flawless

Thanks Gezzer! That is a great technique with fantastic results. Thanks for educating me on your process!