Fraulein

What size thread is everybody using for wallet interiors? The smallest I have on hand is 138 so that's what I've always used, but it looks/feels pretty bulky to me, so I'm getting ready to buy a smaller size and wanted to know what everybody else is using.

Woah that's incredible work! The faux inlay is genius and very well executed. I hope it brightens your friends life. Sending thoughts and prayers his way.

That sounds EXACTLY like my first go at leather. I made a wallet and I literally put cardboard in between two layers of a thin chrome tan because I thought that was the only way I could get something stiff enough . Had all the same issues with edge beveling, etc. Definitely normal issues to have when you start, so don't feel discouraged. Keep at it! Definitely start using vegetable tan leather as everybody else has said. Also check out the Weaver Leathercraft YouTube videos with Chuck Dorsett. He is a SUPERB resource when starting out and it's really helpful because he links to exactly the products he's using so you have a better understanding of what he's using, even if you don't buy off those links it's helpful to see. And for buying leather on the cheaper side definitely check out Springfield Leather Company, they'll let you buy by the square foot so you can get smaller pieces and they're always running deals on stuff. Good luck in your leather journeys and please post stuff as you go! Look forward to seeing your work!

Looks really good! That should serve him well. Good clean work as always!

Haha I know how that goes. Customer always knows best!

Looks amazing! Love the pattern, the black and brown look real nice together, and that tooling really is spot on! May I ask why it says jeep?

Didn't know there was a traditional side it should go on for a man's hat, I thought you were just calling the feathers a feminine accessory lol. Hopefully most people won't notice

Thanks! Snake skin is watersnake from Tandy, can't beat the price https://tandyleather.com/products/watersnake-skin

Thanks everybody! Actually made for a man lol. The feather signifies that he likes to attract attention to himself

That wood grain is awesome!! The tooling is just top notch. Great job as always @mikesherman! ~Frau~

I highly recommend you stick with just dyeing your edges. Like @cord1974 said, the edge kote will flake off. For me it flaked off within weeks on several projects, and I haven't touched the stuff since. Dying is definitely the better option ~Frau~

Great work! You should check out this Don Gonzales video. https://youtu.be/dsfPMUVdr2g He has this technique of watering down paints. I've been playing around with it and it seems to make fading/blending the colors easier. Just something you might want to experiment with. ~Frau~

That's a great idea! And beautifully executed as well! Oughta bring some customers in when they see the wonderful work you do ~Frau~

Hi there! I see you're new to this forum. We're mostly just leatherworkers on here, not many of us are horse people/riders. You may have better luck getting your question answered somewhere else that's more oriented to riders, but maybe you'll get lucky and someone on here will be able to help. Best of luck getting your question answered! ~Frau~

Nice work! The tooling looks great! If it were mine I would either line it or dye the interior, just because it looks a little unfinished on the back. but that's just my preference, it looks great anyways

Just finished this funky hat! Started as a plain boring cheap felt hat. I added the snap on the side and stitched the turkey feathers to it. Made the hatband with some water snake skin that I got from Tandy and a black pigskin lining. This project was mostly for fun, so don't judge too harshly, I don't expect it to last a lifetime. Hope y'all find it as entertaining as I do!

Wonderful work! I actually really like how you incorporated your makers mark on the front, might have to borrow that idea from time to time... I just learned about the problem with rivets on sheaths from all the knowledgeable people on here. I'll never understand how rivets became such a common practice after people discovered that issue. Glad I learned not to make that mistake again ~Frau~

Always wanted to make a "Hand of God" rig but haven't gotten to it yet. Could you possibly tell us where you got the pattern? Thanks! It's looking great already, can't wait to see it completed! ~Frau~

Thanks posting extra pics of the belt! Once again fantastic work! ~Frau~

Good point @Burkhardt I work in smaller sections whenever I antique anything that big, working it in and wiping it off before it's really had much time to sink in and then moving on to the next section. Works for me, but definitely understand how some people may not like that method. Thanks for pointing that out

First off I use leather balm with atom wax on all of my projects. I really like it and definitely think you should try it out. Of course test it on some scrap first so you get a feel for how it will look, before you do it on a huge piece like that. As far as your questions about antique, if you're going to do tooling I would definitely antique it so your tooling will stand out. You dye your project first and let that dry. From there the process varies a little. Some people will apply a finish and then antique, then apply a second coat of finish. What I like to do is antique and then once that's dry I add a couple coats of the leather balm. Keep in mind that this will darken your leather quite a bit. Again I recommend you do a sample piece first, before antiquing the whole thing. And yes, it's perfectly alright to just use antique without dyeing first as you mentioned doing on belts before. Just gives you a different look. Hope this helps and please post if you have any more questions! ~Frau~

@Gezzer thanks! I'll have to look for some of those frames ~Frau~

Best of luck to ya! Please post pics when you finish! ~Frau~

Those are awesome! Love that idea! Do you possibly have a link to where you get those frames? Also appreciate seeing someone else making such fantastic use out of those "cheap beginners" stamps as you did on the first one. I know they're not the best stamps out there, but I'm a cheapskate and frankly I think they make some beautiful designs, as you proved on that first frame. ~Frau~

That tooling is way too beautiful to throw away! I would pull off the interior and scrap that and try to redo it with a more traditional pocket design. I've done a wallet with that same shape and also ran into the issue of that stitch line going through where I didn't want it. I ended up lining it and that worked really well. My advice would be to find a really thin lining leather to help with the bulk. I used this pigskin from Springfield Leather Co https://www.springfieldleather.com/Lining-Smoothcell-Brown-SqFt Hope this helps and please don't give up on that design, it's beautiful! ~Frau~