Laska

They don't look bad at all, perhaps a bit plain, though. Adding a bit of wood stain to bring the sticks up to match the color of the leather would tie the entire product together, making it look more complete. The rose looks great, but I would suggest adding a small amount of darker dye to fill in the background, so that the edges of the artwork are clear. (It could just be due to your camera, but through the Internet, the red and green dyes seem to get muddled into the brown leather.) Another thing that might be worth trying would be to play with the shapes. The ovals are a safe bet, but what about if they were more like a four leaved clover? A shape like that could be manipulated to look like butterfly wings, or a classic, cartoony hair bow shape. I couldn't resist making an example. Please forgive the unpolished look and massive notes; my eyes have been over worked lately so I can't commit to staring at an art file for any great length of time. (It's completely fine to use this as a template for things that you sell. Please don't share the pattern outside of the forums, or claim it as your own.)

Another tip, if you're still considering products to offer, would be to invest in some wooden sticks as an alternative to metal clips. Hair sticks are pretty popular, and I've seen some neat combination sets that include sticks and a leather patch, usually by way of a slot carved into the leather, or by adding tiny straps to its back side. If you're any good with wood, you could carve them yourself from some smooth holly and add an authentic "100% handmade in America" tag to your products. (Little things like that encourage me to open up my wallet and support local artisans.) I don't even wear hair accessories besides my hat and bandanas, but if I come across a pretty little art piece made without imported hardware, I might buy it just to help out the seller, and use it to decorate my room.

That's the sort of detail that shows the item was truly customized and built with passion. If I were decorating a holster for myself or as a gift, I would put every ounce of love into it that I could squeeze out of my withered little heart. It would be an art piece, secondary only to being functional. But, if I was aiming to hawk holsters at a Friday night expo or some Web shop that literally no one ever checks, nah, I'm not pouring my time into prettying up a piece of it that will never be seen.

These are beautiful. One tip I'd offer, if you're interested, would be to make something with a cat eyes theme. People love cats, especially if they could also pass as dragon eyes. If you have any rhinestone studs, they could be a low-cost trick to improving salability. Adding rhinestones to the corners/border, or as an accent for flowers, would make them more visible if your vendor space isn't very well lit. They'll reflect whatever light they can catch. It's a small thing, but it's worth playing with. Best of luck out there!

Ave, ahoj, and howdy. Call me Laska. I've been interested in leather since as far back as I can remember. I've experimented with a little of this n' that through the years -- tooling and stamping, fixing belts and boots, braiding and plaiting cording for jewelry -- but I've never had the funds to really dive into this art. Well, my birthday hit a week ago, and someone who loves me handed me a small pile of dream grease to do with as I pleased. The only thing that I could think to spend it on was leather stuff, and so, I've been focusing on this a lot since then. I still have some old tools and hardware from half-hearted projects, but it's barely fit for practice. So, I was happy to find this forum full of knowledgeable folk where I could casually browse through old conversations and also ask questions, while working on my shopping list. Y'all seem like a cool bunch and I look forward to meeting ya. Leather aside, I'm also an outdoorsy, artsy, and somewhat geeky chick. I'm happier to spend a week camping and rockhounding than in an elite resort. I'd rather shoot tasty pigeons-- cans off of a fence than get my nails did. I draw and make things with my hands, but nothing particularly interesting. I play video games and own a pinball machine, but I have just as much fun doing jigsaw puzzles or reading a book. I grew up with offensive, insensitive humor and I'm sure that it made me a better person than I would have been were I raised in a sterile, sheltered environment. I have, or, I used to have, friends from all walks of life, until the Division Bell stirred the weaker among them to choose sides. I can still get along with pretty much anyone, even if our individual views don't gel. Thorny friendships are better than bitter ex-friendships, in my humble opinion, so I'll hold on whenever possible, but I won't cry over spilled politics. So.. what song is currently stuck in your head? If you link it here, I promise I'll give it a listen. Thanks much for reading. I'll catch ya when I do.