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Found 70 results

  1. This is my first attempt at carving. I didn't practice first, just dove in. The original pattern was a bit off because I was just tracing regular paper on cased leather and the paper tended to tear. I'll get some tracing film for future projects. By the end of this project I was beginning to get a feel for walking the tools. I only used a swivel knife, lined beveler, smooth pear shader, and a modeling spoon. I can still see some of my original cut lines and I'm not sure if I just cut too deeply or just didn't bevel deep enough. Your feedback is greatly appreciated.
  2. I'm looking for suggestions for a list of tools, etc. I should get to start learning this craft. Thoughts? David
  3. Hello everyone! I'm rather new around here, and after reading a bit and getting some practice with spare leather pieces I decided to begin the real work by making a simple wallet. I'd like to show all the steps here to help other beginners like me and, more importantly, ask doubts to all the kind, handsome, wise and experienced craftsmen around :-) 1 - Choices, choices... I found a simple and nice folding wallet that I liked at a shop in my neighborhood. After silently staring at it like a lunatic for about 45 minutes I made a little sketch : 1.1-Material I'm on a mariana-trench-level budget but I got some ok scraps from a tanner (Is that how it's called?? Where they sell leather hides?? :-S ), some black ones and a big beige piece. No idea of the animal or type, but they'll do right now :-) It's not a very thick material so I won't be sewing by hand, but by machine. I'll try to follow this type of process: That means skiving the leather to finish the sides, either with a hand tool or using a dremel. QUESTION: In the video they use "water based glue". Any idea of which could that be? I'll be using a regular one that I can find easily, anyway. FABRIC: Should I use cotton, nylon, polyester...? All the wallets I've looked into seem to have some kind of nylon fabric. Next steps: drawing the pattern (using autocad), uploading some photos of the leather.
  4. Album here - http://imgur.com/a/2FUDZ#0 This was my first attempt at making belts. I've been doing this as a hobby for about 8 months now. My stamping got off a bit with his name, but other than that I'm pretty happy. My wife asked me to make the fashion belt for her. It proved to be a challenge with the petal layout because my rivets were only long enough to go through the belt and one layer of petals, not two petals.
  5. Hi all. Relative beginner here. I finally found some dye locally. I found a local shoemaker that was willing to sell me a babyfood jar full of dye, as well as some leather cream and sealant. He said he can't get them locally either, he imports it all from China. Here's an album of my completed dye job Anyways--I did the following: 1) applied the die on thick with a piece of cotton. I did two coats. After the second coat I let it dry for about 24 hours. I don't know what kind of dye this is, but it's very very thick and seems oil based. 2) I buffed the heck out of it until it got shiny and no color came off on the buffing cloth. 3) applied the cream, waited a few hours, applied again. waited overnight. 4) applied the spray sealant. waited a few hours then buffed. Now here are my problems: 1) The finish feels very "plasticky" it no longer really feels like natural leather. Is this because of the kind of dye I'm using? Or something wrong with my application process. 2) The leather cream seemed to dissolve the dye and make it come up (that's where there are patchy areas in my dye job. It was completely covered but the cream made it come up.) I assume I need a different type of oil because this one has some solvent in it. A new kind of oil will be next on my list. I might start with olive oil if i can't find anything more specific to leather. 3) The leather gets finger prints on it now. Any tips on what I'm doing wrong? Or things I should try differently? I'm probably 6 or 7k miles from the nearest Tandy, so looking for advice on how to work with what I've got. Thanks as always! I know there's a lot of wisdom around here.
  6. Just saying hi, beginner from Raleigh, NC. been a woodworker for years, enjoying learning to work with leather as a hobby. Started a few weeks ago.
  7. Just saying hi, beginner from Raleigh, NC. been a woodworker for years, enjoying learning to work with leather as a hobby. Started a few weeks ago.
  8. Hi All I'm new to leather working and I am having a slight problem when cutting. I am noticing that one of the corners is a mm or so out when cutting. I have tried using a fiskars rotary cutter with a steel ruler. On one of them green self healing cutting mats. Could I be using the wrong tools and surface to cut on? I would appreciate and advice and guidance anyone can share with me! Thanks
  9. Hello! I'm just getting into the craft, and I'm trying to figure out a good place to start. I found this thread (leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=25464) which had a great list of tools, but I added them all to a shopping cart on Tandy's website and the grand total came to a little over $300. Is that really what I'm looking at to get started? Is there a starter kit with a few projects that would make sense for me? Or a few tools and a book of projects that could get me started? I would hate to make a huge investment and then find my interest wane; it would be much better to slowly accrue tools as I progressed into projects which require them. Thank you so much for your help! I'm excited to get started!
  10. Hello everyone! I'm very new to working with leather. It's something I've been waiting years to dabble in and I'm very excited to start. Costuming is a hobby of mine, and I'm looking to expand my horizons... Renaissance/medieval faire season is coming up in the next few months, and I'm drawing up some mental sketches. I have a variety of projects in mind, most of which appeal to a particular aesthetic, which requires as minimal assistance from metal as possible. So let's say I was to stitch up a pair of leather pants and I wanted to lace up the sides. Are grommets/eyelets necessary for structural integrity or are they more so for aesthetics? Same applies for boots. Opinions/comments/concerns much appreciated! Thank you!
  11. What do you guys think, this is my first belt(actually the strap blank in my Tandy beginners kit)? I am new to leather work, started doing a few guitar straps before this belt. Allan
  12. Hi, new to the forum and leatherworking in general. I've been enthusiastically perusing this forum, other internet resources and videos for the past couple weeks now. Following on from a lot of the suggestions for getting started, I've ordered what tools I think I'll need, ordered some books and sourced materials. While the wheels are in motion for everything, I'm yet to really pull the trigger on any hardware. Through all the reading/watching/listening I've done, I know what kinds of hardware I need, but then I get to the order pages and am left scratching my head. So many sizes/colours etc. Sizes aren't really covered in any of the learning resources I've come across, which makes sense as I can imagine it really depends on what you're doing. I myself figure I'll start with sheaths, belts and maybe dog collars, before moving on to what my inexperienced mind sees as harder projects, like bags, cases and wallets (I also have a really strong interest in cordwaining, but from what I've read on that I am a long long way off that). I suppose my main question is: what size eyelets, rivets, snap buttons, sam browne studs etc. would you consider essential? In other words I suppose, what do you experienced leatherworkers find yourself constantly running out of and having to reorder? I really just want to have a few of all the sizes I'm likely to use frequently on hand. As i'm ordering most of my stuff online, I'd hate to finally get everything in my grubby little mitts, start a project, then have to stop because I don't have X fastener, then have to order it and wait for it to arrive while my half finished project taunts me in the corner. I should mention, I did order 3 sets of 15mm snap buttons, as it just sounded like a fairly useful size. But that's the extent of my hardware purchasing. Thanks for all the great reading the forum has provided thus far, Rick.
  13. My first guitar strap, first hand sewing, what do you guys think? I had one made for me and decided I could do it too… Allan.
  14. First of all, Hello! I am new to this community, and have joined because I may be taking up leatherworking as a profitable hobby. Recently, I have created a renaissance faire costume - also my first leatherworking project. Although I made some rookie mistakes with measurements, order of operations, etc., I found that the process of working leather came naturally and that by the end of the months long project I was able to produce some simple greaves (tooled, dyed, finished, riveted) in under 2 hours, looking just as nice as the rest of the armor. The project encompassed everything from cutting, tooling, hardening, dying, and finishing 9oz leather; to hand stitching through it as well as through suede to line the armor and conceal padding (was meant to be worn on bare skin... gotta have that padding). So the armor ran me about $300 - $350, and a recent occupational switch to part time has rendered me dirt poor and in need of cash, but with some extra spare time, so I turn my gaze to the heaping pile of leftover materials that has accumulated. I have... 9oz Tooling Shoulder (~10sqft) Softy Pig Suede (~4sqft) Rabbit Furs (3.5 furs) Dark Brown Antique Dye Blockout Satin Finish Weatherproofing Compound Etc... ...and I need to make things out of it to get my money back. So I have found this awesome looking community and I ask it this: In the interest of making money, what kind of projects should I consider making from my leftovers? I am putting profitability above all else, but in the event of a preference being necessary, I prefer to make old-school items. No, not 1980's old-school, more like 1380's old-school. I have made bows, bullroarers, didgeridoos, etc. Heck, I even boiled my own hide glue to attach the rawhide to my bow, so I am certainly a fan of cool stuff the way it used to be made. Fantasy gear is definitely an option, and so is quality gear that is used all the time, like wallets and watchbands. I sadly know nothing of gun/knife sheaths, which I have read is profitable. ...anyway, thanks a lot for reading! Bonus thanks for responding, and expect to see pictures of my materials and armor when my phone is repaired!
  15. Can somebody recommend a good book for a beginner. Really would like a book that explains all the different tools and when to use them. Not really ready for carving and stuff , more of good tips on how to get nice finishes and stitching advices.
  16. Greetings everyone just wanted to introduce myself and say hello to the community. I had decided to take my imagination and set it into work into something. Got myself a starter kit from Tandy Leathers and I'm hooked. I just a beginner and slowly building up my tools and knowledge of the craft. I hoping to continue to learn and hopefully find someone in my area who would be willing to teach me and help me grow as a leather worker. But in the meanwhile greetings and well met.
  17. Hi all! I'm brand new here and new to leather work. I've started by making some simple bi-fold wallets as a starting point to learn some basic techniques. I think what I found most challenging about making the wallet was cutting the rounded corners, and also, believe it or not, burnishing the edges NEATLY. I found that while using an edge slicker, it was really easy to mark the face of the leather while slicking the edges. I've posted a couple picture here, and I've also posted a couple entries on my blog of some pictures my wife took of my learning process. You can check those out HERE (PART 1) and HERE (PART 2). The dark brown wallet is my first one, and the natural veg tan one is my second (it turned out way neater). If you have an comments/critique/tips for anything I've done, please share. I'm hungry to learn! Thanks! -Nick
  18. Hello all. I'm interested in crafting some armour. I've done a fair bit of research and i think i have the general idea, but i'd like to have a good reference book, or How To book on hand to see what else i might need and just for general knoledge, i want to avoid wasting too much leather, considering the cost. any suggestions?
  19. The attached PDF is a wallet pattern that is easy starter project that will allow a user to practice several aspects of the craft. The wallet has four inner card pockets and one outer bill pocket. There are a total of four pieces of leather to cut out. The pattern is full-sized. The line with two arrows next to the "1" on each page should be 1 inch tall when printing. Measure this with a ruler after printing to verify that it printed to the correct size. Here are the steps: Print out the design, and cut out the pieces to use as a template. Cut the main body (nice easy straight cuts so that you will get a feel for cutting the leather). Cut the two card pockets (smaller sized so if you make a mistake there is less wasted leather). Place the inner pockets inside the main body and fold the main body over the card pockets. Wrap the outer template around the main body and verify that it is long enough to reach around and cover the edges. This is because this piece wraps around the main body, and the folded main body and card pockets are now four layers thick, the length of the outer pocket may need adjusting. Adjust the length if needed and cut the outer pocket — if you need to adjust the length for the outer pocket, cut the pocket square then center the pattern lengthwise to cut out the non-straight edge. If in doubt, make the outer pocket a bit longer and trim it later. There is less waste in making a small trim than there is in making a whole other pocket (a bit of experience talking here!). If desired, dye the edges now (if using already colored leather), or the whole thing (if using veg-tan). Glue the card pockets to the flesh side of the main body. After the glue has dried, sew the center stitch line (above the word "card"). The stitch line is shown as a dotted line on the main body. Glue the outer pocket to the main body. This is glued onto the opposite side of the pockets. Groove stitching channels if the leather is thick enough. Sew the outer and card pockets. Note that the stitching does not go all the way around the wallet, but it resembles two "U" shapes with the open ends facing each other. You do not want to stitch across the bend. (Search the forums for more info on this.) If your outer edges are not even, trim them and do your preferred edging treatment. Finish as desired or needed. Take a picture and reply to this post and show us your work. I made two of these from a $5 piece of gambler's choice leather from Springfield (would have been three except for the mistake about the outer pocket length). Not counting glue drying time (using Weldbond PVA), the first one took about 45 minutes and the second about 30 minutes to complete. Sewing was done using an awl and saddle stitching. These were my first projects in leather. Some variations you can try are: Changing the style of the cutouts on the pockets (i.e. to straight lines). Lining the pockets. Adding another layer of inner pockets (do not forget to adjust the outer pocket length). Mixing leather colors/types/etc. Changing stitch lengths, thread colors, etc. Please post your work so that I can see how others modify the design. I am studying how people learn and adapt information, and am curious how people do this as a hobby. Wallet A.pdf t
  20. A couple pics of two of my practice pannels. Its just cheap 3/4 oz. leather scrap so the impressions aren't going to be all that deep. But it is a start. Some of the leaves turned out ok but other than that I feel like its pretty aweful. I'm looking for some basic sheridan/floral patterns to practice with if anyone would like to share. Bryan
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