Leather Wasters Anonymous

[Steveage]

I've been attempting to work leather for a few years now, and the one thing I know for absolute certain about this topic is that possessing the skill set required to make a functional item doesn't mean that you also have the skill set to make that functional item with finish-grade quality.

I cringe at the thought of how much leather I have wasted. I've made every mistake you can think of, and probably more than once. Take a look at my latest blunder:

Not too shabby... Nice, evenly aligned stitching holes. I use Lightburn to make templates that I cut out with a 5 watt diode laser. On leather that isn't too thick, or that cuts well with a laser, I don't have to cut the panels by hand, which I enjoy not having to do immensely. And, once the template is created, it saves a crump ton of time in the future. I also love watching the laser (with eye protection) do its thing:

 

Stitching holes are different. I set the laser to low power (about 20%) and space them according to what pricking iron I want to use (usually 3 or 4mm). But why did I feel the need to use the laser to mark stitching holes on the liner of this wallet, and then decide to use the outer panel as a guide?

It doesn't look so bad in the first picture. Here's a closer shot:

That's horrible. I have perfectly spaced, crisply round stitching holes that are totally misaligned to their respective marks. My leather wastage is surpassed only by the amount of time I wasted wasting it. Which is in turn surpassed by the amount of money I spent to waste it. That's Herman Oak. It'll make a fine addition to the scrap box!

I rarely make these kinds of mistakes on the lathe, but it's almost guaranteed that I will on any given project involving leather. It's very frustrating, and I needed to vent. Thanks for indulging me...

 

 

[sbrownn]

I don't consider mistakes to be a waste of either time or material.  No one learns anything without making mistakes.

[chuck123wapati]

39 minutes ago, sbrownn said:

I don't consider mistakes to be a waste of either time or material.  No one learns anything without making mistakes.

yea that plus you get to keep all the crappy stuff to use for yourself while giving or selling the real cool stuff to others.  your new wallet will be awesome!!

On a side note, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for mistakes LOL 

[Sheilajeanne]

 Reuse, recycle - that piece of Hermann oak is big enough to be made into something else that's useful. But I definitely feel your pain!  We've all been there, done that if we've been  doing leatherwork for any length of time. Sometimes mistakes can be hidden - sometimes not!

I remember I wound up lacing the top edge of a bag because my edge skiving went a little wrong, and the lace hid the 'accident' quite well! 

[fredk]

I see no scrap    Trim off the bad edges and just make the thing smaller

[Handstitched]

  x3

Yep, reuse recycle . Theres quite a few things that can be made with that piece. As for the holes, find  a project that requires lacing, they can be covered  with the lacing. Also a darker dye will  hide any 'mistooks' . Trim the holes off for another project . Use your imagination    . 

 

' What do you call a piece of meat that you burnt on the BBQ?   A' misteak '  

Sorry, off topic....sort of. 

HS

[chiefjason]

I'll paraphrase my FIL, A craftsman does not have to make everything perfect, you just have to learn how to fix your mistakes.  And I have figured out how to fix some doozies!  

[Loki74]

To quote Bob Rossi, "There are no mistakes, just happy little accidents."

[DwightT]

Well, I figure I should add to this.  I was making a strap with a name as part of a project for my daughter.  While stamping the name, somehow I managed to transpose two letters.  Nothing like turning a project into scrap right from the beginning.  Rather than just throw the whole strap out I decided to go ahead and finish it as originally planned.  Gave me chance to try a couple new techniques that I've learned on the forum, as was as an opportunity to test run a new leaf pattern.  Doing that let me see what I needed to do differently for the final strap.

I'm giving her the screw-up strap along with the finished project.  Maybe she can use it as a name-plate at work and see if anybody notices.

    /dwight