Been asked to make simple knife sheaths. Please help..

[SUP]

@ALZilla,  that is so true. The knives are not his. They belong to a person who was a life long collector and passed away some time ago. This person, John, is taking care of disposing of the estate. So even he might not have an idea about the value of the knives. They might all be the J C Penney type, for all I know.

Getting a beautiful sheath ready for my husband is a good idea; only I am an absolutely novice at tooling. Everything goes wonky and even stamping is never in a straight line no matter how much care I take, so I need a lot more practice before I can think of making anything usable at all.  I am a long way from making a beautiful tooled or carved sheath, unfortunately.

All I make are simple sheaths. I can dye, stitch and burnish reasonably well, but that is about it. 

At this point in time, the more I think about it, the more I think that I am not yet ready to sell anything. I need to learn a lot more and be confident about it to some extent, before I can sell. And anyway, I got into leatherwork as a hobby rather than a possible profession. So that is something to think about as well. People keep talking about opportunity knocking. Hmm.

Let's see what happens. It is still a month or two before John gets back to me.

 

 

 

[fredk]

2 hours ago, SUP said:

. . .

Getting a beautiful sheath ready for my husband is a good idea; only I am an absolutely novice at tooling. Everything goes wonky and even stamping is never in a straight line no matter how much care I take, so I need a lot more practice before I can think of making anything usable at all.  I am a long way from making a beautiful tooled or carved sheath, unfortunately.

. . .

so am I. But there is a cheat for us; Tandy 3D stamps. Just stamp something like a deer's head, or a leaping fish on the sheath. Makes us look good

eg. Tandy 3D Deer stamp

https://www.tandyleather.world/collections/tools/products/whitetail-deer-craftool-3-d-stamp

Tandy 3D leaping fish stamp

https://www.tandyleather.world/collections/tools/products/trout-craftool-3-d-stamp

Lots of different stamps, cheap as chips, easy to use, makes us look like artists

I used various ones on these pen cases

      

[SUP]

@fredk That is something I could do. A single stamp I cannot mess up. A good use of some stamps I picked up for a song this week-end.

I'll certainly try that.

[Klara]

10 hours ago, SUP said:

Maybe I should offer to teach them as well!

Absolutely! Firstly, because education is the most valuable thing to have (because nobody can take it from you), secondly because even if they decide not to make things themselves, they will appreciate your gifts more when they know from experience how much work they are.

[SUP]

Very true!

[dikman]

Don't stress over stamping, we all had to start somewhere and all it takes is practice. While the same can be said about carving there is a lot more subtlety involved. I always thought I'd never bother (too hard) but eventually wondered if I could do it. Yes, I can, BUT I've got a long way to go, which doesn't matter as I only do it for myself.

As for buying a machine, my suggestion would be no, at this stage, based on everything you've said. I started by buying used machines I picked up at good prices but I really had little idea of what I was doing! If you do lots of reading on here and study the various projects people make it will give you a better understanding of machine capabilities and should help you decide which machine should best suit your needs. IF you finally decide you need one.

I forgot to mention, there are lots and lots and lots of videos on youtube about stamping, carving, sewing etc etc. I have spent many hours watching them and learned a lot.

Edited June 6, 2023 by dikman

[SUP]

@dikman, Yes I am not stressing on stamping. I spend a lot of time on this forum, where I learn so much and when I see the gorgeous things people make, I feel a little wistful. That is all. Once I start practicing I suppose I will get better at it at some point. I recently read an article about using a credit card or something similar to keep the stamps straight. Maybe that will help.

About machines, I completely agree. I should get something suitable for my needs at a price I do not feel guilty about. I can wait. There is so much to learn first. Then I will know what I need.

YouTube videos are such a blessing, I wonder how we managed to learn anything pre-internet that oldies like me actually remember! But see, with  carving, I actually have to put a knife to leather to learn and it is a shock how awkward it is when it looks so easy in the videos. LOL  Practice Practice Practice.

[dikman]

Mastering a swivel knife and making smooth flowing cuts aint easy!!!!! My first effort was a holster for myself (it's posted in the holster section somewhere). People on here were very nice about it but there are many faults/issues with it, not surprising as other than trying a couple of little things to get a feel for it I just jumped straight in (which is what I do). HOWEVER, everyone I've shown it to has been gobsmacked by it (), though this is probably because very few have seen carved leatherwork, and I've yet to see anyone here with carved holsters, they're either plain or have some stamping.

I have to make a couple more, plus the belt, and I intend carving all of them as while it's hard work it's actually fun. Trust me, don't be shy about doing it, if I can do it it anyone can.

[chuck123wapati]

I haven't read all three pages of comments but has anyone suggested  knife rolls, many knife collectors use them. and they could be made easier and cheaper than individual sheathes.

Personally i have met folks with requests like this and they don't usually pay off. They simply want something really good for nothing. Charge what you feel is appropriate and realize that other people will pay what you want for your goods if you really want to do it as a job type craft.

 If you do want to buy a machine then you can by selling your work to folks willing to pay your prices not by people who want your stuff cheaper than you can make it, that's just the reality of the situation.

[SUP]

@dikman, Could not find your posted pic of the carved holster but don't sell yourself short. We find faults in our own work that others do not notice.

I do plan to do some carving. Looked up a pattern last night. Maybe I will start today.

@Chuck123wapati, that is exactly the conclusion I have slowly been reaching. You stated it very clearly.

I really wish there was someway we could educate people about leatherwork. So many of them want it but seem to want to pay even less than what they would pay for the cheap goods from the East. I sometimes wonder if people give their senses of sight and feel a holiday while looking at hand-made leather items. Can't they see the difference in the leather used, the intricacies of the work, the talent of the artist? And yes, leatherworkers are artists. So much of the tooling and even the designing I see here is awe-inspiring.