A beginner with a hobby goal!

[SUP]

All of these you will get in a kit on Amazon.  Amazon has a large selection to choose from.

As I mentioned above, I started leatherwork in Jan.,2023 with an Amazon kit and do not regret it a bit. I got all the basics for a song and am building up a collection of good instruments as needed. Until then, the items from the kit worked fine. I still use most of them.

A Stanley knife works for cutting most leathers. The stitching chisels I received in my kit are fine and I still use them. Not even needed to sharpen the as yet. Ditto the awl. You can use a woodworking one at a pinch. Edge beveler was not too sharp but I sharpened it. You can get thin whetstones in Amazon for a song. Tokonole is very useful; glue - I use gorilla  glue and it works fine for me.

Edge paint I only started using recently - I used plain dye earlier. It was fine but if you want to use those high-end leathers, you will need to practice with edge paint - it is not as easy as it looks. All the videos on YouTube use thick leather with straight edges. Very few bags have only straight edges or are so thick! At least in my experience! They would be so heavy if very thick! Besides, it takes practice to cut smooth edges that will paint or burnish well. I started with acrylic leather paint to learn and then bought the actual leather edge paints.

For burnishing, I discovered that more than a wooden burnisher, a piece from an old, cut up pair of jeans works very well, in fact works best. It is khaki in color so no risk at all of color transfer.

My kit included needles and thread as well which were fine for practice and learning. I bought a skiving knife off Amazon and had it sharpened with a man who sharpens it here for a couple of dollars, I kid you not! He is very good and that knife is very sharp indeed.

 X-acto knives also work very well for a good amount of the cutting and sharp kitchen scissors of course! And lighter to burn the thread once you start stitching. 

You can improvise a stitching pony. Plenty of YouTube videos to show that. But that is  needed, otherwid=se stitching leather can become tedious. It is not very expensive to buy though. 

I would suggest buying plain leather, the least expensive, to practice cutting, stitching etc. until you gain some confidence. I saw those teaching videos too and it is not as easy as it looks! It takes ages to get satisfactory results and for high end items for loved ones, you will want that perfection even more.

I practiced by making sheaths for every sharp instrument in the house! The type of leather does not matter much as long as it is veg-tanned. 

About leather, many stores have sales, either ongoing or at specific times each month when you can get good leather for very reasonable rates. They become difficult to resist sometimes.

That's all I can think of to add from my recent newbie experience. 

 

 

 

[DesertLeather]

2 hours ago, SUP said:

All of these you will get in a kit on Amazon.  Amazon has a large selection to choose from.

As I mentioned above, I started leatherwork in Jan.,2023 with an Amazon kit and do not regret it a bit. I got all the basics for a song and am building up a collection of good instruments as needed. Until then, the items from the kit worked fine. I still use most of them.

A Stanley knife works for cutting most leathers. The stitching chisels I received in my kit are fine and I still use them. Not even needed to sharpen the as yet. Ditto the awl. You can use a woodworking one at a pinch. Edge beveler was not too sharp but I sharpened it. You can get thin whetstones in Amazon for a song. Tokonole is very useful; glue - I use gorilla  glue and it works fine for me.

Edge paint I only started using recently - I used plain dye earlier. It was fine but if you want to use those high-end leathers, you will need to practice with edge paint - it is not as easy as it looks. All the videos on YouTube use thick leather with straight edges. Very few bags have only straight edges or are so thick! At least in my experience! They would be so heavy if very thick! Besides, it takes practice to cut smooth edges that will paint or burnish well. I started with acrylic leather paint to learn and then bought the actual leather edge paints.

For burnishing, I discovered that more than a wooden burnisher, a piece from an old, cut up pair of jeans works very well, in fact works best. It is khaki in color so no risk at all of color transfer.

My kit included needles and thread as well which were fine for practice and learning. I bought a skiving knife off Amazon and had it sharpened with a man who sharpens it here for a couple of dollars, I kid you not! He is very good and that knife is very sharp indeed.

 X-acto knives also work very well for a good amount of the cutting and sharp kitchen scissors of course! And lighter to burn the thread once you start stitching. 

You can improvise a stitching pony. Plenty of YouTube videos to show that. But that is  needed, otherwid=se stitching leather can become tedious. It is not very expensive to buy though. 

I would suggest buying plain leather, the least expensive, to practice cutting, stitching etc. until you gain some confidence. I saw those teaching videos too and it is not as easy as it looks! It takes ages to get satisfactory results and for high end items for loved ones, you will want that perfection even more.

I practiced by making sheaths for every sharp instrument in the house! The type of leather does not matter much as long as it is veg-tanned. 

About leather, many stores have sales, either ongoing or at specific times each month when you can get good leather for very reasonable rates. They become difficult to resist sometimes.

That's all I can think of to add from my recent newbie experience. 

 

 

 

Thank you for sharing all that!

I indeed want to do the absolute best for her, so I thought of practicing cutting sewing and skiving making knife sheaths, wallets and maybe watch straps to practice the cutting, sewing edge paint and burnish, all that jazz.

I guess the best thing to do would be to just hop into it and start getting hands on it.

Thanks again!

[AlZilla]

3 hours ago, DesertLeather said:

 

Thank you both so much!

From what I saw a mallet, pricking irons, needles and thread, round and awls, a skiving knife and edge bevelers should do the trick and a few consumables (sand paper, glue, tokonole, edge paint and finisher) should do the trick and some leather to try and begin.. did I miss anything?

Don't forget dye and a way to apply it (dauber, dip or airbrush). I'd argue you don't need the tokonole or edge paint, but that's just me.

Also, I'd add beeswax. And probably other stuff if I really sat down and thought about it... How about a swivel knife?  And a stitch groover? Oh, and you'll need a slicker to do those edges ...

What a person needs to get started is one of those questions that could break the internet.  Here's a selection I found on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Jupean-Leather-Supplies-Instructions-Stamping/dp/B07THQ8QM4/
https://www.amazon.com/Leather-Supplies-Stamping-Stitching-Punching/dp/B07QY7CP72/
https://www.amazon.com/Realeather-Leathercraft-Instructions-Materials-Projects/dp/B01AMX0KWC/

I started with the 3rd one for $50. 20/20 hindsight says either of the other 2 would have saved me money in the long run. But that's for the things that I want to make.  And a couple of those things from the higher priced kits are in my amazon cart right now to the tune of about $30.

I got involved in this because I thought $150 was too much for a new leather hat.  $500 and many hours later, I had my $150 hat. (and let's not talk about several thousand $$$ for the sewing machines that followed ..)

Good luck with it, it's a rewarding skill to have. And a rabbit hole.

Edited August 24, 2023 by AlZilla

[Klara]

I too started with a kit from Amazon, but a small one. Here you find a (rather heated) discussion on the minimum tools required. 

However, in your place (because your goal is a bit different) I'd wait for the book before buying anything. Btw, have you tried to find an actual brick and mortar store in your area? If the staff are knowledgeable, a visit will be educational and a lot of fun (probably not cheap, though...)

[DesertLeather]

2 hours ago, Klara said:

I too started with a kit from Amazon, but a small one. Here you find a (rather heated) discussion on the minimum tools required. 

However, in your place (because your goal is a bit different) I'd wait for the book before buying anything. Btw, have you tried to find an actual brick and mortar store in your area? If the staff are knowledgeable, a visit will be educational and a lot of fun (probably not cheap, though...)

I already ordered the book and it is on the way!

Unfortunately there are 2 stores in a whole different city and after calling them, they explained they just sell leather and most of it is for upholstery with a relatively narrow selection.

I figured I'd rather buy online so I know the tannery and all so I can buy the same again and again.

The further I learn about leather working the more projects I have in mind and I'm sure it will take additional budget, just like with any hobby I am sure I will take it slow and build up from there with tools, supplies, making patterns (which I started practicing with card stock) and progressive acquiring of understanding for the process..

 

@SUP @Klara thank you again for all of your inputs! I appreciate it so much!