Will this work?

[Bird Lady]

Hi Everyone!

 

I'm hoping for some input on an idea. I primarily work with yarns, threads and woven fabrics. Most of my materials are recycled from other artists and crafters. Now and then I get some leather scraps but until now haven't really had an idea of what to do with the leather. I know nothing about working with leather other than the tiny bit I've learned from a few day's worth of Googling and Youtube. I'm not even sure if the idea of using random scraps for this is a good idea or that the idea is sound but I should use ___________ leather for consistent results.

 

I'm hoping to make a series of small duckies and would like to use the leather for beaks. I'm cutting a single layer of leather into an oval about 1.5" long by about 1/2" wide. I'm wet forming it to shape, folding it in half and sewing it onto the duck in and around the fold. The leather I'm playing with is about 1mm thick and very flexible.

 

I have three questions that I'm hoping you could help me with...

 

1. Does this sound like something that would hold it's shaping or will it eventually sag and just hang down the front of the duck's face? It's an art piece and not a toy so while it will get some handling, it hopefully won't be rough handling.

 

2. Is there something I could put on this small of a piece of leather to 'stiffen' or harden it after the wet shaping?

 

3. How would you treat the edges? I'm able to sand the edges some, but that's about it. I'm thinking paint or dye? I tried using a bit of clear Elmer's glue. Seems like an option. It does make the edge darker than the surface. I kinda like but wish it wasn't so shiny. Would the glue be somehow "bad" for the leather long-term or is there something better to use, that could be purchased in small quantities?

 

Thank you for reading this far and I truly appreciate any suggestions that you could give me.

 

 

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[chuck123wapati]

Without knowing exactly what yoU are attempting.

 You may have to experiment with a few beaks to find the best way to sew it on but yea it should work fine, I've seen leather used on toys and such before that were designed for rough handling.

Resolene will stiffen it, or you can use acrylic floor wax also in place of the resolene if you have it on hand. I dilute the floor wax a bit with water. they will both darken the leather. so do some experimenting to see if it looks right to you. Acrylic paints work well on leather. A lot of folks also make earrings from leather scraps

 

Good luck and have fun!!!! 

[Samalan]

I think veg tan leather would be best for what you're doing, 5 min epoxy inside the beak, cut the beak to shape, so when you fold it's in the shape you want, then stitch under or mold it on a form, Ie, a piece of wood. Then paint the inside after it's dry with 5-minute epoxy  , then paint the outside with Acrylic paint, as Chuck said, good luck and have fun!

[fredk]

58 minutes ago, Bird Lady said:

Hi Everyone!

 

I'm hoping for some input on an idea. I primarily work with yarns, threads and woven fabrics. Most of my materials are recycled from other artists and crafters. Now and then I get some leather scraps but until now haven't really had an idea of what to do with the leather. I know nothing about working with leather other than the tiny bit I've learned from a few day's worth of Googling and Youtube. I'm not even sure if the idea of using random scraps for this is a good idea or that the idea is sound but I should use ___________ leather for consistent results.

 

I'm hoping to make a series of small duckies and would like to use the leather for beaks. I'm cutting a single layer of leather into an oval about 1.5" long by about 1/2" wide. I'm wet forming it to shape, folding it in half and sewing it onto the duck in and around the fold. The leather I'm playing with is about 1mm thick and very flexible.

 

I have three questions that I'm hoping you could help me with...

 

1. Does this sound like something that would hold it's shaping or will it eventually sag and just hang down the front of the duck's face? It's an art piece and not a toy so while it will get some handling, it hopefully won't be rough handling.

 

2. Is there something I could put on this small of a piece of leather to 'stiffen' or harden it after the wet shaping?

 

3. How would you treat the edges? I'm able to sand the edges some, but that's about it. I'm thinking paint or dye? I tried using a bit of clear Elmer's glue. Seems like an option. It does make the edge darker than the surface. I kinda like but wish it wasn't so shiny. Would the glue be somehow "bad" for the leather long-term or is there something better to use, that could be purchased in small quantities?

1. If its veg tan leather you are molding it will hold its shape

2. Several coats of thinned water resistant PVA  glue, or varnish

3. Try bees wax, rubbed in, it will protect the edge, not turn it too dark

[Bird Lady]

2 hours ago, fredk said:

1. If its veg tan leather you are molding it will hold its shape

2. Several coats of thinned water resistant PVA  glue, or varnish

3. Try bees wax, rubbed in, it will protect the edge, not turn it too dark

How do I figure out how it was tanned? Or would it just be smarter to buy it new so I know what it is?

[Bird Lady]

3 hours ago, chuck123wapati said:

Without knowing exactly what yoU are attempting.

 You may have to experiment with a few beaks to find the best way to sew it on but yea it should work fine, I've seen leather used on toys and such before that were designed for rough handling.

Resolene will stiffen it, or you can use acrylic floor wax also in place of the resolene if you have it on hand. I dilute the floor wax a bit with water. they will both darken the leather. so do some experimenting to see if it looks right to you. Acrylic paints work well on leather. A lot of folks also make earrings from leather scraps

 

Good luck and have fun!!!! 

Here's a rough photo of one of my experiment beaks. That's my thumbnail in the photo to show how small it needs to be. That's the one where I put a little Elmer's on the edges. I wrapped it around a skewer overnight, after cutting it. With the same leather, I've gotten a better curve by squishing and hopefully stretching it a bit more. Not sure if it should be stretched or just wrapping it around is enough or if I should wait to cut it out until after I stretch it. 

If I use the Resolene or floor wax, would that allow this to work with random scraps or should I use veg tanned only?

I can use acrylic paints on leather? It won't crack or scratch off?

 

 

[Bird Lady]

Here's a photo of one of the more curved ones.

 

 

[fredk]

46 minutes ago, Bird Lady said:

How do I figure out how it was tanned? Or would it just be smarter to buy it new so I know what it is?

Basically you have veg tan and chrome tan.

Chrome tan is used on furniture are rarely can it be wet moulded to hold a shape. Chrome usually shows a blue line in centre when its cut.

I see from your photos your leather is not showing this blue

Veg tan can usually be wet moulded and when dry will hold its shape

Edited 2 hours ago by fredk

[fredk]

When moulding it; give it a good soaking and a little bit of stretching. Clamp it up and let it dry. 

Resolene will work if can soak in, so usually not chrome tan

Floor wax ? do you men 'Mop & Glo'? despite what it says that is not a wax but an acrylic varnish

You can use acrylic paints on leather. Any paints. Don't go buying expensive ones. I use paints meant for plastic models. They're cheap. They'll only crack off if you put the paint on really thick, which you won't have to do

 

Edited 2 hours ago by fredk

[AlZilla]

One thing that may be of help ... I've found soaking veg tan in hot water and letting it dry makes a stiffer dry piece than room temp water. This was about 10 ounce leather but might be worth a shot. 

Vacuum sealing the pieces for about a half hour seemed to make them even stiffer. Just a seal-a-meal. The bags have a textured inside, which showed up on the leather.