All Blacks Rule!

[celticleather]

Here's a strictly one-off wallet I've made for a guy who seems to think the All Blacks are something special.

I'm not going to argue with him . . . he's built like a brick privvy!

[UKRay]

Nice job, Terry, very slick. Obviously the customer has fine taste in Rugby teams. I'm an ardent supporter of Wales myself (well, I'd have to be living here on the border) but you can't help admiring the Kiwis. I wouldn't like to upset any of them!

Ray.

[swivelsphinx]

Hey there celticleather!

I was looking at your lovely pictures of that wallet.... the design was done in a very interesting style, seeming to combine inverted carving with the other kind. The outlines (I don't know what to cal them otherwise) don't look like they were done with a swivel knife.. they are too round. I'm a self-taught carver, and would like to know what tool/tools you got for those nice, round, clean lines.

Thanks,

swivelsphinx

[Luke Hatley]

TERRY, nice looking bilfold. what alphabets did you use for the lettering ?

[Denise]

Obviously the customer has fine taste in Rugby teams. I'm an ardent supporter of Wales myself (well, I'd have to be living here on the border) but you can't help admiring the Kiwis.

From Ray's post, I am guessing the All Blacks are a rugby team from Wales who are currently playing a New Zealand team? How close am I to being correct? And why the name All Blacks? I'm not into rugby, as you can tell, but I'm willing to learn a little about it.

[badger]

Rugby.....

That's the one played by men with oddly shaped balls, isn't it?

Nice job Terry, as always.

Cheers,

Badger

[celticleather]

Rugby is a hooligans' game, played by gentlemen.

Football is a gentlemen's game, played by hooligans.

Thanks for your kind comments, chaps!

Edited June 2, 2009 by celticleather

[UKRay]

From Ray's post, I am guessing the All Blacks are a rugby team from Wales who are currently playing a New Zealand team? How close am I to being correct? And why the name All Blacks? I'm not into rugby, as you can tell, but I'm willing to learn a little about it.

Pretty close, Denise - the All Blacks are the New Zealand national Rugby team - a very scary bunch of lads. The name comes from the colour of their playing kit - it is all black. See: www.allblacks.com

Ray

[celticleather]

Denise - Here's a little taste of what it is that makes the All Blacks scary . . . but great fun!

[Denise]

Scary all right. Not guys you'd want to get on the wrong side of. But you think they might have been a little more creative in thinking about a name. I'm always amazed how some sports teams are named. In hockey there are the Oilers and Flames and Maple Leafs and Red Wings - and Penguins??? and Mighty Ducks???? How mighty is a duck? So they dropped the Mighty and are now just the Ducks. "Yes sir, I'm a professional hockey player. My team? I'm proud to play for the Ducks!!!" Just doesn't sound right...

[SOSHorses]

ok so how did you get the wallet all black except for the design?

[UKRay]

Scary all right. Not guys you'd want to get on the wrong side of. But you think they might have been a little more creative in thinking about a name. I'm always amazed how some sports teams are named. In hockey there are the Oilers and Flames and Maple Leafs and Red Wings - and Penguins??? and Mighty Ducks???? How mighty is a duck? So they dropped the Mighty and are now just the Ducks. "Yes sir, I'm a professional hockey player. My team? I'm proud to play for the Ducks!!!" Just doesn't sound right...

Next time I go to see them play I'll mention your concerns, Denise... LOL

Frankly, when you are that big (most of these guys are huge) you can call yourself anything you like and most folk will agree with you!

Ray

[celticleather]

Some answers for Swivelsphinx, Luke and SOSHorses

The image is embossed, not carved. I've developed a technique for making flexible plastic dies, using artwork that I create in CorelDraw. I can use whatever fonts I fancy, but fairly plain lettering works best.

The image is embossed into the surface of the cased leather. The tricky part is dyeing the leather without allowing the dye to migrate into the embossing. This is achieved by using a very tightly balled pad of lint-free cotton, with just enough dye to colour the surface of the leather, and a very light touch. It can take a while to build up the colour, but patience is the only way to avoid the dye flooding the image.

The picture below is the die that I used for the wallet.

Terry