Where's The Quality In "custom" Gone

[Dwight]

I'm still curious how one determines levels of quality and what the parameters are in establishing those levels.

There has always been the concept of "caveat emptor", . . . let the buyer beware, . . . at any time and any place there was retail sales going on.

In my sales, . . . if I would not buy the product, at the price I offer it, . . . then I won't sell it to someone else. I have sold seconds, . . . but in every case there was a steep discount, . . . and full disclosure as to why I was selling it so cheap.

If a person does that, . . . quality does not suffer, . . . I say that especially in leather work because one can find some kind of flaw in just about any hand made / custom made leather item produced. That is in my opinion, part of the beauty and attraction of leather work. If I wanted everything perfectly the same, . . . I'd just punch press out the Kydex and go on about life.

I try to treat my customers as I would want to be treated I guess is my bottom line. But then again, . . . there are unscroupulous varmints out there who could not care less, . . . fleece the flock is their motto.

May God bless,

Dwight

[celticleather]

There is hardly anything in the world that some men cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey. - John Ruskin

[spur2009]

Not sure I want to get involved with this one, however, I guess I have to get my 2 cents in. I try not to judge the quality of other folks

work but instead judge thequality of my own. I firmly believe that ifwhat you do does not have your name on it then it is not

of a quality to leave your shop. I believe to the craftsman is his own best critic and should never settle for second best. Reckon

I've spouted off enough on this subject.

[TwinOaks]

Over the 4 years or so that I've been working with leather, I've improved A LOT. I've been fortunate in that friends and family were supportive of my efforts. It's true that I've always been my own worst critic, and even when I had people tell me "Oh, it's fantastic!" or some such, I still found faults with things. Now, as I progress in this hobby/career, I find myself examining my product and saying "Nope, can't see where to make it better." At this point my work is exponentially better than when I started, and I'm pretty proud of my progression....and I don't see where to make it better. So, what I'm working on now is learning to look at the leather better, and learn what I'm not seeing. I think that's the mark of a true craftsman- taking the time to turn out the best work possible and still looking for a way to make it better. LW.net to the rescue!!! Thanks to this site, I've been able to gauge myself against true masters of this craft.......I'm figuring another 8-10 years and I'll be where I want to be. Does this disappoint me? Not at all. I'm pretty sure I can turn out the odd piece that is 'master' level, but it's more of a fluke than not. I'm turning out "good" and "better than many" quality, but I won't be satisfied until I'm consistently producing work that makes people wish they were 'that good'.

Regarding the OP, I think this is the major issue with today's "custom" makers; they're after the quick dollar instead of striving to master the craft. The biggest thing about it is the marketing. I can't make a large quantity of any particular thing in a reasonable time frame. With that bit of information, I know that I can't compete with a "leather company'" that produces items in the 100+ quantities, per run. Therefore, when they hire someone to get on a forum and proclaim the wonders of their product, I'm automatically at a disadvantage because I can't meet a sudden demand....even though I have a better product. The result is that the 'good enough to make the sale' leather work sees a broader market and gets more reviews- which may or may not be accurate and true- and thus more business. If everybody can get one in a reasonable time, then it must be a good product, right? As we all know, this isn't always the case, but "perception is reality", so we see more 'custom' shops open up overnight, looking to cash in on the market. One excellent example is the Crossbreed holster that combines leather and kydex. There's umpteen thousand people offering a knock off of that design now.......and a few craftsmen (and women) who decline to accept the quick dollar by copying someone else's design.

[Rhide]

Great post TO. That pretty well sums it up for me.

[K-Man]

...One excellent example is the Crossbreed holster that combines leather and kydex. There's umpteen thousand people offering a knock off of that design now.......

Tucker Gunleather is the originator of the leather/kydex hybrid holster. Crossbreed copied the design off of him.

[BillB]

K-Man,

There are two sides to the Quality question, at least in my experience in life both as a leathercrafts man and as a Scientist.

The first side of Quality is that of the person producing something. Wether it be a piece of leather work or a scientific experiment or Theoretical paper. This Quality is based on the persons ethics and standards.

The second side of Quality is that of the person or people receiving or purchasing the product. This has a lot to do with perception. There is rule from the Sword of Truth fantasy book series that comes to mind. It goes like this: "Anyone can be made to believe a lie, either because they want to believe it is true or they are afraid it is true. Even Wizards can be fooled." In the scientific world the last "great" example of this was the "Cold Fusion" issue from the 1990's. Everyone wanted to believe it was true since we were all trying to find alternate energy sources. In the end it was found to be a poorly run experiment and had not followed basic scientific principals dealing with quality control. You can see similar effects at any craft show where folks want to believe they are getting a "handcrafted" or "custom" made item. A Native American friend of mine had to break ties with a long time friend since that friend was selling "Hand Made Native American" items that had come from China and was telling the customers about it.

In the end we have to live with ourselves and what we do and answer to our maker, Great Spirit, God ... for what we have done. I control my destiny. I can not control others. If someone brings an item to me and asks my opinion, I will provide it with constructive criticism, not destructive criticism on how the item could be better. That is the best I can do and I am willing to live with it.

The above is my opinion and I hope you find it useful.

BillB

[TwinOaks]

Thanks, K-man, I had the two confused. Since I don't do that type of work, I was relying on (faulty) memory.

[TexasLady]

6/25/11

electrathon (aka Aaron), that was a good story. You told it well, and I liked it.

Something similar happened to me long years ago, when I was a teen-ager. (Off topic now, as this is about 'art', but not leatherworking.) They had just come out with Mod Podge, the clear texture that can be painted over a picture to make it look like a 'painting'. I was with an older friend. The man at the art store showed me a miniature painting of roses and said that 'he had done it'. I showered him with praises, not knowing it was Mod Podge on top of a photograph. When he proudly showed me the jar of Mod Podge, telling me that I could buy it, and then that I could 'make one just like it',... I felt hurt, because I'd thought that I was 'supporting' him in his exceptional artwork. Seeing the misunderstanding, my older friend explained to the gentleman that I'm an artist, and that I'm able to actually paint a miniature bouquet of roses, such as the ones in his photo, from scratch. He said, "Oh." What he thought would be a great sales pitch didn't work out so well. - TexasLady

Edited June 26, 2011 by TexasLady

[JC Javelle]

An artist and craftsman is their own worst enemy. I have thrown away tons of work (drawings, paintings, clay work, wire work, etc) because I knew it was crap according to my own standards. I get ribbed and and whined at, "oh why did you throw it away? you do such good work!" Horse manure. If it isn't up to your own standards, it isn't worth keeping, never mind selling or giving away.

Now, standards vary. Some artists and craftsman have a bit of a perfectionist streak going on, so anything below the best of their ability or better isn't worth anything. Others, if it got done without looking like a train wreck then it is good enough. Now, what the customer wishes to buy, the best that the artist can offer, or the stuff that just gets them by, is up to the customers discretion. Quality, like beauty, is as much in the eye of the beholder as it is the craftsman. We live in a throw away society. Handmade is good enough to many who are used to the sub par; ie. a pair of boots lasting them the year, maybe two, is good enough. Never mind those boots that can last you the decade and feel more comfortable the older and more worn they become. People don't see that spending the big chunk of change the first time will save them money in the long run. Or they do, and they just don't care.

I for one, like something that lasts. I typically don't like buying damaged product. But, occasionally, I do. Why? Personification. I am my own worst critic, and it shows when I buy mass produced stuff. I see those little scuffs and marks, and I always have an internal debate, oh the manufacturer could have trimmed that excess, oh they could have done this, that, and your mother. But when I come across something hand made and one of a few, sometimes, those imperfections bring something else to the board. A bit of uniqueness and personality that makes it one of a kind. Sort of like with people. So what if they have some underlying issues and obvious imperfections, scars, bumps, bruises. Would you take them any other way? Maybe. Would you take them as is, right now, regardless? Yes.

As for the OP, it feels like a vent. And if you read or listen to enough vents, you know they come from a place where you don't care about faux pas or being politically correct. You're venting and complaining about every little molecule in the issue. You just don't care otherwise.