miss v Report post Posted March 10, 2012 hello I am victoria. I am realllly new to the leather stuff but i am completely and oddly addicted. I am a metalsmith/jeweler/artist for the last 20 yrs. A Jill of all trades. I hate using capital letters and I type like cr*p so pls forgive all the future typos, im too lazy to fix em. hmm, leather background, lets see, last summer a neighbor was cleaning out his storage locker and bestowed on me a few boxfuls of leather tools for pennies. I cracked open the boxes in the fall and surfed the internet on how to begin. This forum came up in alot of my searches and was very helpful. I made a owl mask for my friend, it came out ok i suppose but the old leather cracked a bit on the beak, the dye didnt take(i think the leahter had been previously sealed) and the tooling was pretty lame but it still hooked me. I have been trying to try out all the different avenues slowly to see what and where Id like to go with it. Eventually I would like to make myself endless pairs of shoes currently Im just making cuffs, small stuff and experimenting alot, playing with dyes, coloring effects, etc. I love tooling. Ok do not know what else to say, so back to lurking around this forum I attached pics of my first 3 items ever made, so fun! Thanks! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BWL Report post Posted March 10, 2012 hello I am victoria. I am realllly new to the leather stuff but i am completely and oddly addicted. I am a metalsmith/jeweler/artist for the last 20 yrs. A Jill of all trades. I hate using capital letters and I type like cr*p so pls forgive all the future typos, im too lazy to fix em. hmm, leather background, lets see, last summer a neighbor was cleaning out his storage locker and bestowed on me a few boxfuls of leather tools for pennies. I cracked open the boxes in the fall and surfed the internet on how to begin. This forum came up in alot of my searches and was very helpful. I made a owl mask for my friend, it came out ok i suppose but the old leather cracked a bit on the beak, the dye didnt take(i think the leahter had been previously sealed) and the tooling was pretty lame but it still hooked me. I have been trying to try out all the different avenues slowly to see what and where Id like to go with it. Eventually I would like to make myself endless pairs of shoes currently Im just making cuffs, small stuff and experimenting alot, playing with dyes, coloring effects, etc. I love tooling. Ok do not know what else to say, so back to lurking around this forum I attached pics of my first 3 items ever made, so fun! Thanks! Welcome aboard Victoria Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phatdaddy Report post Posted March 11, 2012 Welcome! we all like pictures so you'll fit in nicely. Great work, can't wait to see more. Kevin. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cogs Report post Posted March 11, 2012 Hi Victoria, It's obvious you enjoy working with leather. Those you posted are well done and very artsy. Nice work. You go girl! Where is Pnw? I'm down in the Portland area and am familiar with most of Washington, however... Bill Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miss v Report post Posted March 11, 2012 hi michael, kevin and bill thanks for the welcome! I didnt know you said hello till i found my post. PNW stands for "the pacific northwest!" seattle area. I havent tried the traditional fancy flower designs or a stag overlooking a hill amongst the pine trees yet, but I will attempt it one day. Im glad you 'all like pics, as I love to take them! Those 3 pics were taken from last year and Ive been messin around alot since then! lots of great information in here, Im glad this forum exists, seems like a nice community, thank you! ps: mr. bill, i see you make jerky! i may need to ask you for a yummy jerky seasoning recipe! I have a dehydrator but kinda scared to stick meat in it? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AndrewMc Report post Posted March 11, 2012 All the pics look good so keep them coming, you need to chat with Sylvia about guitar pick holders! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cogs Report post Posted March 11, 2012 ps: mr. bill, i see you make jerky! i may need to ask you for a yummy jerky seasoning recipe! I have a dehydrator but kinda scared to stick meat in it? Yes I enjoy smoking up jerky! However, I haven't gotten into making my own seasonings, yet. I simply buy the store bought stuff and it's usually real good. (Those packages have all the ingredients and instructions on how to do it in an oven, dehydrator or smoker. Real simple and worth the effort). I love to smoke up the whole neighborhood with the sweet smell of Mesquite or Hickory over a bed of wood charcoal coals. Takes around 4-6 hours. Now I'll just bet you'd find a ton of people on this site who are real dedicated to the fine art of making jerky. Good luck getting anyone to share their private secrets! Enjoy and happy tooling, Bill Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
benlilly1 Report post Posted March 11, 2012 Welcome...I like your project photos....How lucky you are coming across the leather tools. You saved alot of money. I think you are doing well in your tooling for no longer than you have tooled. I think the metalsmith/jeweler/artist will help you become even better. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rickybobby Report post Posted March 12, 2012 Nice work on your first pieces! Welcome to the forum, glad you "delurked" and came out of hiding! Rick Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miss v Report post Posted March 12, 2012 andrewmc, i saw ms. silvias'pick holders very fun. I made my cuff last year for a team jewelry challenge, it was to make somethign for a rock band challenge, lol... I found it a perfect excuse to try wet molding and sewing, designing the template for the cuff took wayyy more time than assembling leather part! thanks for the heads up, Im sure she and I will run across eachothers paths in here! bill, you smoke it, way different process than dehydrating I assume. So can you at least tell me one thing, whats your favorite cut of meat and species to use? Id like to try turkey... benlilly1, yes i was VERY blessed for sure, I have given so much of my monies to tandy and mcpheresons already, holy hell. Theres always somethign more i need to buy, it doesnt end :/ I am kinda a confessed tool hoarder though. Sadly with all this leather stuff, now I need a bigger studio. oh and yes about the metalsmithing, it really is very symbiotic in alot of aspects, the crossover just working with handtools is very natural, like leatherworkers would fall into metals very easily, like riding a bike. rickbobby, hee hee thanks, Im still lurking, navigating around here is not easy, I seem to click in circles alot...but theres is SO much uselful information its hard not to keep reading! Thanks for the warm welcomes everyone! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miss v Report post Posted March 12, 2012 ok, i need help someone left me a message(little green box on my profile avatar thing) i clicked on it and clicked off by mistake and didnt even get to read it fully... and now I cannot even find it anywhere... my drop-down menu under my profile page name doesnt seem to work, i click on it and it appears and it dissapears before i can get a chance to even read the menu. what am i doing wrong? also if you wrote me, im sorry but i lost the message apparently, sorry! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TTcustom Report post Posted March 12, 2012 Welcome to the forum! I tried repousse last november and it was quite similar in thought to my leather work so it was an easy transition. I love learning some new things! Click on the down arrow by your name and a drop down box will appear with "messenger" the message should be in there. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miss v Report post Posted March 13, 2012 Welcome to the forum! I tried repousse last november and it was quite similar in thought to my leather work so it was an easy transition. I love learning some new things! Click on the down arrow by your name and a drop down box will appear with "messenger" the message should be in there. thanks TT, hi! yes it is similar isnt it! Ive done a tiny bit of repousse, its a beautiful art form. Are you still doing it? About the drop down menu, yes it shows up, but it clicks me to the same profile page, i cant even get a chance to click on anythign on the menu it disapears so fast :/ I cannot get it to stay visable before it refreshes my same profile page..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cogs Report post Posted March 13, 2012 bill, you smoke it, way different process than dehydrating I assume. So can you at least tell me one thing, whats your favorite cut of meat and species to use? Id like to try turkey... I usually get a lean beef pot roast and slice 1/4" strips. You can use most any cut and trim off the fat. I am looking forward to smoking turkey. My 13 year old and I are going on our first turkey hunt this April. We'll camp out and are looking forward to a great time. Even if we don't get one, it's a great experience for both of us. Call it a "coming into manhood" thing or Father/Son bonding time. But I can assure you, we won't be singing 'Kum Ba Ya'! Bill Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BWL Report post Posted March 13, 2012 I usually get a lean beef pot roast and slice 1/4" strips. You can use most any cut and trim off the fat. I am looking forward to smoking turkey. My 13 year old and I are going on our first turkey hunt this April. We'll camp out and are looking forward to a great time. Even if we don't get one, it's a great experience for both of us. Call it a "coming into manhood" thing or Father/Son bonding time. But I can assure you, we won't be singing 'Kum Ba Ya'! Bill Iron sharpens iron. Fill the memory banks; children will remember for every:notworthy: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TTcustom Report post Posted March 13, 2012 Huh that is weird MissV. I just tried it and when I single click on my name or the arrow thingy it brings up the drop down menu and it stays until I select something from it. My picture/avatar will bring me right to my profile if I click on it. I am what they call computer illiterate, I think there are the wee people inside doing magic, so I am not the best to help you. I am still doing some repousse. I want to make a few decorative things for my saddle or the next one I might build. It is kind of fun and like stamping leather gets some tension out with all the hammering. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Phatdaddy Report post Posted March 13, 2012 About the drop down menu, yes it shows up, but it clicks me to the same profile page, i cant even get a chance to click on anythign on the menu it disapears so fast :/ I cannot get it to stay visable before it refreshes my same profile page..... What browser are you using? If you have 2 browsers, try the other. I was having issues similar with firefox, it was an old addon that was causing the grief. Kevin Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miss v Report post Posted March 13, 2012 bill, i think i will try the lean beef first then have fun in the woods! TT just went and peeked at your saddle, you guys amaze me! I think the metal would be a beautiful touch to add... but would the copper(metals) tarnishing stain your leather??? I thought i read something awhile back but not sure...??? kevin, I am using "ie" but I switched to googlechrome and yes it worked! thank you! but I would like to keep using my normal, so do you know what I need to fix in my ie settings? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TTcustom Report post Posted March 13, 2012 I think a layer of protective finishes all around will protect against the worst of it. I am still researching that part. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
