Making Rolled Leather Collar?

[AstaraCheetah]

Hello everyone,

I'm new to this site. I've been making collars for a few years now, but have never made a rolled leather collar. I've just received a request to make one, and I'm not sure where to start. What is the best way to roll it? Do I need to thin the leather first? What is the best kind of stitch to use (I've also not done any stitching before)? Does anybody know of a step-by-step tutorial for something like this? I've looked around the forum but haven't found much on it.

Any help is very much appreciated! =)

[Mijo]

I make rolled leashes every now and then when requested but I've never actually made a rolled collar before. I've been contemplating making one just for the heck of it as it would be just a slight modification to a rolled leash, i.e. swapping the bolt snap for a buckle / strap keeper on one end and replacing the leash handle for a strap end w/ eyelets on the other end.

I used the instructions for Handle #10, 11 & 12 from The Art of Making Leather Cases v3 as a guide for making rolled leashes. Handle 10 provides a basic pattern for what each end of the strap should look like and I tweaked it to suit my needs. One thing that I did completely different from the book was that I split the leather between where the bolt snap and the handle start (rolled portion of the strap). I did this b/c the leather within the rolled section had to be pretty thin in order to be rolled and it didn't seem strong enough in the unrolled sections to be doubled up onto itself for the handle and bolt snap. I saddle stitch the rolled leashes which I actually thought would take more time.

My rolled leashes are noticeably heavier than my regular leashes so it's natural to asume that the same would be true for a collar. I make dog accessories for small dogs so a heavy collar is not desirable, which is why I haven't made a rolled collar yet. I hope this helps and good luck...

Edited July 3, 2012 by Mijo