Nigel Armitage's forthcoming book

[Sheilajeanne]

Klara, I couldn't get comfortable using the knife, and if I do that to the handle, I will likely ruin it for anyone else. Thought about it, and decided nope, not going there.

[Rannoch]

7 hours ago, Klara said:

 

I have enormous respect for saddle makers, bag makers, shoe makers, tooling, beautiful finishing... But not for people who cut a strip off a hide, punch a few holes, set a few rivets and sell the result as a belt. My next belt I make myself

I hear you on that.  It is amazing how few people know what goes into making a good belt, but the customers you want will recognize quality when they see it.

[Klara]

Back to the book: I tried to watch Nigel's saddle stitch video, but as he works with the awl in the left hand and considers the left side the front, his instructions are the opposite of Stohlman's. Or are they? Trying to figure it out made my head spin!

So, question to the people who have read the book: Are the instructions in there for left-handers as well, or is the front on the right?

[GatoGordo]

39 minutes ago, Klara said:

Back to the book: I tried to watch Nigel's saddle stitch video, but as he works with the awl in the left hand and considers the left side the front, his instructions are the opposite of Stohlman's. Or are they? Trying to figure it out made my head spin!

So, question to the people who have read the book: Are the instructions in there for left-handers as well, or is the front on the right?

if you watch this video and skip to 11:32 Mr. Armitage shows how to stitch right handed.

 

[Klara]

Thanks for pointing that out, I hadn't got so far. If I'm understanding correctly, there's quite a few possibilities to arrive at the same result. Guess I'll have to take a bit of scrap leather and try them all..

[Rannoch]

20 hours ago, Klara said:

So, question to the people who have read the book: Are the instructions in there for left-handers as well, or is the front on the right?

It looks left handed to me, because I am right handed and I cross the needles on the other side of the leather from Nigel.  But it is still the same stitch, with the same result.  The only difference that I can see is which side you cross the needles.  Maybe I'm missing something though.  

[zuludog]

Nigel Armitage's Vimeo Channel has videos on left, and right handed saddle stitching

It is an excellent source of advice & instruction, with about 120 videos covering all sorts of things, including making a sheath, belts, bags, and techniques such as dyeing and edge finishing. And more videos are added regularly

Cost is about £6 per month = $8-33 

[Sheilajeanne]

Ordered Nigel's book shortly after I said I was going to put it on my birthday wish list on Tuesday of this week.

It arrived today. Thank you, Amazon!

It has already paid the price it cost me, just with the section on pattern making and cutting leather! Those are two of the things I've struggled with the most!

Took me 2 hours last night to copy and cut out a pattern for a Tandy wallet I wanted to keep. I was thinking my knife wasn't sharp enough because it wouldn't go through the cardboard on the first cut. Turns out you can't expect that, because more pressure actually interferes with accuracy. This explains why I had to do a number of the pieces I was cutting a second time.

Also, the information on finding the best angle for a cut was very helpful.

[Klara]

My copy arrived yesterday, and my feelings about it are mixed.

What I really love about the book is the chapter on pattern making and the exact description of the design process which allows readers to adapt the measurements to their projects. Or to make a different thing altogether... Nigel also describes what leather is needed because he is completely aware that many of his readers will not be in the UK and thus not have access to the exact same materials he has. But with the information he gives it should be easy enough to substitute (at least if one knows enough to understand different leather qualities, which unfortunately are not explained. Incidentally, what is "case leather"?). Enabling readers to adapt the project to their requirements is something I have seen all too rarely in "project books", so that part (actually, those parts, because for every project the design process is described in detail) is excellent! As I haven't actually made anything from the book I can't say how clear the instructions really are, but they certainly look well-written, with beautiful photography. (Though I've just discovered that there are no instructions on how to draw an English point on the belt template.)

My biggest criticism is that I see a discrepancy between the projects - which are starting at "first time I'm holding a leather needle" level - and the necessary tool investment. I completely understand Nigel's argument that especially a beginner needs to be able to be sure that his problems are not caused by bad tools. But when I look at what he considers necessary and add up the prices for top-quality tools I guesstimate that one arrives at £/$/€ 500 long before the end of the list. And I see very little advice on how one can get away cheaper (using washers instead of a corner cutter is mentioned). Also nothing on how to recognize the necessary good quality. Or how to maintain it (my logic is that there is no point in spending big dollars on anything with a cutting edge if I don't know how to keep the edge sharp. I prefer to practice sharpening on cheap tools.)

There are detailed chapters on measuring, cutting, and stitching (right handed, by the way, though Nigel pokes the right needle through first) - though he does not have any helpful tips on how to get a good stitch line (one of the things I struggle with - the divider too often goes somewhere it shouldn't). Same thing for edging/beveling - there is a page, but it's nearly free of information.

In summary, what is in the book is very good. But I miss quite a few things I'll keep the book, but I would only give it four stars out of five.

(Incidentally, I'm not much happier with Valerie Michael's book: I like the general information in the first part, but I won't be making any of the projects any time soon. Not just because of taste, but because they get pretty complicated pretty quickly, meaning lots of parts to cut and put together. Whereas Nigel's projects appeal to me with their - probably deceptively - simple elegance. )