I can't resist! No, literally...

[Leather20]

This isn't a tip, but that basketweave and the coloring is gorgeous!! I love how natural it looks

[battlemunky]

1 hour ago, Leather20 said:

This isn't a tip, but that basketweave and the coloring is gorgeous!! I love how natural it looks

Well thank you very much! It took about 6 hrs to lay out the basketweave pattern and then to tool it all. While it still isn't perfect, it did turn out good but I really wish it had the pop that it had with the yellow. Lots and lots of teensy swivel knife cuts.

[IdahoB]

On 8/31/2020 at 2:28 PM, battlemunky said:

This may look ok but its several shades darker than I wanted. The basket weave is supposed to be yellow... I dyed it to my satisfaction and then gave it a few hrs to dry and added a coat of TanKote, let it dry for a about an hour to where it wasn't tacky or showing any signs of not being wet and applied another coat and gave IT another hour.

I applied dark brown Fiebings paste antique and got what you see in the photo. I don't think it's anywhere close to ruined but I really liked how the yellow popped and couldn't wait to see it with the antique in the streaks I made on the weave. All dyes used are Fiebings Pro.

That's the back story. The only thing I can really think of having done anything different would be to wait overnight or something. Maybe add another coat and let it dry more? I see some folks with ridiculously good resists and I want that but how.

Any ideas are welcomed and appreciated. 

I struggled with the same issue. I watched every video I could find and followed the process to a T but mine always came out much darker than I wanted. The single biggest breakthrough I had was to take a couple paper towels, fold them a few times to make a firm, flat rag. Moisten the outside layer with water, and use that to remove the antique. You want just enough water to help wipe the antique off without wetting the paste in the cracks and background. I was amazed how much past I could get off. Then you can fold that layer inside the pad and have a clean surface again. Don’t be afraid to buff the foreground, it will come very clean. Then, as already stated, the final coat of Tan-Kote will take even more off and make it pop. 
The second thing I did to get the result I was looking for was to switch to medium brown paste. It still gives great contrast in the tooling and finishing cuts, but doesn’t seem to stain through the vinework and foreground as bad, making it easier to get back to the original color. 

Edited September 6, 2020 by IdahoB
Spellcheck took control of my keyboard

[battlemunky]

Thanks @IdahoB!