Minimalist Wallet

[Leather20]

9 hours ago, Handstitched said:

@Leather20 Not sure if kangaroo leather is available where you are, but thats what I  often use for making simple wallets. Easy to cut and easy to sew by hand or machine. ( I've just ordered some more)   Or alternatively, I have used goat skins. Similar in thickness , and come in many colours.

 

I'd like to do some tooling on the font, can I do that with kangaroo leather?

[Rahere]

You're going in the opposite direction of light, here. Roo leather can be split without losing much strength, so usually is, to 1mm or less, whereas tooling leather generally starts at 3-4mm, to take punch impression. 

The reason veg-tanned leather is used is because it holds water: chrome-tanned doesn't. Roo can be either.

But finding 4-5mm veg-tanned ? You'd likely have to have it shipped from the wonderful land of Oz. 

Edited October 23, 2020 by Rahere

[Leather20]

37 minutes ago, Rahere said:

You're going in the opposite direction of light, here. Roo leather can be split without losing much strength, so usually is, to 1mm or less, whereas tooling leather generally starts at 3-4mm, to take punch impression. 

The reason veg-tanned leather is used is because it holds water: chrome-tanned doesn't. Roo can be either.

But finding 4-5mm veg-tanned ? You'd likely have to have it shipped from the wonderful land of Oz. 

Won't a 3-5oz veg work? I wanna do a pattern on it for some friends to remember something together. Forgive me if i'm completely missing the point here

Edited October 23, 2020 by Leather20

[Handstitched]

Well, alternatively , you could try using a 1.2mm veg tan , however, you won't be able to carve a pattern into it, but you may be able to stamp a pattern into it, or a friends name,   but you have to be so careful that you don't hit the tools so hard  that its cuts the leather right through . Try putting a piece of 3-4mm scrap underneath where you're stamping to avoid that..its has worked.....sometimes.....practice first. And perhaps  make a wallet inner with say , roo hide, goat hide , pig skin , or whatever you have available, then glue & stitch . 

HS

[Rahere]

22 hours ago, Leather20 said:

Won't a 3-5oz veg work? I wanna do a pattern on it for some friends to remember something together. Forgive me if i'm completely missing the point here

No, it's just it goes in the opposite direction to minimal. Another approach it to tool a plaque and sew it to the wallet before make-up. I've a roo-skin wallet 20 years old, daily use. There's no way it would take tooling though, it's as thin as cloth.

[Leather20]

24 minutes ago, Rahere said:

No, it's just it goes in the opposite direction to minimal. Another approach it to tool a plaque and sew it to the wallet before make-up. I've a roo-skin wallet 20 years old, daily use. There's no way it would take tooling though, it's as thin as cloth.

I'm a newbie and I feel kinda silly asking but how would I do a plaque?

[Handstitched]

@Leather20 A leather plaque is a separate piece of 2.5 or 3mm veg tan leather, either round , square or whatever,  that is thick enough to be tooled/ carved, but allow enough room for stitching. Put it on before assembling the wallet.

BTW, Theres no such thing as a silly question on here. All good . We're all here to help   

HS

[Rahere]

9 hours ago, Handstitched said:

@Leather20 A leather plaque is a separate piece of 2.5 or 3mm veg tan leather, either round , square or whatever,  that is thick enough to be tooled/ carved, but allow enough room for stitching. Put it on before assembling the wallet.

BTW, Theres no such thing as a silly question on here. All good . We're all here to help   

HS

I considered adding a comment that if it's large enough, it can add useful shape to the wallet, and cover an anti-scam material (there's folk out there who've gutted a swipe reader and read your cards on public transport, in your wallet).

[Rahere]

18 hours ago, Rahere said:

I considered adding a comment that if it's large enough, it can add useful shape to the wallet, and cover an anti-scam material (there's folk out there who've gutted a swipe reader and read your cards on public transport, in your wallet).

I was trying to think of the term for the anti-scam. RFID.

[Handstitched]

Not sure if they still do, but I think Tandy sell that material . 

@Leather20 you could also add a concho in place of tooling, but it may add little bit of ' bulk' to the end product, unless its sorta flat-ish, if that makes sense.   Love to see the end product. 

HS