cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/899748
I made another handbag. I had that design in mind for a long time (before I even started hand sewing). The red leather is Arif & Sons in chomp red (Jack glazed) and then is used a black vegtan as strap.
Thank you!
You know what? I think I can help you a bit here. I just started in October and I started making earrings. Small items, just playing around with a cheap cut of leather.
I can highly highly recommend Weaver’s YT channel, especially Chuck’s Leather Element videos. He is a fantastic teacher and he literally will teach you about anything you need to know. If you are in the US it’s also the best place to buy some leather and their tools. They aren’t in your face advertising, it’s really helpful. The quality is good if not great and their prices are ok. They link a lot of their stuff.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzvwlO3D_z7dw15cEEVd11MKwgP6RaZbS
Try some of their free patterns if you like or you can buy some on Etsy etc. I made a couple and then started designing my own.
It’s the trickiest part for me but again Chuck explains well how to go about making pattern etc. It’s incredibly freeing.
Join us in the Leathercraft (just follow the link in the post) community if you want. I am hoping we get a good discussion going for beginners to experts.
That’s great, thanks! I’m not in the US, so I’ll have to do any shopping elsewhere, but I’ll check out the videos. Is it expensive to get started, or can you get the most basic necessities on a budget? (I tend to be a multicrafter, trying everything a little bit, and only spending more if I really want to dive into it.)
And yeah I’ll join you in the community, excited to learn more. Thanks!
I am in Canada. I still ordered some stuff (they’re chisels!) from them. But I am sure you’ll find some supplier in your country as well. It depends a bit what you want to make. I am more of a jack of all trades as well but Leathercraft really got me hooked. Start out with some smaller projects while you figure out where you want to go. I started with earrings and luggage tags etc. You don’t need much for this. But when I discovered handbags are actually doable … boy oh boy lol. I bought some tools I don’t use much but I call that investment in my learning. One thing I won’t do again is buy hardware (snaps, buckles, rivets etc) just to have them. It’s much better to design, plan and then go shopping for that specific item. I have a bunch of hardware that I might never use or not in a long time. I started buying exactly what I need now and that’s much better. Even when you typically have some leftovers. At least you might use more to fix something later because you have already used it. And I also know for example what strap width I like. Now I buy that size of hardware.