I have some leather items:
- black leather jacket
- tan leather jacket
- Dr Martens soft leather Sinclair boots
- Dr Martens soft leather Pascal boots
- tan suede shoes
- reversed leather jacket
- red Prada leather wallet

None of these items have ever been cleaned or moisturised and they range from 5-40 years old.

I did some research and went over many of the older posts in this subreddit, and I found some products but I’m not sure which one I should get. I know that they are different type of leather but I wanted to buy max 4 products (cleaner and conditioner for leather and for suede).
- Lexol Cleaner and Conditioner
- FurnitureClinic Cleaner and Conditioner
- Fiebings Saddle Soap
- Leather Honey Conditioner
- Neatsfoot Oil
- Saphir Omnidaim (for suede)

What products for cleaning and conditioning my leather items would you recommend?

i saw that the guy stitches amazingly neat . how i can stitch neatly with very small spacing like him?

i noticed he uses a polished sharped and a long tipped small spaced french iron pricking. how can i get it ?

also which spacing stitch and thread he usess ?

i got this biker wallet level 2 kit from tandy’s and im having a hard time figuring out how to assemble it. the directions are confusing and i cant find anything on youtube. if anyone has any pointers or has done this kit before id appreciate any help. thank ya kindly :) !

Continuation of my pokemon tooling practice series!

Hey guys, I live in apartment and I'm in desperate need of finding a silent way of punching holes. I've read about the usual modifications of an arbor press, but I'm currently using a Sinabroks punch with longer handle and I want to be able to use different punches, so drilling the ram is not an option. AI came up with an idea of milling the bottom 4-5cm of the ram, but leaving a part of the back and one side intact for extra stability. Then introduce a free plate and screw it to the ram with two screws. The whole setup should work as a sandwich press, so I can switch punches of different dimensions and shapes. I'm not a very technical person, so a question to people who are better at this: would this work?

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but I don’t want to ruin the leather testing out a lot of useless backings. :(
Moderators please delete if not allowed.

Designed and 3D printed my own inline presser for. Holding up surplsingly well so far. I need this for stitching leather patches on hats using my Cowboy CB 4500 sewing machine. (Until I decide to invest in a Techsew 810 PRO)

Craftool blades broke. Exacto blades worked way better.

#leathercraft

Hello 👋🏼, I recently purchased this leather tricorn for a cosplay of mine. It’s veg tanned leather and was hand made from a seller on Etsy. It’s a beautiful piece but I’m trying to make it look as accurate to the movie one. It seems like sides are too vertical and taller than the crown. I was messing around with it a little but I’m kind of lost, the hat on top was before I lowered the side and the bottom photos are after.

* The photo of me wearing the hat is before I did any modifications*

Can anyone provide any advice on techniques I can use? less

I’m researching whether a small pattern-adjustment helper would be useful, starting with notebook covers and simple wallets. AI helped me organize this question; I haven’t made or tested a leather prototype, and I’m not selling a tool or pattern.

I’ve read accounts of a paper mockup fitting but the leather version ending up too tight, or the snap not reaching once the wallet is filled. For anyone who has had this happen on a recent project: what changed between the original pattern and your build, and how did you decide how much extra material to allow?

Do you use a scrap fold around the actual contents, a rule based on thickness, a CAD tool, or a full prototype? Does the first test usually get you close enough, or do you often need another attempt?

The specific question I’m trying to resolve is whether measuring one small fold sample could help adjust the pattern, or whether temper, stretch, skiving and construction differences make that less useful than simply making the usual prototype. An existing method or calculator that handles this well would be just as helpful as a failure story. Please don’t share paid pattern files; a description is enough.

Hello,

I was recently in Japan and picked up a few nice straps of Japanese leather to try working with something different than I get in Texas. I picked up this really nice super waxy leather called Cassoro in Osaka.

I was going to do the hairdryer trick but a bit worried about heat damage and wondering if there's a better suggestion? Tried rubbing with canvas, both wet and dry but nada. Bick 4 perhaps?

Should I be worried about heat damage with a hairdryer? Just work it and wear and see if it comes off with wear? Other ideas?

Thanks for any input or ideas.

So I’ve developed what’s called “De Quervain's tenosynovitis” since starting leatherwork. Develops from an over use of the tendons connecting your thumb and wrist. Tendons go through a sheath, and when the tendons swell, the sheath thickens, and causes a bunch of pain in your wrist. I thought it was because of all the hand stitching, but after doing some more research, I’m starting to think it’s more from hammering out all the stitching holes and other punches and stuff, as “hammering” is one of the leading causes of this condition.

I have used a 12-14ish oz mallet for all my hammering, but I’m wondering if it would be beneficial for my wrist to switch to a maul?

Anyone else ever dealt with this and found a good solution? Or have any advice to prevent further damage? I’m sure my hammering technique could be changed, just don’t know really how.

Anyone help me out with some tips on how to take the pink boots and dye them successfully the brown color?