Belt, Philly Lacross Team

It sounds like this belt was going to be traded around the team so we added a few extra holes to give it a wide fit-range.

Range Card Holster and Belt

Another Range Card Holster for a motorcycle instructor in the states.  The client opted not to add any personalization but they did throw in a nice little belt to hold the holster over their clothes.

I got a glowing message back once they received their order:
Good Morning Fallon,

I opened my range card holster and belt last night and they are PERFECT!!!

My husband is impressed that my range cards no longer fall out of the holster as the pouch is a little deeper and sturdier than my flimsy holster. I will not miss the teaching days when I would bend over to pick up cones on the range only to re-bend to pick up my cards 3 dozen times in a day. :-) And Fallon, I LOVE the quality, plain leather...you definitely provided the classy look that I was seeking.

With regard to the belt, I was a little off on my measurements (strictly my fault) so I am using the smallest hole setting and have a large "tail" but the range card holster clips over the "tail" nicely, keeping everything in place, so I think it will be fine for now. If the leather stretches, I might order another belt in a smaller size but obviously, I would rather have the belt too big than too small. Again, absolutely LOVE the belt buckle and the medium weight of the belt.

Fallon, I can't emphasize how happy I am with your work and even more impressed that you were able to capture my desire at a distance. It has been a tremendous pleasure to work with you! I am looking forward to teaching in a few weeks and displaying my new items.

Thank you again for everything!

She even ordered another, shorter belt right after sending that. 😁

Belt, Land Rover Pair

These belts are a gift for a fellow in the UK.  The story goes that they'd gotten a Land Rover printed belt years ago but it had worn out over the years.  The client ordered the tan belt as a replacement first and before it shipped decided to add the black belt to the same order.  The size of the belt was a bit larger than normal so I had to build in a splice but I found a nice way to work it in without being obvious.  Since these belts were made with actual leather I'm pretty sure they'll last a bit longer than the printed belt.

Buckle, A+K Brand

Oval Nickle buckle carved with a design from a woodburning provided by the client.  Should make for a nice anniversary gift.

Buckle, Beaver Creek Farms

I need to find a better, long-term supply chain for these buckles but I like the trend of making a few every holiday season. I hope everyone's having a safe and happy holiday!

Celtic Knot Belt

This started as a commission for the client's partner; a nice birthday buckle.  After drawing up the celtic knot everything seemed to be going pretty well.  It wasn't until after I'd finished staining, sealing, and conditioning the belt that I realized I'd stained it the wrong color.  The client had requested "wine" and I'd somehow gotten it in my head while I was carving that it was meant to be saddle tan.

An unfortunate mistake on my time that caused an unnecessary delay but I turned around made another belt to the correct specs that's just gone out this morning.  I don't get to use the wine mix very often so it's interesting to see how it develops while curing.  It goes on as a dark-medium brown and turns into more of a pinkish mahogany once it's fully developed.

Out with the old, in with the new Belt

These days when folks need a belt they usually get a factory-pressed piece of cloth or split leather (suede) with a bit of plastic/vinyl stamped on it.  This artificial leather (usually called "genuine leather" in a bit of ingenious branding) allows leather products to be mass produced but they don't have the long-lasting durability of natural leather.  Any belt from a big box store is going to fall into that category and for me they usually last 1-2 years and then I need to replace them. 

To compare that with a full-grain, natural leather belt I inherited a small belt from my father when I was about 9.  He'd gotten the belt as a kid from his father who'd worn it back when he was a kid.  Doing the math I can guess that this belt was made somewhere in the 1920s-30s (before artificial leather was developed during WWII) and when I received it in the 90s it was just fine.  I wore that belt every day until 2003-2004 when it finally snapped.  I'm sad to say that if I'd been conditioning it properly all that time (and not folding it to stuff it in my boots at night) it'd probably still be around (whether or not it would fit would be another matter).

A couple of years ago, back when I had a better opinion of Tandy, it was time for me to replace the belt I was wearing at the time.  Tandy has a pre-built belt they sell at a price point that certainly implies that it's full-grain leather.  The exact price up here fluctuates with the exchange rate but it's about triple what I'd pay for a similar belt at a retail store.  I figured that was probably a bargain if it meant I wouldn't have to buy another belt for at least a few decades.  Well it's two years later and that belt is in worse shape than the belt that preceded it.

Tandy's belt is built on a heavy split leather, a bit under 1/4" thick, but they slapped a cheap vinyl on top that.  The vinyl's wearing away and wrinkling as the leather molds over time to fit my waist.  The construction is solid enough but as a leatherworker the finishing is nothing short of shameful.  Fortunately, I could do something about it.

Belts aren't that complicated to make compared to most of my other products.  You take a strap of heavy, quality leather, in this case 9 oz Italian veg-tan, and you shape it by punching holes, beveling, burnishing, etc. 

Then you stain it.  I wound up using about 3/4 of a bottle of Fiebling's Oil based Dark Brown on the belt.  After a few minutes the stain would sink into the leather and leave the surface a fair bit paler than I was happy with.  After rubbing in 6-8 coats of that stuff (it would've been faster to just dip stain it) I let it cure and sealed it with a Dark Brown stain/finish mix.  The result is very difficult to capture in a photograph but it's essentially a brown that's so deep/rich that it's almost darker than any black stain I have.  After conditioning & assembling it I'm very happy with the result.  And who knows, my grandkids probably will be too.

Final Orders of the Year

Pretty much everything's in the mail already and these will probably be the last orders I'll be delivering in 2015.

The first is a shoulderstrap heading to Lubbock TX.  It would be standard except the client was very keen on having a 2" wide strap.  Buckles in that size, especially brass buckles, are pretty tricky to find.  Fortunately I found an old vintage buckle from a fellow Etsy seller so it wasn't any big problem.

And finally we had a local job.  My father-in-law had bought an ordinary belt in a local brick-and-mortar store only to find the "genuine leather" it was made from didn't hold up to much wear and tear.  After a week or two the vinyl was already peeling off...

Cowhide to the rescue!  I gave it a bit of texture to match the original belt a bit better but the biggest selling point is that this belt will have a lifespan of decades, rather than weeks (like all my belts).

Triple Brand Belt & Buckle Set

A fellow in Oklahoma commissioned me to make this set, I assume for himself and his two brothers.  The brands on the buckles are a combination of each gentleman's initials so it works out pretty well.  It went out this afternoon with a number of orders so it should get there just in time to go under the tree.

Black on Red Weave Belt

Another Christmas present that got on its way this afternoon.  In this case the client wasn't entirely sure what they were looking for, just so long as it was a simple pattern, black with red highlights.  I came up with a few different samples and from that she picked a weave design and a layering of two different watercolors.

On the hole it was straightforward enough as projects go.  My 9 oz hide wound up being about 6" shy of the necessary length so I whipped up an extension to hold the buckle on.  The watercolor stain was finicky as usual and seems to have caused some wrinkling on the extender somehow.  I don't think I've seen that before but it has been a long time since I've used this particular stain.