DIY English Point

This is an english point

This is an english point

English points are a great way to finish off the belts or straps that you make, and is one step you can take in making you work look a little more ‘classic.’

Many places sell punches that will punch out english points with the hit of a hammer. It’s nice and easy. But quality english point punches will cost about $30+ and they aren’t a ;one size fits all’ kind of thing. Usually sets are sold going up by 1/4” increments. This means that if you want to buy a set it’s going to cost you $150+. And that’s not a bad price, but it’s probably not worth it if you’re not selling belts regularly.

Now that I’ve thoroughly stressed you out, let me destress you by letting you know that, there is actually a really simple way to make english points with out a punch. And while it isn’t as fast as a punch, it actually doesn’t take much longer. All you need is a divider and a knife.

Step 1: Using a ruler mark where you want your english point to begin on both sides of the strap. When you’re finished the english point will be barely shorter than the width of the strap. 

Step 2: Set the divider to the width of the strap.

Step 3: With the wing divider set in place to where you made your marks in step 1, keep one arm firmly pressed down while you drag the other arm of the divider upwards and across the strap.

Step 4: Put both arms of the wing divider back in place, where you made your marks in step 1, and repeat step 3 but in the other direction.

Step 5: Now that you’ve traced the english point, cut it out. There’s a number of ways to cut out something with a curved edge. You can check out different ways to cut out curves here.

Step 6: Sand out any irregularities and then your english point is ready to be burnished.

 

A Basic Guide on How to Dye Leather

Dyeing leather is tricky (Yes. I’m still working on it.) Getting a nice even coat of dye on leather takes not only the know how, but also the skill that comes with lots and lots of practice. After trying out a number of different ways to dye leather, this is the one that I’m most happy with.

Step 1: Prep the Leather

This is what your hands will look like if you don't put on gloves. People will look at your weird. 

This is what your hands will look like if you don't put on gloves. People will look at your weird. 

Put on Gloves 

Sure this is obvious, but I cannot tell you the number of times I thought "I’ll just be careful and won’t get anything on my hands.” That has not once worked out for me. Don’t be dumb like me. Wear gloves.

This is what it will look like if you put gloves on. This is better.

This is what it will look like if you put gloves on. This is better.

Ventilate the Room

This isn’t an insta-death situation, but the fumes of the oil dyes are seriously not good for your to be hanging out in for a few hours. So figure out some way to ventilate the room. A fan in the window does the trick.

Select the Correct Leather.

You can dye any un-dyed veg tanned leather. In fact, you can probably dye pre-dyed veg tanned leather… but why? (serious though, if you do this, just be aware that there are waxes on top of finished leathers that will not allow the dye to penetrate the leather well). That said, there’s not a ton of considerations when it comes to choosing leather. Just know, that if you’re using 100% top grain leather, you’re going to see all the marks and different shades on the leather. 100% top grain leather is great for quality, but it does mean that the top layer (and imperfections that come with) have not be removed. This is going to really show up when you use a dyeing using this method (instead of the method most industrial places uses, which involves submerging the leather completely in dye. This takes a lot of dye, but is more penetrating and offers a smoother finish). So, if you use an inexpensive piece of leather, that has more marks and inconsistencies, just know that it is going to show up no matter how great you are at dying.

From left to right: Water Based Dye, Oil Based Dye, Dye Reducer, and finally Tan-Kote Leather Finish

Wipe Down the Leather

If your leather has been in your shop for more than a day, there’s a good chance crap has accumulated on it (especially if you’re sanding your edges). Wiping it down quickly with a dry rag prior to dying will help create an even coat. Some suggest using a deglazer on the leather, which will remove any oils that have gotten on the leather from things like your hands. I’ve not used this before, but I’ve seen it recommended many times. Fiebings offers this.

Loading up the sponge with dye.

Cut Your Dyes

I use Fiebings Pro Dye when using an oil based dye and Tandy's Eco-Flo for water based dyes. I like the Pro Dye from Fiebings. Out of everything I’ve used it’s given the most consistent coat, but both work well. I do really suggest cutting it though. If it's an oil dye, Fiebings sells a dye reducer, and if it's a water based dye, you just add water. The more coats you do, the smoother your dye is going to look. So if you achieve the color you want on your first pass of dye, you won’t be able to apply more dye to help even out dye. Instead, you’ll get a very marbled look… which is okay if that’s what you’re going for. As a side note, doing multiple passes of water based dyes will eventually dry out your leather. When you are done dying with water based dyes, it's best to apply some Neatsfoot Oil to put oils back into the leather. Okay, now on to the actually dying process. 

Step 2: Apply a Base Coat in Circles

I always do the first coat in a circular motion. Notice how I start to squeeze the sponge to release more dye as it dries out. 

This is easily the most important coat. First you’ll dip your cloth or sponge into the dye. Now rub it into the dye in circular motion until the leather is covered with dye. Then allow to dry.

Here’s a few things I’ve learned along the way to applying this coat consistently.

  1. When you first set your cloth or sponge onto the leather it is going to be loaded up with dye, and if apply pressure when you first set it onto the leather that one spot is then going to be loaded up with dye. When you first start apply little to no pressure, as you keep going and less dye is being released from the cloth/sponge begin applying more pressure to release an equal amount of dye as before.
  2. When the dye starts getting spotty, reload the cloth/sponge with dye. Basically when the area you just passed over isn’t completely covered in dye, it’s time to get some more.
  3. Overlap a half at a time. As your dyeing in these circles I usually overlap 1/2 of the previous circle with the new circle. 1/2 isn’t some magic number, it’s just what I do. Whatever you do, make sure you’re consistently doing it with each circle you make.
  4. Don’t shy away from the edges. Make sure you dye the leather on something you don’t mind getting dye on, because you should be dyeing beyond the edge of the leather. If you treat the edge of the leather like the end of where you should dye, you’ll approach it timidly and the edges will look less dyed than the rest of the project.

Second and third coats are applied diagonally. Make sure to go beyond the edge, as is shown in this gif. 

STEP 3: Apply a Second Coat Diagonally to the Right

I do this one in back and forth diagonals. Then allow to dry.

STEP 4: Apply a Second Coat Diagonally to the Left

I do this one in back and forth diagonals as well, but in the other direction. This way, between the 3 coats, the grain has been hit from every direction and there should be un-dyed part of the project.

Buffing the finish with a cloth once it has dried.

STEP 5: Apply a Finish and Buff

Once this final coat has dried, you need to put a finish on the leather. If you decided to skip this step, whoever is using the item you made will end up with dye on their clothes. This is bad, so use a finish. I use Fibbing’s Tan Kote, which can be purchases as either a gloss of matte finish. This can be applied in one coat, and I just work it into the leather using the same circular motion from before. Once you’ve worked it in evenly, leave it alone and let it dry. Touching it at all during the drying process will ruin the finish. After the finish has had time to dry, buff it with cotton cloth.

Dying and finishing process complete!

At this point your project should be dyed and ready to go. Hopefully your got a beautiful and completely smooth finish. If you did not however, don't worry, with practice we'll get there. P.S. I swear this isn't a paid advertisement for Fiebings, I just really like their dyes, hah.

DIY Padded Binder Clips

Binder clips are a great way to keep your edges of your projects firmly pressed together while the glue dries. In fact it’s imperative if you’re wanting your edges to look good after the burnishing process. The problem is that sometimes binder clips leave an unwanted impression on the leather (especially if it’s a firmer leather). No need to sweat it though, there’s an easy fix:

What you’ll need:

Binder Clips

http://www.amazon.com/Medium-Binder-Clips-Steel-Silver/dp/B00B9H8FK0/ref=sr_1_6?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1463683164&sr=1-6&keywords=binder+clips

Contact Cement

https://www.amazon.com/107-3-Ounce-Weldwood-Contact-Cement/dp/B000M2SKNU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1471627101&sr=8-1&keywords=contact+cement

Leather

(If you’re not sure where to get that, check out this part of the beginners guide).

1. You’ll need to cut two 5/8” x 1” squares for every binder clip you want to pad. I’m going to be making ten, so I’ll be cutting out twenty squares from some scrap leather I have laying around.

The leather I am using is 5oz. 8oz is absolutely too thick for something like this, but you could use anything between 3-5oz and it would still work well.

2. Now it's time to wet form the pieces of leather. Wet forming lets you shape the leather how ever you want and it's a super easy process. To do so, I soaked each of the pieces in a bowl of water. Once soaked through, I used a binder clip to bend it in half and set it aside to dry. Once the piece dried I removed the binder clip and the leather stays in this bent position. I wet form like this so the leather doesn't pull away from the clip once it's glued.

3. After wet forming each piece, I glued the back of the squares and placed them aside to dry. I then glued the binder clips and set them aside as well. This is how contact cement works: you glue two pieces separately, allow to dry, and then place together and apply pressure.

4. Once the glue had dried on both the binder clips and the leather pads, I placed two pieces of leather the around the lip of the binder clip, with an equal amount of leather on either side. I then used two other binder clips to hold the leather pieces in place.

After the glue had time to adhere, they're ready to go. Like I said, an easy fix. I’ve yet to find something more simple, quick, or easy as this solution, but I know they might be out there. If you have a different way to keep your edges together as the glue dries, it’d be great to have you share it with me in the comments below.

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 3

Step 4

Done!

A Basic Guide to Gluing

Gluing is something that you'll do in almost every project. And taking three minutes to evaluate how you're gluing will drastically improve the quality of your edges. I'm using Seiwa Leathercraft Glue in this guide, but any glue cement should work. Here's three things to make sure that you're doing during the gluing process:

1. Use Wax Paper

I can't tell you how long I went without using wax paper when gluing... and I have no idea why. It's cheap, takes almost no time to prepare, and keeps the glue from being where it shouldn't be.

There's really only two things you need to make sure to do when using wax paper. First, always use the flat side of the wax paper for a straight line. This probably goes without saying, but, for awhile, I would make sure to cut the ends straight when the wax paper already has perfectly straight edges on two sides.

The other thing you'll want to keep in mind is to set the paper back to where your stitching will be. If you set it back further, you'll have a smaller opening than you planned for. In some situations this may not be a problem, but in complex projects, especially projects with linings, this can create a problem.

2. Glue All the Way to the Edge

I use a paintbrush when gluing because it allows me to apply a thin and even coat on the leather. Whatever you use, make sure you apply the glue all the way to the edge. You can see the difference between a sloppy application and a smooth one in this picture. If you do not glue all the way to the edge, your edges will start to come apart during the burnishing process. Also make sure that you're only applying a thin layer. It's inevitable that glue will seep out as you press the edges together, but you want to keep that to a minimum.

3. Apply a lot of Pressure

After carefully lining up my edges, I generally hammer along the entire edge to make sure it's pressed together well. Just make sure the leather you're using is supple enough that the hammer won't leave an impression. For bigger projects and longer edges, I'll use binder clips along the entire edge while the glue is drying. Binder clips will leave an impression more often than a hammer does, so make sure to test them out on a scrap piece of leather first.

You can get around this problem all together if you make padded binder clips. They are extremely easy to make, check out how to make them here.

Neat gluing goes a surprisingly long way in improving your edges. And now that you're edges are properly prepped, it's time to get them looking fine through the burnishing process. 

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