Reflections

From time to time it's good to look back and see if you are improving in your craft or art or life in general.  I have kept the first few carvings that I ever did and I have wanted, for awhile now, to go back and tool the same pattern just to see the differences.  I like to keep my old stuff to show people that may be interested in doing leatherwork but are discouraged because their work may not look as good as some others that they see.  My tooling is still not where I want it to be and I believe that is the beauty of a craft that is also an art form, you can continue to grow and learn no matter how long you've done it.

One of my favorite leather carvers, Don Butler, told me at the show in Colorado that it was only the fifth purse he had ever made.  The project actually made him sit back and study the finer points of creating a great handbag.  This is coming from a guy who has done leather for over 50 years.  There is always something to learn, always a way to hone your style and craftsmanship.

The piece done in early 2003 was the second flower I had ever tooled.  The other one was done today, a little over nine years later.  The pattern is more of an old western style instead of the Sheridan style that I normally do, so it's not my best work.  The western style flower is built more for a larger pear shader but I did it with the tools I had.  Hopefully at least you can see the difference in crispness and depth.  The leather was obviously cased better on the new one because it "took" the tool better.  The imprint burnished the leather when stamped causing it to darken the leather more.  Casing is an issue for a lot of new carvers I believe.  Most folks get in too big of a hurry when you are new.  Early on, casing the leather is the far most important thing to learn, right there with keeping your swivel knife sharp and at the correct angle.  Fading bevels is something I've tried to pick up over the years and I'm still continuing to learn how to keep everything clean looking. 

2012 vs. 2003

2003

2012

I debated putting up this due to the fact of showing early work that was severely lacking any talent.  As Cash told me when I brought my first Bible cover in to be sewn; "It looks like a cabbage patch threw up on it", keep practicing, keep learning, and don't let others work discourage you,  use it to strive to be better.  Until next time, RW

ACM 2012 Purse

After the long post about the trip, I guess I should show my entry.  The rules stated "any purse smaller than 10" by 14" and not made from a kit".  Pretty broad range and it brought many different styles to the table.  Here's what I came up with.  It was my first purse so I learned a lot for the next one.  It was a carving contest so I tried to cover as much as possible with tooling.

Under side of the handle

Interior

The purse will be showcased with other entries from the Art of the Cowboy Makers contest at the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs from now until September.  If you are in the area, drop by and check it out in person.  As always, critique and comments welcome.  Take care, RW

Home from the Road

We just returned from The Art of the Cowboy Makers contest in Loveland, CO.  We had a great time and met some wonderful people.  It was an amazing display of many different artists in categories such as braiding, chaps, engraving, spurs, hats, saddles, boots, cinch making and of course leather carving.  I decided to enter this year even though the project was building a purse, which I had never done before.  Mainly it was a good excuse to go to Colorado. 


We stayed in Fort Collins which was having a huge forest fire.  Not knowing what to expect when we arrived, we took off early morning and made the long stretch to Amarillo the first day.  Had a picnic at one of the coolest roadside picnic areas I've ever seen right outside of Guthrie (home of the famous Four 6's ranch).  We hit a lot of picnic areas along the way and I believe they are a dying breed that needs a resurrection. 

Once we made it to Amarillo, I went out and branded the Cadillac Ranch with the ol' BR.  Teaching the kids the fine art of graffiti, I'm sure that will come back to bite me when they get older.

On into Colorado and a view of the smoke from our hotel window.

The makers competition was a good one this year.  I was really impressed by the talent showcased, especially Don Butler (woolies) and Nancy Martiny's (chinks) entries into the chap category.

The prizes were custom buckles for 1st place and people's choice.  I wasn't fortunate enough to come home with one this year, but it means improvement for next year's go around.

There was an entry in the braiding category that had everyone talking and gawking.  It was a miniature bit and reins that a gentleman in the Arizona State Prison had sent in.  He ended up taking the people's choice award for it.  It was well deserved, the picture doesn't do justice to the detail in it.

Here's a picture of the maker's that were able to be in attendance.

I would like to thank Casey and LeEllen Jordan and Dave and Kristi Wilson for their hard work putting this show on.  Hopefully it will continue to grow every year.  Check out Art of the Cowboy Makers website for more pictures and information about the event.

After it was all said and done, we were ready and thankful to see this sign:

I love the mountains, but it's nice to be home.  Thanks for putting up with the long post and check out my post that focuses on the purse I made for this event.  Take care, RW

Pair of Legal Pad Covers

The latest out the door is a set of padfolios.  These are border tooled with barbed wire.  The inside matches the other one I have posted on here.  Let me know what you think.  Take care, RW

Clock

I have a couple of legal pads on the stamp rock right now, but in the meantime, here's a clock I made a while back for my wife's grandfather.  It is a pattern that I think Bill Gardner did in the Sheridan style carving book.  I liked it and wanted to try it out.  This was a project back before I learned how to antique.  The darker highlights of antique would have made this look really good, but it has aged well on it's own over the years.  Take care, RW

Gunbelt and Bowie Sheath

Here's the latest out of the ol' BR.  The order was for a sheath to hold a Bowie knife that the customer had made and a matching gun belt.  The holster was provided to match the color and style.

We put a dropped slot in the gun belt to allow for more under arm room when drawing the long barrel gun.  The sheath was put at a 30 degree cant for ease of access as well.  All in all I think it turned out well.  Thanks for stopping by, comments and critique always welcome.  Sorry for the less than perfect pictures, this project was a little too big for my light box.  On to building a bigger, better one.  RW

PS I hope this post turns out right.  Google has updated the blog posting world and has officially out ran my old computer.  Hope it all comes out, I can only see about half of the functions I usually can see.  Guess it's time for an upgrade.

More Carvings

Here are a couple more carvings I've been practicing with.  They both still need hats, but I don't have the tools to work on hats yet, so they are sitting in a holding pattern until then.

This was a fella that Lynn has a video of on his website.  He called him Shifty.  He looks a bit like my Paw, back when he used to smoke.

This guy I call Sam.  I sat and did this one on my own and kind of had a Sam Elliott (Quick and the Dead style) guy in mind.  Of course he's bald, but you won't see that once the hat is on.

It still a learning process and I throw away five before I get one, but it's fun.  Hope you like it, RW