Hiya! My name is Turbo (Melissa If you want to be formal about it.) I live on a VERY tiny northern gulf island on the west coast of Canada. I am neurodivergent, queer, and the sole maker/operator of this small business.
I love helping new and seasoned crafters alike. I am always striving to grow and improve in my craft, I have only been at this full time just a little over two years, so I certainly don’t have all the answers, but I do love sharing knowledge and collaborating with fellow makers. Please follow along, and feel welcomed to reach out with any questions.
Thank you for your kind words :) It is currently unavailable, sadly I couldn't afford to keep my website active. Perhaps in the future. These techniques would work great on any picture of a rose though.
I have, yes, when I was first starting out. It was an affordable way to practice, but I later found I prefer quality over quantity when it comes to tooling specific leather.
great video. thanks for sharing. I want to also learn this. I've never tried yet but I've to do it soon. I guess am not really good in it. subscribed/liked to could follow your works. just one question, the pen [02:10] you use it what is the exact name? and where I can find it. another question: if I will try to learn it which kind leather I've to buy? may I've the exact name please? because am not good in leather knowledge. and the tool you used in [14:30] it is very new for me. may I know the name of it? thanks in advance.
Heya! Welcome to leather craft ☺️ the pen I use in 2:10 is just a regular ol’ ball point pen. Any brand will do. The tool at 14:30 is called a modelling spoon. If you go back a bit further in my channel, I have videos dedicated to tools, what I like to use, and leathers that I like to tool on. Everything I show is just the things I like, and I always suggest start out with what is accessible and affordable to you, and go from there. Try a variety of different things to see what you like the best. If you would like to start tooling, you will need to use natural vegetable tanned leather to do so. My personal favourite is Herman Oak, however, there are lots of others available that are just as wonderful to use.
I have never subscribed to something so quickly. All I need to know. Was that your account name was dad hand Apparently that was all the Credentials that I needed
Absolutely! I personally spent WAY too much money on a Little Wonder when I first started back at this. Recently Buckle Guy put out their own version, that in my opinion (as a leather crafter and a metal fabricator) is a MUCH higher quality clicker at a much lower price, it can be found here: www.buckleguy.com/bg-manual-clicker-press-w-swing-head-gray-4-ton/?aff=17
Please! 💡💡💡 Dwain Watts Swivel knife🤓! There just isn't any information out there. Swivel blade vs fixed blade, I think you can really get views and he might work a click for discount sort of thing✌️. I pray your surgery goes well! Hugs & Prayers
👉Missing information on you tube. (Swivel knife with swivel blade💀) Hey, just found you when I was looking for information on swivel knives. You use one with a swivel blade!!! I've been looking for two hours for information on the Dwain ??? Swivel knife and I saw you actually use one!
Couple of points here. 1 - You always pull your swivel knife. It's not about that's just how everyone does it, it's because you get the most control of the knife and you can see your line pulling, not pushing. That is unless you have eyes in front of your knife. You don't because your head is behind the knife. I can see you twisting your arm, and not rolling your fingers when you pushed the knife. No control. Also your finger position is off on the cradle. First knuckle, not second knuckle. 2 Everyone wants to tool what is easiest. You think FO Baird or Al Stohlman were carving Herman Oak in the beginning of their careers? Nope. If all you ever do is easy work, you will never be a master at it. Not only that, you have to think of price points for your products. Not everyone, and certainly not enough people, are willing to pay top money for an artesian product. I have no problem tooling a cheap hide. It allows me to sell more and profit more. Lots more to say on the boutique type hides, but most people think they have it all figure out (and are broke). 3 Most people would bevel the line with a regular beveler FIRST then come back with a lifter. Lifters are not designed to bevel the line from the start. The foot is too large to cut in, that's why you are smashing down the line tool width by tool width and not walking it across the line.
Hey James, Thank you for taking the time to tell me what I was doing wrong. Love it. First off, I don't personally use a traditional swivel knife for the most part. I have explained in other videos that I have damaged hands from years of metal fabrication. I had also made this video when I was very far from home and my own tools, so I was just working with what I had available, and in a way that was comfortable for the demo. Second off, and this is just coming from a fellow maker/crafter, it's not a great look to criticize any one's methods, the way they hold their tools, etc. if you don't know them personally, and especially not so publicly. You never know what someone else has tried, gone through, or injuries they may have that keep them from doing things "the proper" way. Art, crafts, fabrication, etc, its all subjective, there is never one straight line or clear path. Don't be the reason someone loses confidence in the ways they've found to do things. Maybe start up an email chain, ask if they would like some advice from a seasoned pro...my answer would have been a very polite "no thank you." Third off, I never said anyone HAD to tool boutique hides, just sharing an opinion and testing out some different options I was gifted to do so on. This also wasn't my first video reviewing a potential tooling leather that I had been given the opportunity to try out. I started out on cheap hides too, and always encourage folks to try out a plethora of different types, price points and what have you. Just a little bonus...incase you haven't seen the video I did with some fellow leather crafters citing that unsolicited crafting advice is the new unsolicited d*ck pic, thank you for providing an example for me to share in future conversations.
I don't like people failing at self employment, but not everyone is geared for or capable of it. If it were not for your parents providing most everything you need, you would be homeless. I looked at your site and you have nothing but patterns to sell. I doubt people are mobbing you for them. If you don't have anything to sell, then you will never make sales. Not that I have no empathy for your situation, but you are not prepared to be self employed. If you are failing at selling products, that means you are not offering things people want to buy. You also are not creating any marketing hype behind what you sell. I can see that. The formula to make sales isn't really complicated, but the work required to get them is not easy. If you want to grow you need to work way harder then you are from all we can see. Not just work harder, but the work has to count and be productive. Debt and lack of money in the bank should have been big motivators some time ago, but your parents providing a safety net is holding you back. People like me have no safety net, so it drives people like us to be successful and not mope about the situation. You either do it right and succeed, or live under a bridge someplace. We can't let ourselves excuse failures, we have to work through them and make better decisions. Again, I'm not coming down on you, just telling you what I can see. You either REALLY want this to be a success and work really hard to get there, or you mope and accept failure. Mom and Dad will not be around forever, so you may want to think about finding that success to make your future secure. Both my parents are gone, no family around me, I have no safety net. What would a person do in that situation? You make lemonade when all you got is lemons. You learn to get tough and do whatever it takes to survive and succeed. Failure just isn't an option. Giving up just isn't a choice.
OLD Leather Smith here, very nice. I use a BLUSH BRUSH from the dollar store, I put my dye in egg cartons or you can use cup cake tins, dip brush in each color it works 4 me. I also use alcohol dyes it still works. GOD'S BLESSINGS ✝️⚾🙃
Love the Video! Just downloaded the free PDF on your site. Mahalo! Also, what is the Comrade Collective? The lighter you are using has a logo on it. Curious.
I reside in Devon, England. There has been a tannery at Colyton, Devon, since Roman times. The natural bark tanning process takes over a year and so the first class leather produced there goes into some of the most prestigious hand made goods. Thank you for this review. Great work by the way.
This is EXACTLY what I needed right now, I have been very stuck as to the direction to go with my leather crafting. Your words came at the perfect time. Thank you so much! May we all thrive in our own individual lives😁
Sending you love and positivity. I found your channel just a few short months ago and appreciate watching what you create and the marbling tutorials you did! I also love your quirky designs - quirky rules. Fingers crossed for the best with surgery and i would be happy with anything tutorial wise - love watching others processes.
Huge respect for putting yourself out there and being so heartfelt and honest with us! It's been such a pleasure to have gotten to know you the last couple of years and truly treasure our friendship beyond words! I'm looking forward to seeing you grow in this space once you're done with your surgery! You got this, I believe in you, Turbo!
Thank you so much Shaun! I value you and the friendship we have grown more than anything ❤️ Here’s hoping there’s a future for me in this craft, and hey, if not, that’s ok too, at least I got to meet some really great friends through all of this!
You just came up on my feed and I enjoyed your presentation so I subscribed. Just some thoughts, If you make the same things as everyone else, you will have a lot of competition and many of them will be hobbyists driving down the prices just trying to make their money back on their supplies. My wife did filet crochet (fine thread doilies etc) and at every craft show were some ladies selling these things at what the thread cost them. You can not compete against these people so don't try. Find a Niche product that only a handful of people are making for, preferably a market you enjoy so that you can enjoy talking with your clients. If your a professional anything you buy should help make you money. A sewing machine saves time and time is one of our big expenses. Buying bulk leather you will never use is throwing money down the toilet. An engraver I follow made the point that there are Very good engravers out there who are starving and average engravers who have more work than they can complete. The ones with the work market them selves. They engrave a knife and send it to a gun or knife magazine to be a giveaway etc. Give to your local Charity auction, People who attend these things have money and spend it. Its even better if the event falls in your niche. IE an auction to support an horse rescue and you sell tack, Attend if you can and market yourself while there.
So much respect for you! I'm sorry to hear about your struggles, but I believe that the struggle will make you much stronger in the end. Wishing you a speedy recovery and I will definitely be waiting for more of your awesome RU-vid content.
Thank you for putting yourself out there and sharing. I wish I had the time to make videos but I just don't right now. It is hard to pull it all together these days for what is required to sell online. Leather is my evening and weekends job outside of the daily IT work. Social media has a tendency to be a soul sucker. Know that most folks are supportive, and here, and chugging away the same as you so you are not alone. Good luck with the surgery! - Anna B.
