I'm having a bit of a leatherworking binge at the moment, having made a couple of axe masks, a billhook sheath and now this simple little belt sheath as a birthday present for my good old Dad:
And a bit of a close-up of the stitching:
It's nothing particularly special to look at, as it's only comprised of three pieces of leather, but it fits the bill for its intended use. What I'm especially proud of is the colour I the sheath; evidently black, which I managed to achieve with some homemade vinegaroon (vinegar black). The concoction was made by adding steel wool to distilled vinegar which was left for just under three weeks, and was stirred daily. I wasn't confident that the vinegaroon was as strong or effective as it could be, as the sheath dried to a dark grey colour. In light of this, I trialled a few pieces of leather with various finishes before I settled upon a light application of boot polish to the sheath which provided the final finish.
If anyone is interested in making vinegaroon, a very useful tutorial by 'g4ghb' can be found here;
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38816
And a bit of a close-up of the stitching:
It's nothing particularly special to look at, as it's only comprised of three pieces of leather, but it fits the bill for its intended use. What I'm especially proud of is the colour I the sheath; evidently black, which I managed to achieve with some homemade vinegaroon (vinegar black). The concoction was made by adding steel wool to distilled vinegar which was left for just under three weeks, and was stirred daily. I wasn't confident that the vinegaroon was as strong or effective as it could be, as the sheath dried to a dark grey colour. In light of this, I trialled a few pieces of leather with various finishes before I settled upon a light application of boot polish to the sheath which provided the final finish.
If anyone is interested in making vinegaroon, a very useful tutorial by 'g4ghb' can be found here;
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=38816