WORKING IN LEATHER

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22429, 27 May 1936, Page 6

WORKING IN LEATHER

JOYS OF CRAFTSMANSHIP

BEFORE THE DAYS OF HOMER

BY CIIIUSTINK CAMKItON

No. 11.

"Thero is nothing like leuther"—Old proverb

Beforo wo start our help talks on this interesting craft, I will go over briefly a few facts about tho history of leather and its substance. Perhaps we will then understand better its use in art work. In tho very early days people understood the processes of tanning and decorating skins. Homer, some 800 years 8.C., sings of tho marvellous halfboot worn by Agamemnon and in the Biblical days it Was used for horse trappings, shields and footwear. In medieval times, Cordova gave its name to finely coloured and decorated leather. Skin substance is really gelatine, susceptible to decay by putrefaction when deprived of the living energy of tho body it has clothed. Strong yet flexible, it may bo worked to the hardness of iron or the softness of velvet. In modern times the cult of the leather-worker has suffered much from commercialism, but never, never, can the mechanised effort compare with tho beauty of hand work. Leather may bo tooled, modelled, incised, stencilled, carved, or engraved, and the variety of skins to be used is amazing, ranging from the pelts of rats to the hides of elephants. Differing in size, thickness, density, strength—what a wealth of material wo have lor our use. The craft is not play, but satisfying and entrancing work. In an article like this, it is impossible to go into tho whole subject, but there are many publications on the subject to help workers. I find, however, that the volume which can help you most is Experience. We will use the skins procured from local leather dealers, who stock principally hides of sheep, goats and cattle. I propose to tool in low relief a piece of leather —undyed modelling hide. Wo will need as well a slab of marble or plate glass, one tool, a double-ended modeller and tracer, a small sponge, a steel ruler and sharp leather knife, a few tubes of leather dyes, some methylated spirits, brushes, sulphate of iron and oxalic acid. Cut you leather 12 inches square, using your knife and ruler. Make your own design if you can, but if you cannot, you need not be deprived of the pleasure of doing leather work, for any simple design may be used. I have chosen to demonstrate with a modern flower and leaf-form pattern, which would be suitable for a chair seat, the cover of a blotting book, or a handbag—as you wish. Now enlarge the pattern to 12 inches square, or use the main units on the design differently, if your prefer, filling the given space. In this type of design it is not necessary to have all the forms complete. You may cut through a flower or leaf at the boundary. Place your tracing over tho smooth side of the leather and clip at the edges (clips used are those sold for keeping papers together). With a hard lead pencil go over all lines carefully and the impression will be clear on tho yielding skin beneath. Remove the trac-

ing, damp the surface lightly, but all over with a wet sponge, then with the sharp end of the tool mark firmly and rather broadly, first placing the leather over your plate glass (you get a firmer line when you work over the hard surface). The pattern being clearly defined and still working on tho glass, go over the background with the curved end of tool. In all processos of tooling and embossing leather this hint will help you. First trace the design and then lower the background. Do net spare trouble at this stage; let tho background bo definitely down and about three tones deeper in colour than tho relief. Bo sure you do npt drag or scratch it with tho tool. If you have damped your leather too much, this is likely to happen. Next, holding part of the leather to bo raised between the thumb and first finger, take the rounded end of tho modeller and put it under the portion of leather hold as above and rub gently where the relief is needed. In this caso very little force is required. The tool can bo seen working from tho surface above, llaiso very gently all tho edges of tho large flowers and where tho upper petals encroach on the centre. Bo very careful not to get tho relief too high, as we are not filling this design. You have now three levels on your leather —background, natural level and slight relief. We now come to tho dyeing process. With a very weak solution of oxalic, sponge over the surface. This gets rid of anything foreign on tho skin. I suggest wo work tho flower colours in blue and soft purple, with a grey background, groy shadows, soft green loaves, and tho tiny leaves and tho centres of tho flowers yellow, shaded orange and brown. Any colour scheme may be used. Prepare a weak solution of your colours by dissolving in methylated spirits. Tho glow of colours is only obtained by a series flf washes. Again damp your leather, thoroughly this time. Tho reason for this is that tho damp pores of the skin carry tlio colour particlos into the substance of tho leather as tho dyes dry. With a No. 6 sable brush tint over some of tho flowers with bluo and some with violet dye; increase tho colours until it satisfies you; deepen tho under petals and tho natural dip toward tho centre of tho flowers (convolvulus). Tho leaves aro green, tho centres of tho flowers and small supplementary leaves are yellow, the background is grey—obtained by a solution of sulphate of iron in water. As this dries, you have a beautiful soft grey. Shade the leaves with some of the iron solution too, in- j

deed, if you are careful to have it weak, you may shade the whole design over and you "have delightful colouring. Space will not permit mo to do moro than suggest, but if you carry out the suggestions you Avill have a mellow, soft piece of leather work unfadeable and enduring. When the work is dry, iub over with transparent wax on a piece of flannel. This picco of work can be dyed with the primary colours only (blue, red and yellow), supplemented with sulphate of iron, but if you are dubious about mixing tints, then you can get a variety of made colours at the local supply shops. If you decide to use your work for furniture, brush over the back of tho skin with a solution ot water glue to strengthen the texture of the leather. Dye a half-inch band 01 leather grey with the iron solution anil tack the band and worked piece on to wood with oxodised nails. I will be pleased to help you in any way with advice, and will send you addresses of firms where materials are to bo obtained. Next week I hope to be able to give you other examples ot leather craft.