Buffalo Sporran - hair on - pics

**Riverkilt** · 13th August 06, 04:02 PM

Just to recap, was reading True West magazine and saw a buffalo possibles bag. Emailed the lady who makes them, Miss April, at www.missaprilscarpetbags.com and asked if they could make up a buffalo sporran. After some discussions they did. I love it. Very "American." And, kinda in the tradition of making sporrans out of critter parts.

Just finished wearing it on a two day trip and it worked great. There is no need for closure hardware since the flap is long and heavy enough to keep itself in place. But its easy to get to my stuff too.

The width is 7 3/4". Length is 9". Depth is 2". When the flap is up the distance from bottom to top of flap is 21" The loop on the back for the sporran strap is 1 1/2" wide and 6" long.

Since these are hand made, Miss April can make them up any size you desire.

Cost for me was $175 + $12 shipping USD out of California

You can see the buffalo hide is a gray color. I'm going to use leather dye to make those edges brown. Miss April says there's no special care needed to keep the buffalo leather in shape and no danger of having the hair fall out.

The flash on the camera kinda blew through some of the hair and makes it look sparce, it isn't. Nice and thick and luxurious like buffalo hair is.

Here are a couple pics with kilts.

Taken in the Painted Desert on the Navajo Reservation.

Taken above the Little Colorado River, which rarely has water in it, yesterday - shortly before the Arizona Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in preseason play.

Ron

**Tattoo Bradley** · 13th August 06, 04:53 PM

I think once the edges get the brown dye treatment, you'll be in buisness. It's a bit large for my taste. But, as you stated, they're hand made so could be made whatever size the buyer needed. Very cool and American indeed.

Is that the Thomson grey tartan there with the Cards jersey? That's one of those tartans that just calls me although I have no connection of any sort with it. Lookin' good.

**Riverkilt** · 13th August 06, 05:30 PM

Yup Brad,

That is the Thomson Gray in USA Kilts semi-trad. Have a great great grandfather with the middle name of Thompson. Guessing its from a family line I haven't found yet, but liked the tartan for the difference in color.

Turns out it "sorta" went with the old Cardinals jersey...since I was meeting my lady and her daughter for the Cards Steelers game in Flag. So NICE they don't allow smoking in bars in Flagstaff...

On a personal note, met Patrick at Burley Fish and put down $20 on my next tat...just have to find when I'll be in Flag next that he isn't already booked up.

And, hey, I just finished dying the edges of the buffalo sporran and it looks really good with brown edges instead of gray.

Ron

**Tattoo Bradley** · 13th August 06, 05:56 PM

Awesome.

Patrick's a pretty nice fella. Hope you can coordinate with him. I need to post a picture of the Sailor Jerry piece he did on me. My blasted Kodak EasyShare took a poop right after the honeymoon though...

Funny, I was thinking about Flag this afternoon... I'm ready to go back.

**Riverkilt** · 13th August 06, 07:07 PM

That's funny, it was Kodak Easyshare that took a dump on me and wasn't long after that my hard drive crashed...the techie in the Phillipines finally admitted that version 6.0 is bad. They sent me 5.2 to reinstall and use until they figured out what was bad about 6.0 Good luck. I lost almost all my kilt pics, thank God for having the galleries to replace them from.

Yesterday was a good day for Kilts in Flagstaff...they had some music gig in Heritage Square downtown. Ran into a piper warming up for it in full gear - Gordon tartan. Listened a while, and shook hands...he didn't comment on my buffalo sporran...but he was proccupied with warming up.

Driving away I heard another piper warming up down an alley a few blocks away and saw a young man in full kilt crossing the street.

Ron

**ozmeath** · 14th August 06, 07:47 AM

That's a wild looking sporran Ron, I like the cultural connection between your bloodelines, very cool. Maybe I'll get hold of some Red 'Roo fur for the same. Got me thinking...I'd rather use off cuts though.
What your hanging mechanism?

**Schultz** · 14th August 06, 08:52 AM

Taken above the Little Colorado River, which rarely has water in it, yesterday - shortly before the Arizona Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in preseason play.

You just HAD to add that, didn't you? ;)

Neat looking sporran!

**Kilted KT** · 14th August 06, 08:59 AM

good looking sporran. Will look great once the grey is dyed...

**Pour1Malt** · 14th August 06, 09:21 AM

if ya hadnae said it was buffalo hair

ai'd have sworn it was pubic hair!

HA!

**Riverkilt** · 14th August 06, 10:23 AM

Ozmeath,

No clue buddy...no clue...Miss April did the sewing and now clue where she got the hide from.

and P1M,

You got it! It do, it do...sort of a guy's "merkin" eh? Hasn't attracted any comments from the ladies yet, but who knows what effect it might be having upon their imaginations....hopefully not repulsion.

That buffalo fur is VERY soft though...and the sporran does look much better now that the gray hide is dyed brown.

Aside from the looks, the main thing I like about it is the lack of hardware to open and close the flap...the flap is just that, a flap. Easy access, yet secure as long as I don't stand on my head or do flips.

Ron