Sporran Belt Contest!

[Cat]

I was just inspired by a thread about home-grown kilt items (this one, for those that are interested...BTW, that tweed is AWESOME!!!: http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/p...452/index.html). So here's the rub: I've been thinking of making custom kilt belts and especially sporran belts/straps for a long time now. I've done leather working for a really long time, and this is something I'd like to offer to everyone else, but I also need some "guinea pigs" for it (especially when it comes to photographs and examples of previous work). So I decided that having a contest would be a good way to A) get at least a few photos to use, B) provide someone with a nice sporran strap/belt at nearly nothing, and C) have at least one example to show for what I can do (since I've been really bad at remember to take pictures of me doing leather work.) Anyway, here's what I posted in the other forum for this contest (please read the rule about having to pay for shipping! I am REALLY broke right now and while I'd love to send someone a fully custom sporran strap, I just can't. So the winner must be willing to pay for shipping!) "But all I have to say is...Careful With That Axe, Eugene! [PS: This post is full of awesome, and because I am feeling the awesomeness of making something Scottish tonight, I feel like doing a contest. So here goes: Anybody that can give me the original source for my above "Careful..." quote within about 24 hours of now (26 Aug 2008, 1:30am Mountain Time) I will make a custom sporran belt for free, if the winner covers the $5 for shipping (I'm pretty broke at this point, but I'll happily pay for the supplies and labor if you pay for the shipping, because this is something that I'm trying to get into making. If the winner is outside the continental US, I'll get in touch with you and we'll work out the shipping.) But the belt will be a single leather strap 1/8"~ thick, with one buckle in the back (this is meant for sporrans that have at least a small leather "channel" to run a strap through.) Your choice of brass or nickel-plated buckle and hardware. Your choice of length, your choice of width (either 1/2", 3/4" or 1".) Your choice of color (the back will be left undyed, because leather dyes tend to rub off on fabrics no matter how well they're set and sealed) and perhaps some basic embellishing/carving, depending... The sporran belt will also be treated for water-proofing (using all-natural products that won't go rancid or break down the leather), which will also soften the leather "just enough" but not so much that it degrades and breaks in half in a year or two. BTW, when I say "original source", the person that gets me the earliest official use of my quote first will be the winner! Annnnndddd...GO!]

[BEEDEE]

PM Sent.

Brian

[Fiddler Doyle]

PM sent. And thanks for a little fun on a quiet morning here in the Nation's Capital.

[Casey_in_Carolina]

PM Sent ....

Flashing back to my youth

Casey

[Livingston]

PM sent and driving up to Denver to pick up my new sporran belt

[Cat]

Holy crap! I didn't realise I'd get so many correct responses in such a short amount of time! I've finally discovered the downside to having emails sent to my Blackberry (I get email notifications from X-Marks whenever someone PM's me...getting over 20 emails over the course of a few hours can be a bit disconcerting, so I think I'll turn off email notifications on my Blackberry when I do contests from now on!) But anyway, the winner is....Ancienne Alliance! I originally posted the contest on his thread about his tweed kilt and waistcoat (which are just brill, BTW), but he was actually the first person to respond with the correct answer! The correct band (which many people got) was Pink Floyd. But I was looking for the first release that "Careful With That Axe, Eugene" was on, which was ORIGINALLY released as the B-side of "Point Me At The Sky" (it was, of course, released on the album 'Ummagumma' and also on the soundtrack to the obscure movie 'Zabriskie Point'.) Ancienne answered with the correct band within about 20 minutes of my post, and then followed up shortly after with the correct B-side of the single the song originally appeared on! It was close, there were a couple people that replied in the same timeframe, but he actually got it in faster. Most everyone else responded with a direct, copy-and-paste definition from Wikipedia (which was accurate in this instance). Your answers were correct and I didn't discount them, even though most people copy and pasted a Wikipedia entry (yes, I checked that!) But I will say that I've learned that if I do contests in the future, I probably shouldn't do something that's so easy to look up online! Still, even though you didn't come in first, you still had the right answer, so be Anyway, Ancienne will be getting his custom sporran strap within the next four weeks (he lives outside the US, so I can't promise that the customs officials in his part of the world will work in a timely manner, but I'll have it finished and shipped within two weeks! Once I get this off the ground, shipping will be MUCH shorter than that!) I will also be using it as one of my "example" straps for photography, to be used when I get my website up and running. Thanks to everyone that played! And keep in mind that I will be doing another contest within the next two months for another sporran strap, so stay tuned (I promise that I'll post it on one of the more "general" forums so more people have a chance, I'll give you more than 24 hours to win the prize!) -cat

[BEEDEE]

Nice contest Cat. Thought I had it in the bag, but pleased to see that it went to Robert (ancienne alliance).

Brian