My Second Sporran

[tombont]

Here are some pictures of a sporran I made a few months back. Although it
is truly my second one, my first one has been pulled apart for parts (and
they aren't that great of parts either).

Things I learned on this one. I wish I had bothered to look on the internet
before I did this one. This site would have saved me some heartburn.

1) Don't use heavy leather for the gusset. It makes it nearly impossible to
get everything in it you need to. I've been told that mink oil will help, and it did a bit, but not enough.

2) Glue your pieces/parts together before stitching. It helps with the
burnishing.

3) Make sure when you cut your front and back you have flesh to flesh or
skin to skin when you cut your second piece.
If you don't, your design will come out crooked because the
flaws end up on different sides and will not align correctly. Or at least that
was my problem. I can't draw a straight line with a CAD package and it's
been a long time since my kindergarten scissor training class.

4) Make it bigger.

5) Use better leather.

That being said, it turned out better than I expected it would.

I will soon be creating a new thread documenting the construction of my
third sporran so if you are interested, please stop by and comment with any
hints or tips as I go along.

[McMurdo]

Looks good, I would suggest downsizing your photos to make them easier to view.

[Bluescelt]

Great job Tombont. I like the different tassel treatment. I think if your going to make your own you might as well make it unique. I will be making my first sporran soon and it'll be a angora goatskin so I hope the 5" long curley hair will hide my stitching skills (or lack of).

I look forward to seeing more of your work.
Scott

[bricelythgoe]

Looks great!

[turpin]

That's a very creditable job for a second sporran. For number three you might purchase a leather edger, which would bevel the raw edge, then burnish it with a burnishing tool to give it a more finished appearance. The folks at the leather store can give you a demo.

[tombont]

That's a very creditable job for a second sporran.

Thanks!

For number three you might purchase a leather edger, which would bevel the raw edge, then burnish it with a burnishing tool to give it a more finished appearance. The folks at the leather store can give you a demo.

Actually, I did burnish it and edge beveled it. It just didn't work out the way I hoped (it was my first burnishing exercise). The two pieces didn't stay together - I stitched wet and when it dried, the splayed apart which made it extremely difficult to hold together, even with glue :-(

The beveling is there but not very pronounced. My later projects are much better. And sometimes I just don't do it because I like the sharp edge.