2001 - 2010

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Related Link:

• Leather Journal Product Page

• Idea Center

Large Leather Journals

My favorite picture: For his 80th birthday, John McCreight was given our Leather Journal Kit by his son, Tim. John's comment was, "I followed the excellent instructions, and voila, there it is! A fine book, almost too good to use!" This was John's first bookbinding experience.

Sue Pieper 9/03

How can I 'distress' my leather for a weathered look? You can bend and roll and fold your leather back and forth and as you work you'll feel it soften. For a very distressed finish you can sand your leather with sandpaper. Try this out on a scrap as it can be a dramatic look and isn't suitable for all types of leather.

Christine Cox
(natural tan kit) 7/03

What can I do to personalize my journal?  
The sky is the limit on this one!

• You can make a bookmark from really cool fibers which is inherent to the journal itself. 

• Add beads and charms to the spine or the front of your book.

• You can put a snap to hold it closed. 

• Add a shoulder strap made from Strap Webbing

• Stamp your initials or other words into the cover using leather "stamps" and a hammer.

How can I weatherproof the cover of my journal?
You can rub the face of the leather with either Neatsfoot Oil or Mink Oil. Both are available in several places like motorcycle shops, some grocery stores, shoe stores, etc. Be sure to try it on a small piece first as it may change the color of your leather or any painting you may have done on it.

Christine Cox 2002

Other than how it looks, is there a reason to get one color over another? This depends on what you are going to do. For instance, the leather used for this journal is naturally light tan color and accepts acrylic paints very well. If using translucent paints you'll want to purchase the natural tan color.

Christine Cox 2001
Natural Tan; painted with Radiant Pearls and dyed with leather dye.
As seen in Somerset Studio

On the other hand, if you are going to stamp on the cover with fabric ink or Crafter's Ink (you'll need to heat set both of these) you can either start with the natural tan or choose one of the dyed choices we offer.

Christine Cox 2001
In the collection of Bill Gaglione and Darlene Domel

What if I don't have leather dye and decide I want my journal to be a different color? You can dye the journal using permanent ink, such as Memories, and a compressed sponge. Be sure to wear gloves, your hands will be stained for days if you don't. It takes a long time and dye is really more efficient but dye is not really sold in quantities that make sense if you're only making one journal.

Leather Shoe dye is wonderful too. It's transparent so you'll get very different results than you will with more opaque dyes.

If you are using leather dye, try diluting it or mixing colors for different opacities and effects.

Marian Janicik 2002
Natural Tan; painted with Radiant Pearls and dyed with leather dye.

Since 2/8/04