Calendar 2014

There are four main events that I will be attending this year as The Happy Viking:

- Armidale NEMAS Easter Gathering   -    18-22 April

- Ironfest - Lithgow                                -    25-27 April      http://www.ironfest.net/

- History Alive                                       -       7 & 8 June     http://www.historyalive.com.au/

- The Abbey Medieval Festival             -     12 & 13 July    http://abbeytournament.com/


I am also hoping to be able to get to some other events so please keep an eye on this space and I'll let you know if they come through. :)

Hand Tooled or Embossed? Do You Know the Difference?

Hand Tooled and embossed leatherwork

Do you know the difference?

If not, it’s worth taking the time to read on …

N  Hand tooled leather is hand made by a person, with their own hands, not by a machine.  This means creating a design, drawing it first onto paper, next carefully tracing and then marking it onto the leather.  Depending on whether the artisan chooses to carve into the leather or not, she/he will then take great care in cutting that pattern/design into the leather at just the right depth.  Next, using their leatherwork tool designed for this purpose, she/he will run it along the edge of the marked or cut line, while hitting down on it with their mallet to make an impression.  This must be done in a steady, consistent manner in order to make a clean and smooth design.  A slip in the wrong direction could mean a whole different design, or worse still – a complete new start!

N  Hand tooled leather products are unique.   Even if the  same design is used,  no two will  be exactly

    the same because they are done by hand.

N  Hand tooled products  are made  using real cowhide leather,  often  referred to  as ‘natural tooling’

     leather.  This heavier leather is not  only ideal  for tooling but it is also of  high quality and is durable

     and long lasting.

N  Hand tooled leather products can be custom made with your own design.

N  Hand tooled leather products are made with love and care. The time taken to create these works of

     art can quite often be long but the end product is very rewarding. 

N  Hand tooled leather products  are  an  investment.  Over time,  like good wine,  these products will

    only get better!   The character and  life will intensify and,  looked after,  will last  for  many years to

    come.  The craftsmanship, uniqueness, quality, love and care all contribute to making these products

    well worth the price tag!

4  Embossed leather products are done by machine using specially designed plates that are pressed into the leather.

4  Embossed leather designs can be extremely detailed.

4  Embossed leather products do not need to be done on leather of the same high quality as hand tooled.

4  Embossed leather products are, more often than not, mass produced which enables the price of each piece to be kept to a minimum. 

Both methods of leatherwork are beautiful and have their place. In the end, it all comes down to what you are looking for and personal choice. 

I take great joy and pride in my leatherwork.  Whether it’s an item that I’m making for my stall, online store, or custom made, you can be assured that each piece is truly hand crafted with love and care

The Happy Viking 

(1) First of all I draw the design/pattern onto paper.  This is a design that I created for a custom order for a pair of Legolas arm vambraces to be worn at a Lord of the Rings' event in Washington.

  

(2) Next I dampen the leather all over:

(3) Then I place paper on top of the dampened leather and trace the pattern to leave an indentation:

(4) Next I tool the pattern into the leather.  I had some tools made up to use when I demonstrated at Viking events but I love them so much that I use them all the time now.

To see the finished product or order a set of custom arm vambraces, please click on the link below:

https://www.etsy.com/au/listing/178214935/leather-arm-guard-cosplay-larp-legolas?ref=sr_gallery_2&sref=&ga_search_query=leather+arm+vambraces+&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=AU&ga_search_type=all&ga_facet=

                                                                                                                                                            

This is the start of a design I created for another custom order - a Medieval Dog collar

to be worn by an Irish Wolfhound.

                                                                                                                                                            

This is my Celtic Oak Tree of Life design before staining on a handbag.

I also have this design printed on greeting cards.  Please take a look at my Etsy shop (link below).

https://www.etsy.com/au/listing/178286353/greeting-card-celtic-oak-tree-of-life?ref=sr_gallery_1&ga_search_query=celtic+greeting+card+oak+tree&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=AU&ga_search_type=all

The 'Other' Side of Business

Well, I can see why some people hire someone else to do their marketing!  It certainly takes a lot of time!!! :)

Finding a balance between making products and actually getting them out there is definitely tricky but I'm so glad for this world of technology.  Although it takes up a lot of time to do all the social media and networking, I wonder how on earth people used to do business before the internet!

Over the past few days I've spent many hours adding to and sorting out my Etsy shop, Pinterest, Facebook page and starting this blog.  I'm grateful that I get enjoyment out of this side of my business though.  Before deciding to "follow my bliss" and starting my own business, I worked in a Secretarial/Admin position for more than 20 years and always liked being creative with computers - designing forms, presentations and all that. And now, starting this blog, I guess is bringing out another thing that I love to do - which is writing.

Sometimes I wonder though how much time other people spend on this side of their business.  I see some artists pumping out products but I always come back to the thought that there's no point in making a thousand things if no one is seeing them.  And so I continue trying to find the balance and the perfect way to get my work out there.

This week I'll be going to a networking event run by 'Enlightened Goddesses'.  I'm really looking forward to making new connections and hopefully learning some tricks of the trade.  :)

During the week I finished off an order for a custom made pair of Legolas Arm Vambraces that have gone to Washington and will be worn at a Lord of the Rings event!  They were fun to work on and I was really happy with how they turned out.

I also made a cute little pouch that was inspired by seeing a brooch from Norway (9th Century), Hatteberg.

During the week I've also been working on designs for a replica Swedish pouch, a Medieval dog collar and a Byzantine belt. I'll post photos of those when I've done a bit more.

Living as a Viking ... that's my dream!

Living like a Viking ... that's my dream.  It's not a life that I see as hard work; in fact quite the opposite.  It's life of reward.  A way of living that's in touch with life itself.  Knowledge, simplicity and appreciation.  

Just over a year ago I quit my "real" job, to follow my bliss - starting my own business.  I'm a leatherwork artist and a Viking re-enactor and I wanted to combine my two passions into one.  It's one of the best decisions I've ever made.  I will be honest, it's been hard and if I wasn't driven by my passion, I would be lured back into the world of making more money but that's not what's important to me.  I strongly believe that by doing what makes me happy then everything else will fall into place.  It won't happen over night, but it will happen! :)

I'm new at this blogging thing but I think it's my next step in getting myself 'out there' so here I go ...

I'm really looking forward to this year.  I can feel opportunities arising.  I'm feeling excited about attending not one but 3 BIG events this year - The Abbey Medieval Festival, Armidale Easter Gathering (a week in the forest camping with Vikings only) and then IronFest at Lithgow.  

So, I'll leave it at this for my start.  Now that I've begun, I feel like this is going to be something that I'm really going to look forward to.  I hope you enjoy my blog and I wish you a happy day!

Blessings to you.

Elizabeth (or - as my Viking friends call me) "Hlif"

My Etsy Shop

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