Watch Strap
Been grinding restless on watch straps the past 2 weeks and I've finally made something I'm happy with. No bad cuts, no bad stitches, edges are satisfactory, no icky stuff running on the side, hugs the lugs (yay!) :) and I quite like the look of the caviar. Materials used: Exterior is calfskin caviar 1.0mm Velodon Reinforcement/Non stretch tape reinforcement on overlaps Zermatt calf lining 0.8mm 1.0mm veg tan filler I'm still very new to the craft but I'm very satisfied with the improvements - here's my takeaways and greatest learning from all my failures in the last 2 weeks: - Let the glue dry!! - Let the edge paint dry!! - Overlap a ton of teeth when punching holes with pricking iron - I overlapped 4-5 teeth on an 8 teeth iron. I think this was the single greatest change I made in improving my stitching and alignment of my stitching holes. - Take your time especially on the simpler things. I learned that the smallest of mistakes in the beginning would really trickle down and affect every process to the final result. I really learned to enjoy each step of the process no matter how repetitive things got - you really have to be a perfectionist with this craft or at least with tinier projects like watch straps. - Learn your leather!!
It certainly does! Seiko is definitely a nice gateway into watches. I think there are much better offers in the same price in the world of "fashion" watches/independent brands these days though if you look a bit deeper. I think it traps people that are trying to play safe with their first watch, it certainly got me 😅. Can't complain though since it's now become my dedicated strap mannequin 😄.