Restoring And Customising A Briefcase

[jsolares]

Lovely work, i hope you get well soon! can't wait to see the pendragon finished

[CindyK]

your wòrkmanship is lovely, and a learning experience for all of us who are following you. Thank you, Micheal, for showing us the way, and Happy Holidays!

[my63]

Thanks everyone for the kind messages I have an commission for a pair of pen cases so there will be a delay in this project while I make them.

I have yet to decide a price for this case or indeed whether to offer it here or return it to the auction site it came from.

[my63]

This yellow leather is so bright you almost need to wear sunglasses when working on it.

 

 

I have joined the front and rear pieces together

 

 

IMG_9125 by my0771, on Flickr

 

 

When open you can see the bright red interior

 

 

IMG_9124_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

 

I made some tabs and D rings to allow the strap to be attached

 

 

IMG_9129 by my0771, on Flickr

 

 

IMG_9135_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

 

Oh and of course I was not joking about the ears

 

 

IMG_9138_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

 

Thanks for looking

 

 

Michael

 

[Shangas]

Let me guess. A Pikachu pouch?

[Keyless Works]

Amazing work Michael!

[my63]

Shangas you are correct I don't know what gave it away

 

IMG_9140_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

The face still needs a little work and a nose and mouth my daughter loves it and it is for her after all

 

Thanks

 

Michael

[Sadiq]

Shangas you are correct I don't know what gave it away

 

IMG_9140_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

The face still needs a little work and a nose and mouth my daughter loves it and it is for her after all

 

Thanks

 

Michael

That's cute!

 

Awesome work once again...

[my63]

Thanks for the compliments my daughter is very happy with it I did have to alter the position of the eyes before sewing them in place I will try to get a picture of the finished bag but she has it with her now.

 

I intend to try and finish the Pendragon bag before the holidays begin.

 

I do have another large Pendragon bag under my desk which may be my first project of 2015

 

Thanks again

 

Michael

[scrivelry]

What a happy young lady she must be!!!

[my63]

Another Gladstone bag arrived very early this morning it is a middle size the small one in the previous post is 12 inches long x 4 inches wide the newest one is 15 inches long x 8 inches wide and the largest is 24 inches long x 10 inches wide which I may not have shared as yet.

the new bag is in a sorry state as you can see

 

bag 12 by my0771, on Flickr

 

bag 12 b by my0771, on Flickr

 

At some point the bag has been dyed black there are some areas which have perished and may have to be replaced rather than patched but I wont know until I start cleaning the leather.

 

The inside of the bag has had a replacement lining fitted with a hole torn in it to allow access to these fitted pockets

 

IMG_9184_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

And what I hope were two pen holders

 

IMG_9186_1 by my0771, on Flickr

 

The lining was held in place by these buttons which may be original as they are fitted into the structure of the bag

 

IMG_9195 by my0771, on Flickr

 

There is a name inside of the bag of a Canadian Doctor who lived in the UK during the Second World War.

 

I have unpacked the bag but will put it away until I am ready to start when I have finished the other three bags I am currently working on

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

[Caifanito]

amazing work!

[my63]

At last I have found a colour for the replacement sides and base it looks almost the same as the front and back, the dye has dried and has had a coat of wax.

I have started to stick the back panel and front flap to the sides and base doing a couple of cm's at a time as you can see I have not got to the bottom of the back panel in the picture below. You can just see the red suede lining showing through.

 

IMG_9447 by my0771, on Flickr

 

The front still looks a little dry and is soaking up the leather conditioner as quick as I could put it on

 

IMG_9457 by my0771, on Flickr

 

I will be sewing it together as soon as I am able to.

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

Edited January 27, 2015 by my63

[amk]

Wow. It may have taken a while longer than expected but it's turning out to be a really lovely job.

[Anne-Sophie]

Fascinating!

[Shangas]

Michael,

 

I wanted to know: What do you rub onto the leather to soften it or moisten it up? What product or substance do you use? I'm just in the habit of using dubbin. Is that good enough or...

[my63]

Thanks AMK and Anne-Sophie progress has been a lot slower than I had planned but I will get there in the end then I just need to find a home for it.

 

Shangas I washed the case with saddle soap first then I would normally use mink oil to condition the leather I am trying out a new conditioning treatment it is called Fiebings Aussie leather conditioner it contains beeswax and looks really good not too glossy.

 

I have two really old Gladstone style bags that are very dry and crusty and I hope this Aussie conditioner will make a difference

 

Thanks again

 

Michael

[amk]

Beeswax is the bees knees... (sorry!) ... on the advice of a friend I have just boiled up a 50/50 mix of Kiwi Parade Gloss boot polish and beeswax, and it has worked wonders on my four pairs of motorcycle boots. I still have half a big vat of Hide Food which I bought from an antiquarian bookshop, for leather bindings, but it worked very well on a large leather suitcase I acquired at a car boot sale. Must see if I can get the Fiebings though.

[my63]

I have finished gluing the back and front together but unfortunately I am still unable to sew it together

 

IMG_9494 by my0771, on Flickr

 

So I have done what I can the edges have been smoothed and I have started to apply the finish to them.

 

I noticed that the newer versions of this bag now have a shoulder strap and was thinking of making a strap to add to this one but I am unsure I don't have a use for this bag so I am pretty sure I will be offering it for sale when finished

 

Thanks for looking

 

Michael

[Skyppere]

You mention in your most recent post that you are pretty sure you will be offering it for sale... Do you have a web site or somewhere on this FPN or or or, where you sell things that you've made or brought back to life?

As ALWAYS one of my favorite threads on this site!

cheers

skip