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| Completed Project |
What girl doesn't like edged weapons? I know I do!
I recently completed a small project, pretty much just for fun. I have a lovely claymore (long sword) which was purchased secondhand and a pair of daggers (bowie knife style) which have a double sheath. The sheath of the claymore is rather poorly made and was inexplicably ugly. The sword itself has a green stained wood handle and the sheath, in black with a red tip and an odd gold eagle embossed in the middle didn't seem to have much in common with the sword. The daggers, also green stained wood handles, came with a sheath that was a plain brown color.
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| Materials |
I will be the first to admit that I am no leather worker, but I do occasionally have some leather projects. Some time ago, I bought some leather paints. Not dye, but paint. Angelus Acrylic Leather Paint. I had a project where I needed to turn a pair of brown boots into black boots. The boots turned out beautifully, by the way.
Because I bought the leather paint online and was already paying for shipping, I went ahead and also picked up a thing of green and one of purple (my two favorite colors) for later usage. I didn't know what I would need them for, I just knew I needed them. Later I bought a pair of great sandals, at a great price, but they were pink, a color I do not voluntarily wear. I painted them purple and they turned out amazing. I highly recommend the Angelus paints for updating an already finished leather project.
Because I bought the leather paint online and was already paying for shipping, I went ahead and also picked up a thing of green and one of purple (my two favorite colors) for later usage. I didn't know what I would need them for, I just knew I needed them. Later I bought a pair of great sandals, at a great price, but they were pink, a color I do not voluntarily wear. I painted them purple and they turned out amazing. I highly recommend the Angelus paints for updating an already finished leather project.
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| Claymore Sheath Before |
I also used some fabric glue to repair the claymore sheath. It appears the front and back are not a single layer of leather, it is a double layer of leather and it was was separating. I think it was two layers of split cowhide, joined together. Since the fabric glue is both waterproof and flexible (plus I had it on hand) it seemed like the right product for my purpose. It worked very well.
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| Daggers Before |
Before starting, I cleaned both sheaths with acetone and then rubbing alcohol. This removes any oils and some of the original leather dye.
I then painted them each a base coat of the green and let it dry thoroughly.
For the claymore sheath, I used both the black and green paints to create a marbled type color. The formerly red tip I painted solid black and the sides solid black as well. I didn't do anything about the embossed eagle. It is still there, visible at the right angle.
For the daggers, because they had a stamped design in the leather, I used the black to highlight the design and blend around the stitching. The sides are also the solid black.
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| Claymore Sheath Close Up |
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| Daggers Sheath Close Up |
My large picture of the completed projects don't show you the full impact of the color. For whatever reason, the only way I could get the green to show in my photos was to hold the camera no more than 3 inches away. Anything further and it just looks too dark.
I am very pleased with the result and perhaps one of these days you can see me sporting my blades at a renaissance faire near you.
Regards, Elyzabeth
Regards, Elyzabeth
