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    Iron Heart Fall/Winter 2025 Collection Preview - Now Live

    ZeeBee Leather

    Other Brands and Shops
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    • 4c4
      4c
      Banned
      Joined:

      Nice work seawolf!

      last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
      • ColeC
        Cole
        啓蒙家
        Joined:

        @seawolf:

        Normaly I'm more into plain belts, but that is some serious belt-porn. Beautyful.

        WTB:
        IHJ-96-OLV Size L
        IHE-13

        last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
        • seawolfS
          seawolf
          Mod Squad
          Joined:

          Thanks @Cole I think this belt could really span easily from a casual to a more formal setting. This is a commission for my father-in-law, and that's what he wants it for. As he said, "I want to be able to wear it with a pair of nice jeans, or dress it up with khakis."

          And yeah, I'm normally into more plain belts too, but I'm seriously considering making one of these for myself when I get the time!!

          @4c:

          Nice work seawolf!

          Thanks brother!

          “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

          @zeebeeleather

          last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • J
            jdl1279
            Joined:

            The site is looking great. If I have any critique, it's that you don't speak at all as to the quality of materials used or where you source from. These are areas where your attention to detail shines as much as anywhere, and it's a nice selling point. Otherwise the quality photos, back story, and offerings on display are great examples of what you do.

            Bourbon: because living in Kentucky just makes you want to drink

            last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • pillowPANTSP
              pillowPANTS
              Joined:

              The "father in law" looks awesome dude. Has a snakeskin like appearance but with leather. Good job

              last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • S
                sabergirl
                見習いボス
                Joined:

                The Etsy shop looks good, and of course your work is on point, as always. Something that I've learned from being pretty active on etsy at one time, is that it definitely helps expand your reach and exposure to have as many listings as possible, with as many different tags describing them as possible. There's a ton of blogs you can read on the subject, but essentially it boils down to as etsy has grown exponentially, there are so many listings on the site, it's very hard to get discovered through simple searches like "leather belt". That search would produce thousands upon thousands of items for someone to sort through. If you diversify your tags and match them to the names of your listings, you will also generate more search hits. It's also better to have as many listings as you can take the time to create, so that your shop seems established, and there's even greater chance of being found.

                I'm rambling a bit. Good luck on that site, though–it's gotten very big. The upcoming public offering of their stock should be interesting.

                Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

                last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • seawolfS
                  seawolf
                  Mod Squad
                  Joined:

                  @jdl1279:

                  The site is looking great. If I have any critique, it's that you don't speak at all as to the quality of materials used or where you source from. These are areas where your attention to detail shines as much as anywhere, and it's a nice selling point. Otherwise the quality photos, back story, and offerings on display are great examples of what you do.

                  Great advice. I lost sight of that side of things. I'll definitely get on that. Thanks J!

                  @pillowPANTS:

                  The "father in law" looks awesome dude. Has a snakeskin like appearance but with leather. Good job

                  Thanks, I'm really smitten with it. I just take to my father-in-law, and he's so excited about getting it in the mail this week.

                  @sabergirl:

                  The Etsy shop looks good, and of course your work is on point, as always. Something that I've learned from being pretty active on etsy at one time, is that it definitely helps expand your reach and exposure to have as many listings as possible, with as many different tags describing them as possible. There's a ton of blogs you can read on the subject, but essentially it boils down to as etsy has grown exponentially, there are so many listings on the site, it's very hard to get discovered through simple searches like "leather belt". That search would produce thousands upon thousands of items for someone to sort through. If you diversify your tags and match them to the names of your listings, you will also generate more search hits. It's also better to have as many listings as you can take the time to create, so that your shop seems established, and there's even greater chance of being found.

                  I'm rambling a bit. Good luck on that site, though–it's gotten very big. The upcoming public offering of their stock should be interesting.

                  Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

                  This is such good advice. Thank you. I know, it's time to start making some more listings. I have a few diverse tags, and I've been working on that a little, but you're right, I need to read up on it and expand my horizons a little.

                  Thank you all so much! And thanks for the wonderful comments.

                  “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                  @zeebeeleather

                  last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • seawolfS
                    seawolf
                    Mod Squad
                    Joined:

                    @jdl1279 Fixed. Thanks for your input 🙂

                    “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                    @zeebeeleather

                    last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                    • J
                      jdl1279
                      Joined:

                      Very well done sir!

                      Bourbon: because living in Kentucky just makes you want to drink

                      last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                      • seawolfS
                        seawolf
                        Mod Squad
                        Joined:

                        @jdl1279:

                        Very well done sir!

                        I wish I could take credit. My wonderful wife is a freelance copywriter and does this sort of thing all the time! You're the inspiration, and she's the brains. I guess that leaves me being the labor 🙂

                        “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                        @zeebeeleather

                        last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                        • J
                          jdl1279
                          Joined:

                          Well, you make a solid team then[emoji106]

                          Bourbon: because living in Kentucky just makes you want to drink

                          last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                          • seawolfS
                            seawolf
                            Mod Squad
                            Joined:

                            A big thank you to @Megatron1505 @jdl1279 and @mclaincausey for their generous contributions to my Testimonials page!! You guys are too kind, and I really appreciate the support. See them here! http://zeebeeleather.com/testimonials/

                            “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                            @zeebeeleather

                            last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                            • J
                              jdl1279
                              Joined:

                              Thank you for the great pieces! Without them, we'd have no reason to brag on you

                              Bourbon: because living in Kentucky just makes you want to drink

                              last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                              • seawolfS
                                seawolf
                                Mod Squad
                                Joined:

                                “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                                @zeebeeleather

                                last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                • mclaincauseyM
                                  mclaincausey
                                  見習いボス
                                  Joined:

                                  @jdl1279:

                                  Thank you for the great pieces! Without them, we'd have no reason to brag on you

                                  This!

                                  Think it, be it.

                                  last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                  • seawolfS
                                    seawolf
                                    Mod Squad
                                    Joined:

                                    So pleased with how this wallet came out. This wallet is for a customer in MO, but the real credit for the design goes to @elclintor !! It's interesting to see how different it looks with the black thread vice the turquoise on Clint's wallet.

                                    Also, if you haven't checked out my website this week, I'd like to please ask that you pop on over to www.zeeleather.com I've done a bunch of work to the site, and it' really something I'm proud of. Thanks for all of the suggestions to make it better. I've tried to take them all to heart and run with them.

                                    I'll throw some pics up below of the wallet I just completed, and a couple of Clint's for comparison. Hope you like!

                                    “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                                    @zeebeeleather

                                    last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                    • seawolfS
                                      seawolf
                                      Mod Squad
                                      Joined:

                                      “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                                      @zeebeeleather

                                      last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                      • mclaincauseyM
                                        mclaincausey
                                        見習いボス
                                        Joined:

                                        Evo update.

                                        Think it, be it.

                                        last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                        • seawolfS
                                          seawolf
                                          Mod Squad
                                          Joined:

                                          Gorgeous!! Thanks for sharing!

                                          “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                                          @zeebeeleather

                                          last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                                          • seawolfS
                                            seawolf
                                            Mod Squad
                                            Joined:

                                            Hello! I posted this on Facebook on the ZeeBee Leather page https://www.facebook.com/zbleather but I wanted to share it in here as well.

                                            I wanted to take a minute to answer a couple of the most common questions people ask me about leather working.

                                            1. "Where do you get your leather?"
                                              Most of my leather comes from Horween Leather company in Chicago, Illinois. It's Chicago's last tannery and they're still tanning leather the old-fashioned way. It comes in rolled-up pieces ranging from about 12-26 sq. ft. They supply leather for many things you may already be familiar with. Allen Edmonds shoes, NFL footballs, and Aero Leather jackets to name a few. Read more about the famed tannery here! https://thedistance.com/horween/
                                            2. "How do you poke holes in the leather (for stitching)?"
                                              I have an awl with a very sharp diamond shaped blade. The diamond shape gives the stitching the angled and stacked look. I have to hold the awl haft at a certain consistent angle every time I pierce the piece so that the stitching is straight, and has a consistent appearance. Every stitch is carefully placed, one at a time with a technique called Saddle Stiching. When I begin stitching a piece, the first thing I do is thread a needle onto each end of a length of 100% waxed polyester thread*. For a belt, I start with a single 30 foot length of thread, and a wallet requires about 15 feet. A tool that really helps make this process a little easier is a Stitching Pony. It's a long wooden clamp with the tips wrapped in leather, that holds the piece steady so I can use both of my hands for stitching. The next thing I do is make my first hole with the awl and thread the first needle through. I pull the needle through so that both needles have the same amount of thread on each side. Once both sides are even, I being the Saddle Stitching. I do this the old-fashioned way with a classic Saddle Stitching grip. I keep a needle between each of my fore and middle fingers, and the awl in my rights palm. I make a hole in the leather with my right hand, use my left hand to pass the first needle through, use my right hand to pass the second needle through, and use both hands to simultaneously draw all of the thread through the hole, making sure to pull it tight, meanwhile never putting the awl down. When I get to a stress-point in the piece, I'll backstitch a few times to add strength.
                                              I've added some pictures below to illustrate the process a little. There's also a diagram that shows the difference between a machine made Lock Stitch and a handmade Saddle Stitch. I really believe that if you're going to invest in one of my products, you need to confident that it's going to last forever, which is why I have no interest in getting a machine for stitching. It's faster, easier, and more economical to use a machine, but I won't compromise on quality, ever.
                                              *Why 100% Polyester thread? Polyester thread is very strong and won't ever rot and it won't wear away easily. I expect my products to last a lifetime and linen or cotton thread will break down over time. I get all of my thread from Maine Thread Company and use it with pride!

                                            “Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman

                                            @zeebeeleather

                                            last edited by 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
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