1. I don’t see what I want in your gallery or store, what else can you make?
I am happy to work with customers for custom orders. I can customize the design, shape, colour(s), size, adornments, and many extra features. Feel free to contact me to discuss what you’d like to have made and I’ll be happy to give you an estimate.
2. How do I care for my new leather collar?
Leather is a natural skin and is not waterproof. All of our pieces are coated in a water-resistant oil and a top coat that will keep it safe from the occasional drop here and there but please, do not immerse your leather in water for any length of time. The leather will absorb water, warp and the stain will wash away. Repeated exposure to water eventually rots leather and weakens it to the point it will snap with any pressure. If it does happen to get a splash on it, allow it to dry fully, don’t wipe or rub it.
If your dog loves to swim, please use a nylon collar for those times. Also remove the leather collar for baths and any other splashy good times!
You will certainly want to condition your leather pieces over time, and you can find wonderful conditioning cremes like Tandy’s Leather Conditioner to make your pieces supple and rejuvenate them. This cream is a combination of natural and synthetic wax emulsions (with bees wax) and does a great job (from what I’ve seen on my own leather pieces).
3. Will my collar look exactly like the one in the picture?
Pictures are very dependent upon the lighting conditions and backgrounds. I can tell you from my vast digital photography experience that every photo from every possible angle can be slightly different. What you see in the photo is what it looks like from the angle and in the lighting that I try to take most of my photos – being natural mid-day sun light from my kitchen area. None of the pictures that I take are modified digitally (photoshopped) to enhance them – other than a crop (cutting out the background that is irrelevant to the picture) and possible contrast and brightness in the case that the lighting isn’t optimal (it’s cloudy, the overhead light wasn’t great, and I was so excited about a new piece I finished that I wanted to photograph it right away!)
4. Will my custom collar look exactly the way that I imagine it?
Unless you have telepathic mind-reading powers and can see what I’m imagining, then probably not. When I’m making a custom piece, I will almost always draw it out before I start working with the leather, and will be happy to send you pictures or scanned versions of my drawings. Please note that the more time I spend with you, the more the cost of the piece is likely to increase. I try to set a maximum number of revisions (usually three) to assure that we can share the same vision without wasting time. Please do keep in mind that there will always be some slight natural variations in leather products. Leather is a natural skin and thus can vary slightly from one piece to the next in texture and stain (colour) results. Letters and numbers are hand stamped, one by one, and while I will always do my best, they won’t always be perfectly razor straight.
5. My dog is still a puppy. What size collar should I buy?
Please see my Blog Post on this topic.
6. Why is the sky blue?
It has something to do with the atmosphere, or the oceans reflecting, or some such – if I recall correctly. Go read the Wikipedia entry on it if you’re curious.