This reprint shows what a leather artist named Cristi in Romania has been able to do with home-made tools. He can’t find proper tools where he is, and there’s not a Tandy tool in sight. No swivel knive, no stamps, no camouflage. This shows what can be done with a couple saw blades, some nails and some ingenuity.

Sometimes we get hung up on our leather working tools, our workspace, whatever excuse we can make to avoid actually digging into our work. And good tools are important, don’t get me wrong.

Cristi jumped into leather carving on his own, with no guidance, and with no tools at all. He made do with what he had, and sent me a photo of what he came up with. You’ll notice that among his tools are plain old nails.

What makes this amazing is that he also sent some pictures of his work. And while he, like all of us, could use some guidance, he is already producing stuff of beauty. With nails. Check out the pictures. Then take a look at his homemade leather carving tool set. Inspiring!

Two more of his works: