Bill Sables Leather Carver
Bill Sables is one of the UK's leading Leather Carvers
A soft handbag with handles and shoulder strap and a fly detail made from blue chrome tanned leather
Handbag I made for an artist friend, Decorated with a blue tit among foxgloves
Leather bespoke dog identity collars with a mobile phone number
Just finished part of a harness for a reindeer for a customer at the North Pole
This was the back of the strap.
Thimbles friend George Glinatsis with his guitar strap. I remember it well with the grape vine running the length of the strap and his name in Grerek lettering
A guitar strap I have made for Andy Douse from Banbury area. His dad, John Douse, played mandolin with me in a band inthe 50s.
This bag is similar to one I posted earlier except in this case the front and back are a burgundy figured chrome tanned leather while the gusset and strap is dark chocolate brown. The clasp is in the shape of a bronze bee. The stitching is from dark brown calf leather and as usual it is lined in tan pigskin
Lorna has been at it again, this time a blast from the 60s, a duffle bag. I believe they call them bucket bags these days. This one has soft tan chrome tanned leather at the base and top with a "hair on cow" hide in the middle. There are eight brass eyelits around the top to take the four strand round plated cord. The cord ends are finished in tan suede tassels and the interior is lined with a tan cloth. Again I think she is designing some pretty good bags.
Another carved bag with the Four Horsemen Celtic design. This time I stained the whole bag in green and polished with a tan antique finish which produced a very deep green lustre. The interior is lined in a natural pigskin and the strap is fixed with gilt hardware.
Tan leather shoulder bag 11 inches wide by 8 inches high with gilt hardware and a gilt and pearl bee adornment all hand stitched.
Something completely different for me, Lorna, my wife designed and stitched this bag in soft leather and got me to cut it out. The bottom is in grey leather as is the closing strap while the main bag is in a soft chrome tanned red leather with veg tanned handles. The flowers were all made from off cuts from the main bag. I think she did a good job of the design.
I've gone back to carved handbags. My latest is a Celtic Zoomorphic design similar to the illustrations in the Lindisfarne Gospels. The bag itself is made from top grain veg tanned leather, stained in a dark purple and finished with a tan antique paste which seems to give the bag a deep lustre like a metallic finish. The bag is lined in a very dark green suede and stitched together with a black calf skin thonging.
I have just been told that this message was on facebook last week from John Yeamam from Beverley"35 years ago my wife asked
Bill Sables
to make me a Guitar belt for my 40th birthday.
This is the belt still in use today and every since it was carved. Thanks Bill. And thank you Hon."
A green very lightweight soft leather shoulder bag with contrasting bottle green trimmings and strap
A soft leather bag in dark green to go into stock.
A bag with a bee catch in tan embossed leather front and back and plain tan leather sides lined in pig skin and stitched in brown calf thonging .
Hand bag and purse with purple art deco cats sent to Durham for Christmas
Guitar strap gone off to Durham for Christmas
Belt and carved buckle for a Castleford Tigers rugby fan.
A bag I made for a very artistic friend of mine for her birthday
I have just had this picture sent to me from West Virginia of a guitar strap I made for Allan Clark about 20 years ago. The coloured part on the left is his name in Mayan symbols and the right side (the whole strap) is the Aztec Feathered Serpent.
A purse front and back without the inner bits that I carved a few years ago for an Australian customer
A small wallet I made earlier this year to take the boredom out of lock down
My brother brought me a knife from Argentina years ago and I noticed it needed a new sheath. So I made one.
Melodeon straps made for morris musician in the 90s
another bag finished
The same bloke who wanted a Dodo wanted another strap with a Seahorse
A bloke in London wanted a Dodo on a guitar strap, so I carved this one about a year before they become extinct.