braided leather vest with buttons
This vest was built with full grain moccasin cowhide. The seams, edges, and pocket were done with 1/4" wide laces cut from the same leather that the parts of the vest were cut from. This 4 oz. moccasin cowhide is thicker than most garments are made with.
The buttons (provided by the buyer) and the button holes were hand sewn using 5 ply nylon thread and reinforced with more leather on the back side.
Over the last 40 years, I've custom built hundreds of vests - you can see over 50 of them on my vests home page. While they are all braided, that's pretty much where their similarities end. After seeing the many features I can offer, folks contact me with their own ideas/designs and we discuss how I should build one for them. Each vest ends up truly being a unique, handmade, long lasting, one of a kind piece.
I wanted to get a custom vest made for my brother. The design I had in mind, was completely different from anything I could find on the Internet. I stumbled on to Dave's site. I knew just looking at his work, that this was the closest I would get to what I wanted built. Little did I know what a great artist and craftsman he is. With just a grainy Polaroid picture, and some measurements, Dave was able to create a unique vest,that far surpassed my expectations. It is a wearable piece of art that is absolutely spectacular! Everything about it is unique. The pockets, the cut, the leather braiding, and the fit were beyond remarkable. It looked like my brother before he even put it on. He treasures it. It is such a personal piece, and truly one of a kind. Thank you Dave for making this.
Tim Miller
California
