I've been following this thread since my early post. There are some really great examples of fine leather work that have been included here. When it comes to putting awl, needle and thread to the leather, I picked up a tip years ago from a bladesmith in Mississippi who makes all of his own scabbards. After he has lined and marked where his thread will go, he uses a bit of rubber cement and banker's clips to hold the leather edges in place. Then he uses a very small diameter drill bit to drill the holes where he is going to sew. I have used a Dremel tool with a jewelers bit. The holes come out perfectly spaced and round. Sewing goes really fast at that point. I use a traditional saddle stitch and sew back down the line when I reach an end. It's not the traditional way of sewing with a needle and awl but it does speed up the work.