I so know the feeling! You're working on something, and it doesn't look as good to your eyes as the work of masters, and you ..just..can't...figure out why!
Here's a couple things I spot -
1. All pieces, but here is where I notice it -
The sheath is missing edge burnishing, so it looks a little cruder/unfinished than one with slicked edges to the leather. Burnishing also nicely evens up places where the leather pieces don't *quite* line up. (I LOVE the pattern on this sheath by the way!)
2. Looking here -
Only one row of stitching means there's a "dotted" effect along the edges. Running another row of stitching through the same holes will not only make it stronger, it will have the visual effect of smoothing out the seam. You see how around the open lanyard point the stitch wobbles a bit? Filling in all those gaps with a second line of stitching visually "connects" the dots so the line will look straighter. It's not a miracle technique, but it gives you a little more breathing room for the inevitable "oops" in punching stitching holes.
(This particular sheath might look better a little darker as well, but that's pure judgement call)
3. Modern leather finishes and hardware. This is the biggest tell between "Renn Faire" grade work and the look of deep authenticity. Modern rivets and ESPECIALLY snaps just stand out like a sore thumb. For an contrasting example, look at this piece:
See how the hanging rings on the sheath aren't tandy o-rings, but are custom cast? How they have a unique cross section and weighting? They don't look like they came out of a modern hardware store, they look like some Norseman popped them out of a mold hundreds of years ago. I see you're already doing pewter casting on your handles, so I bet this is a leap you could easily make, and will put you leaps and bounds above us leather folk who don't/can't work in metal.
Also see how that maker treated the sheet brass - it's darkened and roughened up a bit, so it doesn't look like it just came off the craft aisle at the hobby shop. The pricked pattern really brings it alive as well.
On the finish side, here's a very simple sheath finished with beeswax. It might not look so different in the photo, but once you've held both types in your hand, it's the kind of thing you "can't unsee."
Fielbing's finishes always read modern renn-faire after that.
4. Artistic style
I LOVE your carvings - Thorny especially is adorable!
That said, your carving style looks Folk Germanic-American. It's GREAT - but if you're going for "looks old / belongs in Middle Earth" it pulls the emotional feel of the piece closer to the modern world. That's PURELY an aesthetic choice based on what you're going for. I think you'd enjoy trying your hand in an older vernacular - something like this from Powning -
In the same sense painters deliberately copy the old masters to learn the subtleties of their art, I think you might enjoy combing through Powning's site and setting out to copy the carvings of one of his pieces.
5. materials/time. The biggest difference between enthusiast work and professional work lies in the quality of materials and attention to boring detail.
The carving on this piece is great -
.. it could be a trick of the light, but the edge bevel looks modern, the steel flat stock, and the blade surface still has a few scratches from the grind process.
The same idea exactly - but executed on say a pattern welded / damascus billet, given an even appleseed bevel, polished down to a mirror, then oxidized back to a flat surface would make a world of difference. Anything that looks like "chisel edge ground on an even thickness of rolled steel" tends to read modern - an even transition of thickness from spine to edge reads more old-time handmade.
Gosh, after all that I hope it doesn't sound nitpicky. I love love LOVE your work
Persona: Aerlinneth, Dúnedain of Amon Lendel c. TA 3010.
