Show m HC The Herald Journal Logan Utah Sunday September 20 1987 jW Palmer usesa tool of his own invention to ready the rawhide for braiding (photo below) Palmer examines one of his creations (bottom photo) DeWitt Palmer holds a set of reins he braided from rawhide (right photo) A bosal (photo below) is part of a hackamore 0 before it's placed in a tub of water to soften Once the hide is softened Palmer cuts it into a wide He circular continuous strip about said he's cut "as high as 160 feet of continuous strip in one cowhide’ Palmer has created his own tool for cutting rawhide strips to a uniform width and smoothness Mounted on a metal frame are single-edg- e razor blades Palmer pulls the rawhide through the blades several times before the strips are the proper size and quality for braiding The strips are then rubbed with saddle soap which Palmer makes himself from beef tallow Ivory Snow soap and glycerin “It makes your hands nice and soft" he said All the preparation of the rawhide is necessary so the strips will lay smooth once they are braided he said "There’s more preparation than there is ch DeWitt Palmer's hands have the look of leather about them Although the d knuckles and veins mark them clearly as workingman's hands there's a sheen to the soft tanned skin The sheen has been acquired from years of saddle soap working with a specially-concocte-d he uses to soften rawhide strips Palmer them braids the rawhide strips into tack of every well-define- braiding" There are many techniques he may use once description "As far back as I can remember I’ve had a horse to ride" he said in an oral history recorded by the Utah Arts Council "WeU being 'round these horses and that all the time and seeing the different tack that they use on them and so on I was always interested in making my own stuff if I could and so I got into the braiding a little bit in my earlier day" Palmer said Palmer braids strips of rawhide into reins bosals reatas hobbles hackamores — you name it and he's probably done it The said he's “Addled with it" all his life although not seriously until about 20 years ago He recently was named the recipient of the 1987 Governor's Folk Art Awards for his skills as a rawhide braider The folk art award recognizes individuals who have made a significant contribution to the continued practice of a traditional art form in Utah according to the Utah Arts Council which administers the award Not content to use lust any old rawhide Palmer starts with a hide (usually from a beef cow) purchased from a local slaughterhouse Palmer takes the hide stretches it on an 8-- by wooden frame clips the hair short with horse clippers then leaves it to dry The hide dries to a "flint state" which is so hard "you’d have to cut it with tin snips" He then serspes the dried hide with a knife to remove all the hair he begins braiding One handy rule: an odd number of strings will braid flat an even number will braid round Working with rawhide has not always been his passion "I started out in leatherwork but I like braiding better" he said Palmer said he learned his craft "mostly by trial and error" and from other braiders Some good books on the subject are also available he said Are there other braiders in the valley? "Only the ones I’ve taught" he said with a laugh Palmer teaches braiding classes through Logan City Community Education classes He began teaching there about eight or nine years ot See RAWHIDE on page TEXT: JENNIFER HINES PHOTOS: JIM JOHNSON 28 |