When the inlay is of white or very light leather, it is extremely difficult to conceal any joins occurring in the middle of lines; care must therefore be taken that there are as few joins as possible, and that they are arranged at points where they will easily disappear in lines of the design going in an opposite direction.
The centre of the design should be cut out first, and then the outer lines, reserving the more delicate parts, such as flower stems, for the last.
PASTING THE INLAY ON THE GROUNDWORK
When the inlay is of a nature that does not require placing in any very exact position, as for instance a spray of flowers, it will be sufficient to lay it on the groundwork and mark the principal points. When it is to occupy a definite position, forming the framework of a design, for instance, it is laid upon the groundwork exactly in the right place and then given a sharp turn in a copying-press,
great care being taken that it does not get displaced during the operation. Owing to the thickness of the supporting paper, this will be sufficient to mark the outline of the design on the groundwork. Some very smooth starch paste is then applied with a flat brush on the exposed side of the cut out leather, care being taken that every part, however small, is thoroughly pasted. To facilitate this and to prevent the leather curling up when pasted, it should first be fixed to a board with drawing-pins.
The portion of the ground which is to receive the inlay is damped with a soft sponge; the inlay is then placed in position and pressed down with the palm of the hand, a modeller being used for the finer parts. If it should become displaced, the greatest care must be used in correcting it. With the small pincers used by artificial flower-makers, the minutest pieces of leather can be taken up and replaced after being repasted, if necessary.
SETTING IN THE INLAY
The next process is that of setting the inlay into the groundwork, so that no relief remains. This is done with the help of a roller with a long wooden handle held in both hands and pressed against the shoulder, as illustrated in Fig. 25. The paper on which the inlay is pasted plays an important part in this operation; the greater its thickness, the greater will be the pressure attainable, and the deeper the penetration of the inlay into the damp background.
At first the roller is worked lightly with one hand only to ensure the uniform adherence of the inlay, the movements being short, and repeated several times over the same spot. When afterwards pressing heavily over the whole surface, a piece of thin, tough paper between the roller and the work will prevent the inlay from curling up, and the paper may be lifted from time to time to see that nothing is out of place.