Having your favorite jacket permanently altered with artwork is an important decision, so we want to make sure you know everything that we do, before we start. You can also browse our jacket FAQs that can answer questions you may have.
How to Start
You probably have some ideas on what you’d like on your jacket/patch – even if its a partly-formed concept that you want to flesh out more. Give us a ring or an email, and we’ll discuss possible ideas, and give you ideas on reference material, or, we might already have something close that can work as a starting point for the discussion. It helps to provide photos or links with your email request that can give us a good reference for what you’d like. We’ll be asking lots of questions, so be patient!
Getting an Estimate
Once we’ve got an idea of what type of artwork you’d like, and the jacket type we’ll be working with, we will provide a ballpark estimate over the phone, or a written estimate. Either way, we’ll give you an estimate that we promise to stick to, given the art design or jacket elements don’t deviate too widely from our discussion. Design time AND the painting is included in the price! Estimates runs from $25-90 for handpainted patches (at 3-9 inches wide) and $125-590 for handpainted jacket artwork. Pricing is based primarily on how much effort will be required to prepare your leather surface, the complexity of the design, and how bright the final colors will be.
Starting the Work
In most cases, a discussion and review of reference photos is sufficient to build a decent estimate, but frequently we also create a mockup, or rough colorized version of your artwork along with your estimate. If we’re re-creating a squadron patch- we’ll send you the offical, colored design. Before we start work, we have 2 things 1) your approval of the estimate/pricing, and 2) your jacket OR a 30% deposit. With your jacket delivered to the studio- we finalize the design and send you via email (or snail mail, as needed) of a full mockup of your artwork. If your jacket is not at the studio, we ask for a 30% deposit of the estimate to cover the design time. As most patches don’t require design time, we process all payment for patches upon completion of the artwork.
Scheduling
At this point we also go over schedule dates with you. You may not need the jacket for some time, or, you may have a significant event that you need to have your jacket returned. We usually have 4-7 jackets/ nose art projects in the studio at any one time, so its important to let us know your schedule needs so we can meet your expectations.
Preparation & Painting
With a jacket (either yours, or one purchased from VictoryGirl) and an approved design, we prepare your jacket using materials designed just for leather work. Your design is sized, then sketched onto the jacket surface that will be painted – other surfaces are protected from accidental spills. We do additional prep work, then begin painting, again, using specialty paints. At some point during the paint process we take a photo and give you an update. The paint process takes about 6 days once we begin. The average turnaround time for a jacket is about 4.5 weeks. We complete patches within 2.5 weeks, on average. Again- we can have a jacket done in a week if needed, but we may have existing jacket/nose art projects to accomplish before we can start yours.
Completion & Payment Process
Upon completing the artwork, we send a final picture, giving you the opportunity to review the artwork and make changes as you see needed. Once you approve the final artwork, we seal it with an acrylic-based waterproofer, and allow the jacket to dry for 12+ hours. We process final payment at that time, including shipping costs. We package the jacket up (or you take delivery here from Cable Airport (CCB) and mail via UPS, FEDEX or USPS.
Sewing and Repair Services
We can sew on your painted leather patch to your jacket, or sew a patch you provide onto your jacket as part of the jacket painting process. We can also repair portions of your leather jacket, such as replacement of liners, collars, sleeves, addition of pockets, or re-conditioning of leather. Sewing patches to leather is usually $18-25, depending on the jacket type. Call us for a quote!
