mmgrode,
the stain I like to use is Freibring's (sp)leather dye. They have a variety of colors or you can mix them together to make the color your looking for. The "textured" pattern on that first bow was done using a sponge dipped in stain and then dabbing it around on the belly side, first with one color then with another over the top. The bow was backed with rawhide and the snake like pattern was also applied with a sponge. The chevrons were first layed out with a sharpie marker then filled in with a Q-tip dipped in the desired stain. The finish is Tru-Oil.