New Purse

New purse I made using some older leather I had from Tandy. I think I would design it differently if I was doing it again. The leather is cut straight across on the top but swoops down when loaded. Not a real problem but not the look I was after.

I also have to find a better way of sewing the ends of the zipper in so that it recesses into the purse better.



I thought this cotton made a pretty cute liner.

Long Leather Wallet

The Leatherworker.net group has a challenge going on this year to keep us all motivated and to try new things. The pattern for this month was for a long wallet. (Although I did one before for my DH which is somewhat similar, I made my own pattern for that one based on his old wallet.) This style of wallet is not normally my cup of tea but it gave me a chance to use  one of the designer sheets that I got on sale at Tandy. I modified the pattern to include a flap for security. The goat I used for the interior was a little too soft and squishy. It should have been a firmer temper. It was a pain to sew when it got to the multiple layers of the card pockets. Overall, I think it turned out fairly well. I think if I was doing it again, I would bind the edge of the card pockets where it becomes the bill holder.

Passport Wallet

I am really happy with the way this turned out. The outer part is made with an embossed croc print from Tandy, lined with goatskin. The pockets are also of goatskin. I'm hoping the recipient likes it.

Orange purse

This purse was made from lambskin leather I purchased at Tandy just for the colour. The handles and the basic pattern were from a Value Village purse find. I still have issues with expecting leather to behave exactly like fabric and had to do some modifications in progress to make it work. Not my best stitching for sure but it is usable and with the popularity of orange at the moment, timely as well.

Purse for grandaughter

This was one of the fastest leather projects I have done. We had about 2 hours to get the purse and bracelet done before her sister woke from her nap. Obviously I would have normally done things a little differently but she loves it. Purple is her favourite colour and the only leather I had was the faux crocodile, so she ended up with a pretty stylish purse and bracelet for a 7 year old :-).

Card for Niece

I haven't done any cards in a long time but needed one for my niece. They had a destination wedding and the girls wore shades of peach and orange so that gave me a direction to go in with this card. I used my KNK for the lettering and cuttlebug folders in my Wizard for the embossing. It took a lot longer than normal, I am quite out of practice.

Embossed Card Wallet

This card wallet is made of 2-3 oz vegetable tanned leather,embossed with a Cuttlebug folder using my Wizard. I combined it with some black goatskin.

I really like the depth of the embossed texture.

The small pockets are for the small key fob tags that some of the stores use for their loyalty programs.

Leather purse and Card Wallets

My daughter requested a purse as hers was falling apart. This was made to the measurements she requested. She prefers the crossbody style and not too large. The purse is made from designer lamb, the strap from drum dyed vegetable tanned leather. The hardware came from a thrift store purse.

I made a little coin purse to match and found out that this leather was not happy about the turning out process on the smaller item. I used Resolene on the areas that stretched a little too much. Hopefully it will hold up.

These were made using 2-3 oz vegetable tanned leather in a Tim Holtz embossing folder, run through my original model Wizard die cutter. I really like the way they turned out although my block dying could have been better on the purple one.

The blue one is for my other daughter as it is her favourite colour.

Sandals

I decided to try and make some sandals to match my new purse. I bought a cheapy pair of sandals from Winners and cut off the upper so I could  use  the base as my outer sole.  I used veg tan leather as the inner sole. It was an interesting and fun experiment. Now to see how well they hold up....

Messenger bag

I wanted to try a messenger style bag and had some upholestry leather that I thought would work for one for the warmer weather.   I used Arther Porter's you tube videos on how to make a messenger bag as a starting point.  This bag is unlined.

Parts of the bag in progress.

Completed bag.

Front of bag with pocket.

Back of bag with pocket.

I used a belt buckle without the tongue for my closure. The other buckles I got from a thrift store purse.

I have to be more careful with my stitching but I am really pleased with how this came together.

Long Wallet

From his years of wearing a suit, my husband prefers the long style of wallet. His is falling apart ( it's only 20 years old lol) so I decided to try and make him a new one. I found this hard to do and there are a lot of things that need improvement. I used goatskin because the leather needed to be thin and flexible. I could have done the card pockets using fabric with a leather strip at the top but I did want to make as much of it as possible with leather. Even with the thin goat, it gets bulky in the card section. This goat was really stretchy so I was unable to skive it down.

There was a discussion on leatherworker.net about the RFID in cards so I lined some of the interior pockets with the aluminum foil tape, covered with a fabric liner. I didn't like the way that it made the leather not as smooth but hopefully it will work. I need to get better at the trimming of the leather after binding, but like all things, it probably comes with practice.

New E-Reader Cover

I wanted a new cover for my e-reader so decided to play with some leather I bought a while back at Tandy. I really liked the textured look of the designer lamb and it paired nicely with some tan upholstery leather I bought on sale. I used the Tandy Professional Edge paint in Ebony to finish the edges.

More Card Wallets

The flash is a bit off putting in this picture, but I think you get the idea. I think I prefer this 2 colour version to the all black one. Hopefully the recipients will enjoy them.

Prototype Purse, Coin Purses and Card Wallets

This was a real learning experience. This leather was not the best choice for the design and there were many adjustments made on the fly. The stiffness of the faux alligator also caused a lot of issues in the sewing of this. Plus I am learning the quirks of my industrial sewing machine. I do have a list of things to watch for in designing and sewing my next one.

These card wallets were part of a group of ones I made out of goatskin for Christmas gifts. I am happy with how they turned out. I think they would be great as a thin wallet for a hotel key, credit card, a couple of bills while on vacation.

These were also part of a group sewn as gifts. They are made of lambskin with a patent type finish.

Have a wonderful Christmas.