| Designing and creating a leather wallet is great fun. | | | | hole position with a dot eg at 0.5cm intervals. Create |
| You need specific equipment, materials and your | | | | holes using hole punch. Please note that all outside |
| creativity. Once you have the above you will be able | | | | edges of outside and inside pieces will need the holes |
| to produce many wallets which are the same or have | | | | plus possibly the purse piece and credit card type |
| their own individual uniqueness. And remember you | | | | pieces. |
| can keep adding to the equipment to give variable | | | | 5. Design feature: on outside hard leather piece. Draw |
| flavour to your collection.anything labelled * is optional | | | | picture eg flower, house, name or mark places lightly |
| The following is a list of equipment and materials you | | | | where the stamps are going to go. Create the design |
| will need. | | | | using leather on woodblock, hammer and stamps. |
| Equipment: metal ruler, woodblock, craft knife, dome or | | | | Practise your effects on a sample piece of leather |
| velcro stamps for the leather (your choice from range | | | | first. *Dye leather using sponge or paint brush and |
| in shops), scissors sponge*, or paint brush*, leather hole | | | | instructions on dye container. One or several colours |
| punch or sewing machine suitable for leather | | | | can be used. *Polish leather when dye is dried. Please |
| Materials: hard natural leather (to stamp designs), soft | | | | note that thonging can be dyed if you purchase a light |
| leather for inside thonging (thin strips of leather)*, dyes*, | | | | colour and want a different colour. |
| leather polish* | | | | 6. Domes or velcro: Apply these now to places like |
| Follow these Instructions 1. Planning: There are 2 | | | | fastening the purse for coins shut and wallet shut. |
| sections to plan. You will need to draw several designs | | | | domes: follow instructions given - you may need |
| for each section and then choose the best one to | | | | special tools velcro: you will need a sewing machine |
| carry on with.a. Outside shape and size eg a rectangle | | | | which sews leather |
| 20cm by 9 cm Inside shapes, sizes for money ( notes, | | | | 7. Construction:The pieces now need to be put |
| change), credit cards compartments etcb. Design | | | | together. Use ~ sewing machine or ~ thonging:- to join |
| feature to put on the outside of the hard leather. The | | | | inside sections use a straight "stitch" by going through |
| design is limited to the tools (eg stamps) and colour | | | | one side and back through the next hole from the |
| dyes you have. Try them out on a sample piece of | | | | other side. - for the edge of wallet thread thonging |
| leather first. | | | | through all holes using a spiral effect ie keep threading |
| 2. Creating Pattern Pieces: using the chosen design | | | | through the holes from one side only and curve |
| from 1a Measure accurately the required dimensions | | | | thonging over the edge. So you do not see ends |
| of each piece, using a pencil, ruler and paper, label | | | | please thread thonging from inside first and finish on |
| pieces and cut out. | | | | the inside. Tidy ends by threading under a few stitches. |
| 3. Cutting Out Leather: For each piece place leather on | | | | You now have a finished product to keep, give away |
| woodblock and pattern piece on the leather. Draw | | | | or sell. And you have the tools to create more. This is |
| around piece with a pencil and cut out using a metal | | | | a great way to create gifts for yourself, family and |
| ruler and craft knife. | | | | friends.You never know, you could have an enjoyable |
| 4. Punching Holes: * To join pieces together you can | | | | 'at home business ' earning a little bit of extra income in |
| use a suitable sewing machine or with use of thonging | | | | your spare time. So have fun designing and creating |
| threaded through holes. If you choose thonging the | | | | your unique wallets. |
| holes need to be punched out now. Measure and mark | | | | |