Craft a leather wallet and messenger bag

Leather Tools and Purchasing

Leather Tools and Supplies

All of the steps in this project are done by hand (no sewing machine needed.) If you're someone who makes things it's likely you already have a lot of the tools and supplies you'll need.

Most leather tools can be found at a well stocked craft or art store, and a few others from home improvement stores. All of it can be ordered online, so if you can't find it locally you can always do that.

Safety Warning:

All of the tools being used are designed to manipulate leather. You are basically made of very, very soft leather, so all of these tools can easily injure you if they are used improperly.

Make sure you are focused, rested, and working where you have plenty of room. Know where your first aid supplies are so if you do cut yourself you can fix it up right away. Eye protection and gloves are both helpful for protecting you while working, and be sure to never cut, stab or pull toward yourself - always point sharp things away from you. This is obviously not something that is appropriate for children to do.

Supply List:

Rotary Cutter & Straight Blade

A rotary cutter is a very effective way of cutting straight, clean lines through leather without pulling it.

A straight blade (utility knife, exacto knife, etc.) is excellent for curves. It can be used exclusively if you don't have a rotary cutter.

In both cases make sure you have extra blades on hand - sharp blades make clean cuts. A utility knife with snap off blades is my favorite choice. Dull blades make for messy cut edges.

Straight Edge

A metal or plastic ruler that you can run your blades against will make straight lines a lot easier.

Cutting Mat

You can cut on any smooth surface you don't care about, but a proper cutting mat will preserve the life of you blades, and the gird lines can be handy for lining things up.

Sharpie/Ink Pens

Fine point sharpies and other ink pens make clean lines on leather for cutting. Try to choose a color that is as close as possible to the color of your leather, while providing enough contrast to make it easy to see the lines.

Sharp Scissors

Sewing shears or other very sharp scissors are handy to trim the suede side of the leather back before finishing.

Pattern Weights/Large Washers

Using small, heavy weights is the best way to hold your pattern in place while tracing it onto the leather. You can find pattern weights in fabric stores, you can just pick up some heavy washers at a home improvement store, or you can improvise another solution. Whatever you do, don't pin your pattern down. Holes in leather are permanent and unnecessary holes weaken the leather.

Leather Needles

Needles designed for leather are very sturdy and have a triangular shape that is better for pulling through leather. Needles labeled as "glovers needles" are generally a good choice.

Cork Panels

These are a great surface to stab into with the awl and to pin into to hold your patterns in place. They can be found in most home improvement, craft and office stores. Individual unbacked squares work better than bulletin boards.

Awl

These are available in lots of shapes and sizes. You want a sharp, smoothly tapered point, but the rest of it is up to your preference. My favorite is about the height of my fist so I can hold it that way with my thumb on top of the wooden handle. This is how I can punch holes for the longest time without hand fatigue.

Pins

A few sewing pins are nice to have around for keeping things lined up. Never ever ever put a pin through your leather where there's not supposed to be a hole - every hole in your leather is permanent.

Needle Nose Pliers

Assuming you are made of mortal human flesh you're probably going to experience some places that are hard to pull a needle through. Using a pair of pliers for pushing and pulling your needle will save your hands a lot of unnecessary fatigue.

Leather Thread

The best thread for leather is either a leather/fur specific polyester (Silamide is a common brand) or quality linen thread. Pre-waxed is best, but you can also run your thread over a block of beeswax. The wax protects the thread and prevents it from separating into plies and snagging. You're looking for a standard sewing weight thread, not a heavier sinew type. This is one of the few specialty products you need - try high end sewing stores, taxidermy supplies, and the internet to track this down.

Barge Cement

Barge cement is a solvent based rubber cement like glue. It's a great glue of leather - it works both instantly and as a contact cement, which allows you to work at your own pace. One 2 ounce tube should be more than enough to make the bag.

Paint Brush

You'll want a few small, cheap paint brushes around for gluing your seams. You'll never be able to use them for anything but barge cement again. You can keep using the same brush for a long time, though - the dried glue on the bristles will soften when you dip them in glue again.

Plastic or Rawhide Mallet

To make your seams smooth and perfect you'll need a small, soft mallet. Plastic and rawhide are both effective in the capacity, but plastic is usually easier to find.

Wood Block

A chunk of wood with a perfect right corner will help you make perfect corners on your bag. I'm using a well squared piece of 2x4, but any block will do (home improvement stores and craft stores are full of things that could work.) The best will be at least 2 or 3 inches in each dimension.

Twill Tape

Woven cotton twill tape is used to stabilize and strengthen the seams. It also reduces the risk of stretching when you have your bag full of stuff. It should be about 1/2 inch wide.

Sliding Adjusters

Rectangular findings with 3 bars are used to adjust the length of the strap. You need two of them to make a proper adjuster.

The opening on these is about 2.5 inches wide. If you choose a different size be sure to adjust the width of the strap to match.

Zipper

The bag pattern uses a 9 inch zipper with a closed end. That's big enough for the wallet to easily fit through. It is somewhat visible on the finished bag so it's worth looking for something nice looking like the brass one we used. While you can, technically, shorten a zipper, they end up being less durable in the long run so it's worth trying to find the right size. If you choose to use a smaller zipper be sure to adjust the opening size before cutting and punching your leather.

Leather Conditioner

When you're done manipulating your leather it'll be ready for a little pampering. Going over your finished projects with a coat of leather cleaner/conditioner will help preserve your hard work and protect it from the elements. Regular treatments will prevent the leather from getting brittle and cracking over time. The best selection I've found of these products is at farm supply stores (with horsemanship supplies.) If you aren't near a farm store you'll still be able to find a nice selection in the shoe department of most stores that sell shoes.
How To Buy Leather
Buying your leather is obviously a critical part of the project.

For the wallet you need about 2 square feet.

For the bag you need about 14 square feet, and that piece has to be more than 5 feet long on one side to accommodate the long strap.

To make a matched wallet and bag set, a half cow hide will be large enough in most cases.

For your first leather projects, I would highly recommend using cow hide. It's a durable kind of leather that will take a lot of abuse and not punish you too much for any mistakes. It's also the most widely available (at least in the US.) After you gain some experience you'll be able to move on to other kinds of leather easily.

Chrome Tanned vs. Vegetable Tanned

The leather type to use for this kind of work is chrome tanned leather. It is flexible, water resistant, and is available in a huge range of colors and textures that are a permanent finish on the surface. You can find it as top-grain or corrected-grain, though most suppliers don't make much use of those terms. Top-grain is leather that has just been sanded/polished to improve the surface, while corrected-grain is impressed with a texture that might look like ordinary cowhide, or might be designed to look like another kind of leather (ostrich, alligator, etc.)

Don't use vegetable tanned leather. Vegetable tanned leather is commonly available in leatherworking stores/departments and is the kind you would use for tooling. It requires a lot more work to finish and is less flexible than chrome tanned. It's not a good choice for this project.

Note: Chrome tanned leather is often referred to simply as "leather" while vegetable tanned leather is called "tooling leather." If the leather you are looking at is not a light brown "cowboy in a western" color and is kind of glossy or has another interesting finish you've probably found the right stuff.

Leather Weights

My preferred weight of leather for bag and wallet making is 5 ounce/2 millimeters. It's thick enough to be strong and resist stretching, but not so thick that you can't form plain seams and clean corners with it.

This weight will generally be described as "bag weight" or sometimes "upholstery weight." It is heavier than the leather used for gloves and garments, but lighter than what you would use for belts and saddles.

Shopping

If you have the option, the best way to shop for leather is in person. Some cities have leather stores, and some high-end fabric stores carry real leather. This is the best way to be sure you like the color, finish, and weight of the leather.

Unfortunately, shopping in person isn't an option in most places. That's where the internet comes in. There are a lot of leather stores online, and even ebay has sellers that sell great stuff (many of whom have been selling on ebay for years.) If you're unsure about what leather to choose most of them are very helpful if you email them questions about what would work best. The majority of the leather I've bought over my many years of leatherwork has been ordered online, and overall what I've received has been much nicer than what I expected. The leather you receive should be similar in texture and flexibility to the leather used in commercially made bags.

Storing Leather

If you've purchased some leather you won't be using for a while, the best way to keep it safe it to store it flat or wrap it around a long cardboard tube and then wrap the outside with paper. Folds and leather are mortal enemies - once a fold is set in it can be very difficult to remove.

Vinyls and Synthetic Leathers

The techniques shown in the class should work for vinyls and synthetic leathers, but we have almost no experience working with synthetics and really can't help you with the specific idiosyncrasies.

Well cared for leather lasts for a long time, but also breaks down relatively quickly when it is disposed of. Synthetics are much less durable and fail more quickly, but also last for a very, very long time in landfills (estimates are between 500 years and almost forever.)

Cutting and Sewing Leather

Marking Leather
Make your cutting marks on the back of the leather. A fine point sharpie or other ink pen is usually your best bet for marking leather. Try to use a color close to your leather color, but different enough so you can still see it.

Inspect the front of your leather for any marks, scars, or other unappealing areas. Mark on the back where these spots are so you can work around them when laying out your pattern pieces.

Collect up all the pattern pieces you plan to use. Spend some time trying different layouts until you find the most efficient option.

Weight the pattern pieces down and trace them with the pen. Be sure to trace any cut-outs as well.
Cutting Leather
Place the leather on your cutting surface (if it isn't already.) Your goal is to make each cut once, all the way through the leather. Use a straight edge to help cut straight lines, use a blade and a lot of care for curves. If you use a rotary cutter for straight lines you may need to use the blade to finish cutting into corners. Take your time and be as accurate as possible.
Punching The Stitching Lines

The patterns included have the stitch marks already on them. Our standard for wrong-to-wrong seams is 1/8 inch from the edge; for perfect seams we use 1/2 and for most hems we use 3/8 inch from the edge. Our stitches are placed 3/8 inch apart on center. When two pieces are sewn together they need identical stitching marks to line up properly. Keep this in mind if you are modifying our patterns or making your own.

Place the leather (right side up) on a couple layers of cork panel. Place the appropriate pattern piece over it. You can place a few sewing pins in vertically through punching points to hold it in place.

Use the awl to carefully punch a hole on each of the circles marked for stitching. Keep the awl vertical/perpendicular to the leather. Try very hard not to make mistakes, they weaken the leather.

The idea here is to make a spot for the needle to go through and not much more.

Note: Some kinds of leather working use a round punch to actually remove a bit of material (which is good for working with heavy threads and sinews), but we don't want to remove material so the leather tightens closed around our stitches when we're done with the project. Don't be tempted by that 4 pronged hole punch leather working suppliers sell - it's for a different style of leather work.

One last thing about punching - try to do your punching as close to when you stitch as possible. The holes will start closing down right away, and you'll find a lot less stitching resistance on a freshly punched piece of leather than you will with one you left for a month before getting back to.
Trimming The Leather
When looking at the front of the leather you'll probably notice a bit of scraggly stuff around the edges. These fibers from the suede side can ruin your finish, so this is the time to trim them.

Hold a pair of sharp scissors at a 45° angle to the edge of the leather and carefully cut away any fibers that are sticking out.
Top-Stitched/Exposed Seam

These are definitely the simplest seams to make. They're good for applications where you can't afford any extra bulk, like the wallet project.

Place the two pieces of leather wrong sides together.

Cut a piece of thread that's about 3x the length of the seam.

Thread it onto your leather needle.

Stitch through the first pair of holes at one end. Leave about 6 inches of tail.

Continue with a running stitch (up, down, up, down) to the end of the seam. Don't worry about pulling the thread tightly. If any holes give you too much resistance use the awl to loosen them up a bit.

Holding the tail firmly, use the awl to pull up the extra slack in the stitches. Start at the end you started originally, and carefully slip the awl under each stitch, pulling the stitches down securely. You want them tight, but not tight enough to cut the leather.

Stitch back, filling in the gaps left by the first row of stitching. I leave a loop of loose thread a couple stitches from the end so it's easy to know where to tighten this row from.

Tighten this row as well, leaving the first line of stitches alone. If you've split your thread anywhere on the return row and you try to tighten the first line at this point you'll end up with a messy snag.

Tie the two ends of thread together with a square knot, and work the tails into the seam somewhere where they won't show. Trim any extra thread.

The same method applies when sewing together multiple layers.
Plain/Perfect Seam

Place the two pieces of leather right sides together.

Cut a piece of thread that's about 6x the length of the seam.

Fold the thread in half and push the loop through the hole in your leather needle. Loop the thread around the needle to secure it.

Stitch through the first pair of holes at one end. Leave about 6 inches of tail.

Continue with a running stitch (up, down, up, down) to the end of the seam. Don't worry about pulling the thread tightly. If any holes give you too much resistance use the awl to loosen them up a bit.

Holding the tail firmly, use the awl to pull up the extra slack in the stitches. Start at the end you started originally, and carefully slip the awl under each stitch, pulling the stitches down securely. You want them tight, but not tight enough to cut the leather.

Stitch back, filling in the gaps left by the first row of stitching. I leave a loop of loose thread a couple stitches from the end so it's easy to know where to tighten this row from.

Tighten this row as well, leaving the first line of stitches alone. If you've split your thread anywhere on the return row and you try to tighten the first line at this point you'll end up with a messy snag.

Tie the two ends of thread together with a square knot, and work the tails into the seam somewhere where they won't show. Trim any extra thread.

Open the seam out flat, hammer to flatten the seam allowance.
Ending Threads
Finish every line of stitches with both ends of the thread on one side of the leather.

After pulling the stitches up evenly, tie the two ends together with a square knot.

If you're making an exposed seam:

- thread the needle onto one of the tails

- stitch down through an adjacent hole in the top layer of leather

- weave the tail back and forth through some stitches between the layers of leather

- trim the tail close to the leather

- repeat with the other tail, stitching down through a different hole to start weaving in

If you're making a plain seam:

- thread the needle onto one of the tails

- carefully weave the tail back and forth under the stitches you've just made over a couple of inches

- trim the tail

- repeat with the other tail
Sewing The Hems

Hems will have pairs of holes to stitch, and when the stitches are pulled up tightly the leather will fold over on itself.

Cut a thread 3x as long as your hem and thread your needle.

Stitch through the first pair of holes at one end. Leave about 6 inches of tail.

Continue with a running stitch (up, down, up, down) to the end of the hem. Don't worry about pulling the thread tightly. If any holes give you too much resistance use the awl to loosen them up a bit.

Holding the tail firmly, use the awl to pull up the extra slack in the stitches. Start at the end you started originally, and carefully slip the awl under each stitch, pulling the stitches down securely. You want them tight, but not tight enough to cut the leather.

Stitch back, filling in the gaps left by the first row of stitching. I leave a loop of loose thread a couple stitches from the end so it's easy to know where to tighten this row from.

Tighten this row as well, leaving the first line of stitches alone. If you've split your thread anywhere on the return row and you try to tighten the first line at this point you'll end up with a messy snag.

Tie the two ends of thread together with a square knot, and work the tails into the seam somewhere where they won't show. Trim any extra thread.
Gluing Seams

Only glue one side at a time.

Place glue on the entire seam allowance and onto the leather side about 1/4 of an inch.

Glue the whole thing at once or just a segment - whatever makes you comfortable.

Hammer the glued seam down.

Repeat on the other side of the seam.

If the seam has twill tape be sure to cover both sides of the twill tape with glue.

Don't rush the process, barge cement works as a contact cement. (Do be sure to do an entire seam or hem in once sitting, though.)

If your seam includes a corner glue it, press the seam allowance down, then turn it right side out the hammer. Be gentle when hammering the outside of the leather.
Gluing Hems

Place glue on the entire hem allowance and onto the leather side about 1/4 of an inch.

Glue the whole thing at once or just a segment - whatever makes you comfortable.

Hammer the glued hem down.

Crafting a Leather Wallet

Prepare The Leather

Print out the pattern pieces and tape them together. Cut them neatly around the edges.

Note: This wallet is designed to accomodate standard card and cash sizes in the US. If you're located somewhere else you'll probably need to modify your pattern.

Check your leather for imperfections then layout the pattern pieces on the wrong side of the leather and trace the edges.

Cut out the leather pieces.

Punch the pieces.
Sew The Card Pockets Together

Sew the bottom of the Credit Card Pocket and Card Pocket Backing together using a top-stitched seam.
Sew The Card Pockets To The Outside

Stitch the short row of stitches that hold all three layers together using a top-stitched seam. Use the marks on the pattern to make sure you're aligning them properly.
Fold And Arrange

Fold the Outside of Wallet on the fold lines shown and arrange all of the pieces. (The textured area indicates the wrong/suede side of the leather.) You can use a few pins through the punched holes to hold it together if you'd like.
Sew The Side Seams

Stitch the side seams using the same top-stitched seam.

Crafting a Leather Messenger Bag

Prepare The Leather
Assemble and cut out your pattern. It is numbered 1a-9a for the top row of pages and 1b-9b for the lower row. Double check the measurement guide on the first page to be sure your printer was accurate with the scale. It's important to be sure that the strap widths and opening for the zipper are correct.

Check your leather for imperfections. Lay out the pattern on the leather.

Trace the edges of the pattern.

Cut out your pieces.

Punch the holes.

Trim the edges where needed.
Add The Zipper
Be sure to cut the opening for the zipper and punch the holes around it.

The zipper fits in place like this.

I chose to pin around the zipper to hold it in place. Pin it exactly how you want it to be. (It looks a little wonky near the right hand end, but that's an optical illusion.)

Sew around the edge of the zipper opening and through the zipper tape using the top-stitch seam method.
Sew In The Front Pocket

The zipper allows access to front pocket.

The plain panel labeled "Bag Front Pocket" sews to the front panel to form the pocket.

Place it so the front (pretty side) of the leather is against the suede side of the bag (on the inside of the bag.)

Line up the holes and sew around the edges with the top-stitch seam.

When the zipper is open you should see the front of the leather, and when you look at the back of the panel/inside of the bag it should be all suede.
Add The Adjusting Slider

Because adjusting sliders are not very standardized, you'll have to customize your pattern a bit.

Attach one adjuster at the end of the very long strap (Bag Strap 2.) Make sure you're not modifying the end with the 'x' shaped stitching marks.

You'll be hemming the long sides of the strap, but hemmed leather will probably prevent your strap from sliding.

To fix this, you'll need to notch the hem allowances off the sides far enough down to create a tongue to wrap around the center bar of the adjuster. You'll most likely need to trim a bit back and test the fit, then repeat.

Once you have the distance set, add some stitch marks so you can sew the end of the strap down to itself. I just used another pattern piece and copied off the stitching marks.

Wrap that tongue through and sew it down using a top-stitched seam.

Hem the sides as usual, but wrap the hem over the place you just sewed, and, if possible, stitch around the bar of the adjuster before making your return line of stitches.
Hem The Straps
Sew all of the strap hems, and glue them down. This includes the long and short straps, as well as the strap that goes across the front of the bag.
Sew The First Side Seam

It's probably best to start with the back panel, because any learning curve errors will be less visible.

Align the top of the side panel with the top of the back panel, right sides together.

Sew the seam with a doubled piece of thread for extra strength.

Sew a plain seam while including the twill tape in. Note how the stitches just catch the edge. I included it on the side panel half of the seam, but you could included it on either side or both sides for super security.

When you tie off this be sure to work in long tail pieces for a little extra strength.
Hem The Flap
Hemming the flap is almost the same as for the straps.

ONLY hem the strap to the corner that coincides with the bag's top edge hem, no further.

Sew the flap hem in one direction, then trim a bit of the hem allowance around the curve so that it will lay flat. Trimming as shown is enough to ensure it will lay flat when glued and hammered. Use a sharp blade for this and make clean cuts - this is a somewhat visible part of the bag when it's being used.

Glue and hammer when the hem stitching is done.
Glue The First Side Seam

It will be easier to glue this seam without sewing in the other panel first.

Trim out some of the extra leather at the corner so you can turn it right side out. I trim just over 90 degrees, but you can trim out more. I leave that much to glue an overlap so if I have a tiny part (a screw from sunglasses, for example) roaming free in my bag it's less likely to escape through the corner.

Use the plastic mallet and block ofwood to beat the seam open flat before starting to glue.

Try not to glue the seam allowance to the twill tape in the first 3/4 of an inch, because you'll trim it out later.

Glue the back panel side of the seam, neatly overlapping the corner.

Glue and hammer the straight parts of the seams, leaving the corners for last.

Glue the corner seam, hammer it lightly on the inside, then turn the bag right side out and use the corner of the wood block to carefully form it into an even, well turned out corner. Use a gentle hand when hammering the outside of the leather.

Repeat this with the other corner on the back panel.
Sew And Glue The Second Side Seam
Do this the same way you did the first, with a couple of exceptions.

1. Be sure to include the strap that retains the flap. Use the marks on the pattern to place it and don't forget to sew it in.

2. It will be trickier to glue, hammer, and turn this corner. Be careful to avoid setting the block of wood inside the bag and hammering on it - you'll leave marks on the leather where the bag is sitting. Better to try to hang the bag over the corner of a table, or use a few layers of cork panel under the wood block for protection.

3. Before gluing the seam be sure the flap fits into the retainer strap nicely. It's better to make a replacement part now so you aren't trying to pry apart glue later.
Trim The Hem Allowance
Trim back as much leather as you reasonably can where the top edge will be hemmed.
Stitch The Top Hem
The top hem is wider than the other hems, but sews the same way. Be sure to include the bag flap when you hem across the back of the bag. I also added twill tape into the hem to make for a sturdier top edge, but this is completely optional.

Across the back where you sew in the hem you'll also need to add the flap as another layer. It is sewn to the inside of the bag. There's a second line of sewing across the bottom edge that you'll add after completing the hem row.
Stitch Down The Flap
There is a second row of stitches at the lower edge of the hem allowance where the flap attaches. This is to give the flap some extra support because it's one of the most used moving parts of the bag.

You can glue this if you choose to, but there's a trick. Baste all three layers together with temporary stitches - every 5 holes is good. Pull the layers apart and spread glue in them, then tighten the basting stitches to pull the layers together while keeping them all aligned. The basting stitches ensure that the holes will be aligned, otherwise it might be very hard to stitch this once glued.

Remove your basting stitches as you add the real line of sewing. Feel free to skip the baste and glue process and just sew the lower edge!

Stitch down the angled side, across the lower edge, then back up the other angled side, making sure to fold the last bit of hem over while you do it. Tighten this top-stitch row and then stitch back. Tie off and bury your thread tails.
Glue The Top Hem
Glue and hammer the top edge hem.
Prepare And Sew The Strap
Make your strap ready to sew to the bag.

Slide the end of the long strap through one side of the adjuster it's not sewn to.

Slide that same end through the adjuster it is sewn to, making sure the face of the leather and the face of the adjuster are oriented the same way.

Slide the end of the short strap through the other side of the second adjuster (that nothing is sewn to).

It's okay if it takes a couple tries to get everything arranged the way it should be!

Stack both ends of this strap on the side of the bag and sew together using the top-stitch seam method.

Sew the end of the long strap to the other end of the bag in the same way.

Verify that the strap is working as you would expect it to, not twisted, and with the right side out.

Slide a little glue under the straps where they're sewn to the sides of the bag for security.
Final Finishing
Your leather has been through a lot of pushing, pulling, stabbing, and other abuses. Before putting it into service give it a nice coat of a good quality cleaner/protector. This will help prevent it from becoming dirty and, eventually, brittle. Regular use of a leather conditioner will keep your leather goods looking great for years.

Store the bag with something rectangular in if you won't be using it for a while to help it keep it's shape.

Additional Resources

Wallet Pattern
Messenger Bag Pattern
Messenger Bag Overview Layout Reference

Dottie Laster

Laster Global Consulting and Training

11

35