A few folks expressed a desire to learn some leatherworking skills and I thought I’d share what I know. This isn’t a formal class, but more of a build-along where I’ll show how I made this card holder (and the mistakes I made along the way):
Short video clip here: https://i.imgur.com/tXwfRR0.mp4
This holds about 4 cards and/or folded bills.
When: January 20th, 1-4pm.
Where: Textiles room.
Cost: $0 (and about three hours of your time)
What is covered: We’ll go over the following:
- Working from a pattern
- Cutting leather
- Saddle stitching
- Edge burnishing
- Finishing leather
These are the foundational skills for vast majority of leatherworking projects and would set you up to make all kinds of stuff.
I’ve never tried leatherworking, do I need to prepare in some way? Nope! But if you’re bored and do want a preview, the trickiest part of this process is saddle stitching – watch this video to see how it’s done, or at least how I like stitching (using the the Stitch #2 rear casting method starting at the 10:38 mark).
Do I need to bring anything? Only if you want to, and especially so If you have a favourite cutting tool (such as an X-acto knife). But it’s not necessary – I’ll bring the materials and tools we need for this project. If you have leatherworking tools or supplies, that’s great but not required at all.
Note that I plan to bring veg-tan leather for everyone to use. It’s my favourite, I have scraps, and I find it easiest to work with, esp. when starting out. If you have chrome-tan leather you’d like to use, feel free to bring it along and we’ll learn how to work it together!
Can this be done in three hours? Pretty sure it can! But I’m happy to stick around for anyone who’d needs extra time and would like to keep going. Or we can meet again later if need be.
How do I sign up? Just reply to this post so I have an idea of how many people will show up.
Hope to see you on the 20th!