#leather tutorial

Okay so to start you obviously need to get your supplies. For my hat I use 7/8 oz veg tanned hide, a boxcutter with a new blade (or something similar to cut the leather), pens + pencils for marking, a ruler, a 4 in 1 awl, a stitching groover, a spacer set, an edge beveler, an edge slicker, leather stitching needles and waxed nylon thread. Plus whatever dye or paint.

After you’ve gathered your supplies you need to pattern the hat. For me it was literally just grabbing some big paper from an XL Biggie sketchbook I had and messing around until I had a brim shape I liked with a cut out large enough to fit my head in. You can make your own or use a proper pattern whatever works for you! Test the pattern by putting it on sturdy paper or cardstock, assembling with tape and test it to make sure it fits and everything is not too tall/short/big/small. Make adjustments if needed.

Once you’re satisfied with your pattern it’s time to trace it onto the leather. I suggest using a pencil if possible though if you’re careful you can also use a pen since you’ll be edging the leather later on anyways. I use’d scotch tape to hold my pattern in place but something like painter’s tape that wont leave residue or some weights would be better.

When you’ve got it all traced down remove the pattern and CAREFULLY use your box cutter to cut it out of the leather. Work very slowly and make sure you follow the lines. I tend to work in sections and score the line lightly first before pressing harder so I have a grooved path to follow.

Ta-dah! all cut out! Do that for all your pieces and again make sure to be careful.

When all of these are cut out you’re going to want to get a cup of water and a cloth or soft sponge. Wet the edges (best to work one piece at a time and in sections) and use the edge beveler on the outer brim of the hat, top and bottom. I also do just the top side of the top of the hat and nothing to the band, but you’re welcome to do as you see fit. After that’s done you’ll take the groover (i have an adjustable one so i set it to the size of the leather), wet the edges again and do a pass or 3 to get a nice deep groove. You’ll want to do this on the top and bottom of the band, the ends of the band where it’ll be stitched together, the INSIDE edge of the brim and the outer aka only edge of the top. DO NOT groove the outside of the brim, you don’t need stitching lines there. From there you’ll take the spacer and carefully follow the groove, pressing so you get the stitching placement markings. If you love yourself, when that’s done, you can go ahead and use the awl to CAREFULLY poke those stitching indents into holes. I don’t so I do it later which is harder and more work and pain on my part.

With that done you can now map out the slots in the band and brim. I just did a lot of guesstimating on what would look nice and marked it all out with pencil. I put little X’s in the slots so I knew what to actually cut out and to not confuse myself too bad.

Then more careful cutting with your box cutter or blade of choice and some very careful beveling. I only do the topside/outside not the inside. I then use the water to make sure my edges are wet and use the edge slicker for the outside cuts then just the cloth/sponge to wet and press the cut out edges. Leave it to dry COMPLETELY before moving on.

After the pieces have all been set up and readied I go ahead onto the dye step, or in the case of my new hat since I wanted a bone color, the paint step. It’s pretty straight forward, make sure you get the entirely of the top dyed/painted. If you’re doing a dye/stain its a very good idea to have pre poked your holes so the dye can get into them or youll be doing touch ups later.

You can leave the raw side of the leather its regular tan but it does also take dye/paint as well. I painted the underside of the brim since that’s all thats really going to be seen by anyone else.

Paint, edges and groove+indents all there to see! Again let everything FULLY DRY before continuing unless you want to do touchups and be covered in more dye/paint. Time for sewing.

This is by far the most time consuming part and takes ages. Make sure you have the proper leather needles and waxed nylon thread. I’m not too good at explaining how to actually do this so this tutorial here makes it pretty simple! Basically you’ll be using TWO needles and the length of thread. I start by sewing the band into a circle.   When that’s done you can either set the seam to the center back of the brim or the hat top. I did it to the brim for my first hat but to the top for this second one. Since thats a corner edge and not a straight one it’s a bit difficult to make happen but its still a similar stitching style. Take it slow and careful, use the awl again if you need to reopen a stitching hole (wetting the inside of the leather again helps!).

This part is just a looot of time and patience and anime watching. At about 4 episodes into ES21 again I had only completed the back of the band and not even 1/3 of the sewing the band to the top.

As gift giving season approaches, lots of crafters are looking for good items to sell and journal covers are one of our favorites. These covers are the perfect project for those looking to make something simple, practical and unique. If you have minimal leather crafting supplies, this is the project for you! 

What you’ll need:  Please note that links will be SLC products that are recommended, but that doesn’t mean it’s the one you have to use! For example: if we link to white thread, that doesn’t mean you can’t use thread of another color. Or maybe we linked to a different brand of contact cement than you prefer. Take a look arounf the site, we tend to have more than one variety of each item. Links are meant to be a guide! What your project looks like in the end should always be up to you.  

Journal - whatever style or size you prefer is fine. Just consider the stiffness of the covers when you work on the leather pockets. 

Leather - we recommend light to midweight leather (2.5 - 6 oz.) 

Shears or a utility knife - you want to make sure your scissors will cut through the leather without messing up your edges. If you’re unsure about your scissors, test them out on a scrap piece first. 

Wing Divider 

Contact Cement 

Ruler/Square - a square is optional but will make your job easier

Pen - we used a gel pen, but you can use anything that will show up on leather

Sewing supplies: 

Awl/Waxed thread and needle

Leather sewing machine with nylon thread - you don’t want to use a standard sewing machine on leather. It will not go well. 

Let’s get started: 

Watch the video below for instructions, tips on sewing and to watch Tonya make one herself! Check below the video for written instructions. 

Step One - Laying Out the Leather 

Lay your leather onto a flat surface with the finished side down. Place your journal onto your leather and ensure you have enough material to cover both sides of the book and the spine. If your leather has a pattern or grain, now is the time to consider how you would like it to look on your cover. If you plan to do any decorating on the leather, save that part for later.

Step Two - Create a Pattern

You have your piece and now it’s time to create guides to cut. Use a winged divider or other tool that will create a clear indentation in the leather. A winged divider is ideal as you can trace the shape while creating space between the journal and your markings. You’ll need some extra space around the journal, so if you plan to use something aside from a divider, keep that in mind. Something less than a centimeter will work fine for a journal with thin covers like ours.

Step Three - Cut it Out 

You can use leather shears or a utility knife to cut out the cover. If you decide to use scissors that are not shears, test them by cutting a scrap piece of leather to ensure it won’t fray your edges. An x-acto knife is an acceptable utility knife to use. Just be sure the blades are sharp! You can always clean up your cutting later and you’ll likely have to do a bit of trimming when we get to the pockets so don’t worrying about it too much. Get it as clean as you can in one go and move on.

Step Four - Create Pockets & Strip

After testing the fit of your journal and the leather you’ve just cut out, it’s time to make the pockets that will secure the cover to the journal. Measure the covers of your journal and subtract at least one inch from the width. The amount you will need to take from the width will be dependent upon how stiff your journal covers are. Covers that won’t bend much will likely require more space. Try clamping the leather together to test it out. 

Once you have your dimensions, grab another piece of leather and a ruler. 

Use a pen to mark the dimensions off on your leather. If you have a square, it will help you make sure that all of your lines are straight as they relate to each other. You don’t have to use a square, but it will save you some time. 

Once you have your pockets drawn out, cut them using the same shears or utility knife from step three.  

While you’re in the cutting mood, find a piece of leather that is long enough to wrap around the journal and tie! We used a piece that was six inches longer than the width of our journal. Our strip was one inch wide. You can also skip this step if you don’t want a strip to keep your journal closed. 

Test your pockets out by placing them on your cover. Make sure they’re inside the lines you have marked and that they’re as even as possible. If you have any trimming to do, now is the time. 

Step Five - Secure your pockets 

Use contact cement on three edges of each pocket, leaving one log edge open for the journal to slide in. Apply contact cement to the journal as well for extra hold. This will be especially important for those who are hand-stitching. Try not to go too wild with the glue so that it’s still easy for you to push a needle through. 

Place your pockets on the cover. Be sure to have the finished side of the leather facing you. We used a ruler to make sure that the pockets are resting on the cover evenly.

Step Six - Add your strip 

If you’d like to have a strip of leather secure your journal, it is time to add it to the cover. Apply glue to one end of the strip on both the finished and unfinished sides. Create a small hole between one of your pockets and the cover and place the strip inside. Have the unfinished side facing up. 

Step Seven - Time to sew! 

Now it’s time to put it all together. As we’ve mentioned before, you can do this with a machine or by hand. Please note that using a regular sewing machine on leather will likely cause damage to your needle, if not the entire machine. We do not recommend using standard machines on leather, especially thicker leather. The same goes for hand stitching - using a normal fabric needle and thread are not your best options. 

As far as leather sewing machines, the machine you should use depends on your leather and sewing needs, but just about any leather machine will do as you will not likely be using very heavy weight leather. We used a Cobra Class 20 and #69 nylon thread. 

For additional sewing tips, we recommend checking out the video at this time stamp. Tonya talks you through testing your machine settings, getting around corners and securing your strip. 

For hand-stitching, we recommend waxed thread and leather needles. Sizes to be determined by you! If you’ve never stitched before, we offer detailed hand-stitching instructions for purchase or Denny will show you how for free on our YouTube channel. 

Step Eight - Try it out! 

Your journal cover is complete. Slide your journal in and see how it’s fitting! Make your final snips, burns and adjustments.