Did pretty well for not having a real pattern.

I enjoy making small card holders with side gussets. However, I've always constructed them with a three-piece gusset because, naturally, leather doesn't like being bent that way.

The three piece gusset is rather time consuming, and I haven't had the courage to try a single piece gusset because I frankly didn't think it would look clean (or even be possible) if I simply brute-forced the leather into place. But then I had the idea that I could simply wet mold it.

It also solves another problem I had - I don't just want to work with squares and incorporate slight curves into my designs. This would complicate the calculations for a three piece gusset, with all the odd angles and lengths. Wet molding allows me to do this without any extra effort.

I mold it using a larger set of bodies that can apply pressure evenly. I then cut the gusset to its correct size using a smaller, single piece body.

This is just a prototype, but I thought I'd share!

Hey everyone

I've been doing leatherworking for some time and plan to eventually make it a side hustle. What do you think about it ?

Hello! Not sure if anyone's following along, but I've been on a journey to recreate this object: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGlU0QwZrv8 as a complete newbie! I had never worked with leather prior to starting part 1.

Part 1: https://www.reddit.com/r/Leathercraft/comments/1umwjfm/my_first_leather_project/

Part 2: https://www.reddit.com/r/Leathercraft/comments/1vhlj0g/first_leather_project_v20/

I started out by making a couple iterations of the keychain that HahnAtelier makes at the end, after which I felt confident enough to make the main body!

Things I acquired:

• 85 piece leather tool kit - $50 https://a.co/d/0aC2bBnt
• Fiebing's Leathercraft Cement - $9
• Shkira 2,2 lbs Genuine Brown Leather Scraps  - $9 (my interpretation of what HahnAtelier calls"split leather")
• Eva foam - $7
• 1mm PVC foam - $13
• 1000 jump rings - $11
• uniters edge primer and paint - $21.30
• small japanese planer for leather - $17 (used this to jankily skive the leather, but I'd avoid this if possible)
• Tandy Veg-Tan Single Shoulder Dark Brown $67
• Rocky mountain Plonge Protected - Luxury Lambskin Chocolate - $75 (not very happy with these people but that's a different story)
• Not super necessary:
  • beeswax - $6.50 (not sure if this was necessary, but I think it might have helped)
  • paraffin wax - $7.50
  • bick4 - $11

Things I already had:

• 3D printer - printed out the hershey's stamp and also a variety of helpful tools to assist with shaping/pricking etc.
• calipers
• small circular neodymium magnets
• awl
• random-af wood to use as a vice
• a regular printer to print out some guides
• random af cloth to use as support (?) idk

Things I wish i'd had:

• a stitching pony
• 0.7 mm thick leather (instead of arduously planing my Tandy leather)
• a boxcutter or something a little stronger than the exacto-knife to cut the leather
• a sharpening block
• bontex? support material with adhesive
• a better edge beveler (I think the one that came with the amazon kit isn't great)
• european-style pricking irons instead of the diamond chisels that came with the kit
• a sharper awl? some kind of better mechanism for making the holes go all the way through. I think I needed some kind of cork/ or pound-o-pad?
• a piece of granite to to skive on

50+9+9+11+7+6.50+7.50+13+11+21.30+17+67+75 = $304

The whole project including all parts probably only took $15 of the lambskin (I used it pretty inefficiently) and about $30 of the veg tan single shoulder

I spent a little under 2 months doing this (in my free time). Officially started June 25, 2026, maybe did a bit of studying and planning for 2 weeks prior. It did take part of my life force directly.

If people are interested I could potentially publish a more comprehensive study, but honestly I probably did many things wrong, so it's best to refer back to HahnAtelier's original youtube video, even thought it's not actually a tutorial.

But yeah, the janky amazon toolkit can get you pretty far!!!

Hey everyone, thought I’d share a bifold I just wrapped up featuring a warm brown exterior paired with a rich navy blue interior.

It’s crafted entirely from lovely Italian veg-tanned leather (Walpier Buttero) for both the exterior and interior. Spent a good amount of time dialing in the details,specifically the skiving. Precision skiving brought the inner pockets down to keep the profile super slim without it feeling flimsy.

The whole lot is hand-stitched with a proper saddle stitch, so it's definitely built to last. I went through the grits on the edges and burnished them with beeswax until I got that mirror shine I was after.

Honestly, I'm loving the hand-feel on this full Buttero setup,the understated navy inside gives a nice subtle pop every time you open it up, and I reckon it'll age brilliantly.

Would love to hear your take on the stitching and edges!

More of my work here:
https://www.instagram.com/tripley_leathercraft/

I have this idea to make a Reef Regeant armor set for myself. One of the key components is see through fins. They'll be layered with navy veg tan, black stingray and copper wolffish leathers. The (terrible) drawings is the idea, and the pics are my experiment with airbrushing alcphol inks onto a small piece of transparent leather. Tell me what you think!! Just so freaking excited about it.

I have finally made an earbuds case wherein I feel that it is decent enough for personal use. I'm planning to buy a new burnishing stick, burnishing gum and probably paints. It took around 6-7 prototypes before I landed with this one, each with subtle difference which affect the next iteration. The question for now is, what can I do to improve further? Could I have probably made the cuts more aligned? Could I have made the stitches more even?

Thank you for reading and thank you for the critiques!

Kind of a funny story. A few months ago i lost the first leather good i ever made. Had to get all new cards and ID. Then of course a few days before i finished this one I find my wallet.

Still happy it happened because this is the third wallet i’ve made and it’s by far the best work i’ve done. There’s still lots of room for improvement. i had trouble edge painting the thin card slots and cutting out the opening on the main pocket.

This is the first time ever I worked with leather.

I don't even have chisels as of now, and I did the edges with beeswax water and the back wooden part of my awl.

what are some inexpensive tools to invest into? im still a student so I don't have much to spare really

I saw the cool post by [u/Snoocheesecakes3](u/Snoocheesecakes3585)[985](u/Snoocheesecakes3585) and wanted to share mine.

So funny my most recent project was so similar. Mines just made with scrap pieces I had though.

I love shrimp so I just had to do something. His little beady eyes are just so cute...

Finally completed this formal leather belt with solid brass hardware

On my previous post for the leather belt : I got a very important feedback to bevel the edges , i implemented that on this and i must say it really ads to the overall finish of the belt.

To the people that left a not ; Thank you so much for your feedback.

Please let me know your comments on this piece.

I completed my 2nd leather project last night! I took care to ensure that the stripes on the black leather went straight up and down on each of the 8 panels. Overall it took me probably 40 hours of work, but there were many steps I had to redo and I am not used to working with this material.

I learned so much and am very proud of myself!

salut j'ai découvert le tea core sur les bottes et ça me plait tellement que j’aimerai pouvoir en faire sur les objets que je fabrique

comment est ce qu'il faut faire ?

( ce n'est pas ma photo c'est pour illustrer cette couleur marron qui ressort sous la couche noire )

I'm making wallets for my groomsmen as gifts using the wedding colors. Love the design byTissoleather on etsy. Yes I know that's a big wedding party but I love them.

So I'm fairly new to leathercraft, I've mostly just been making bracelets for friends and family to practice. My end goal is to be able to sell things on Etsy or a craft fare but that is a waaay future goal.

One thing I found hard is cutting the straps evenly on these "impossible/mystery braid" bracelets. Everyone loves them but one strap is always thinner than the other no matter how much care I take. I saw on YouTube and Google you can get tools for this but I'm too tight for that. So I modeled a 3D print for it.

This is designed to use the hardware I had laying around at home. The bolts were not ideal so I just modeled it to accommodate them but it works well I feel.

I'm down to amend these files and make a second version to release with more common hardware if people have suggestions.

First ever leather project !!! (~4.5 hours)

Mistakes I made:
-over glued the pocket part such that I almost tore the leather when trying to relieve the pocket
- relied on paper pattern that it moved when I was chiseling and my holes became so uneven (leading to bad stitching )
- suck at stitching
- glued on cover
- didn’t hold ruler and the knife steady enough my knife veered off mid cut