My bf needed a new wallet, without knowing… His current one, really petit, was really falling apart but he hadn’t seen it yet
His recent one was a cheap one he got from me a few years ago because I couldn’t find a decent one in a size he wanted, with the saying I was going to get him a better one (on etsy or somewhere).
When I saw it laying in the bathroom I thought to myself: I’m going to make him a wallet!
But i wanted it to be leather because wallets need to witstand a lot of in and out going of pockets and it was “chique”.
I started looking into obtaining leather but that was expensive, and with the shops closed could take a longer time.
I am also really into recycling, zero-waste and recently started on Vinted (an online selling platform for second hand clothes). I started looking for leather items and stumbled upon a person living in the neighbourhood selling 2 leather purses. Both of them were falling apart but one was in a really bad shape!
The purse:
Taking it apart (that was so much fun :D)
My bf wanted something to carry his cards. He has another pe-leather thing to carry cash.
I couldn’t find a template of a leather wallet that he would like and would be simple enough for a beginner leather sewer to make, so I drafted my own based on his recent one (Stole it out of the bathroom, measured it and returned it, all while bf was sitting on the computer :D)
Cutting out the pieces:
At the time I was doing this, sewing shops could open again and I finally could obtain leather needles and leather thread (not the wax kind, just really strong thread). I learned to sadle stitch. Here’s a good tutorial!
You also have to glue your items together first, and make holes in them.
I tried to be smart and use the holes that were already in the purse when cutting out the pieces.
But all the other holes were made one by one by piercing something through. Sometimes through 5 layers of leather.
I used a burner thing to burn his initials in the wallet.
And this is the end result:
You can see which side was the front from the more straighter sewing lines
I finished it right before New Year. He was very happy with it ^^.