diy: leather bracelets

My apologies for the unplanned and extended blogging break.  It's amazing how much energy it takes to adjust to an entirely new environment - new home, new language, new job.  I've begun teaching in law firms and various corporations...so fun!  And now, with a fair amount of control over my work schedule, I have plenty of time to pursue my own projects.  Without getting too cornball on you guys, I must say that the big changes of late have given me an entirely new perspective on how to use my time (my most precious commodity).  This exercise in living - not just thinking - a little bit outside the box has been tremendous so far, and I'm just so thrilled and grateful for the opportunity.

Enough!  Onto the DIY!  This is another one from before I left the U.S.: a truly simple and easily customizable bracelet recipe.  I made two, one with a single braid, and the other with beaded thread:

Here's how I put together the bracelet with the woven braid.

You'll need:

- Some leather - recycled/repurposed, please!  Lots of recycled leather on eBay/Etsy.  Or hack up a thrifted leather jacket.
- String/twine - here, I used kitchen twine, otherwise used in my household only on Thanksgiving
- A utility knife
- A button
- Leather needle and some thread

1. Cut the leather as wide as you like, and long enough to wrap around your wrist with a little over an inch to spare.  Cut 3 lengths of twine a couple of inches longer than the leather strap.  Braid the twine.

2. Cut some slits into the leather strap.  I marked my pattern with the blue lines above.  I started about an inch from one end.  The larger gaps between the slits are about an inch apart, and the smaller gaps about 1/4 inch apart.

3. Starting from the underside of the leather strap, thread the braid through the slits as in the first pic above.  The second shows the underside of the bracelet when you're done.

4. With the needle and thread, stitch down each end of the braid to secure.  (Dab a little glue on the ends of the braid first if you like.  It helps.)  At one end of the bracelet, sew on the button as a closure.  At the other end, make a slit to accommodate the button - be conservative and start with a small slit, and make it bigger until it just fits over the button.  Make a couple of stitches at each end of the buttonhole to reinforce.

For the beaded bracelet, I attacked an old, never-worn necklace, harvested the beads, strung them on some thread, and integrated them into their new leather home, where they are much happier. 

Wear and stack!   xoxo