Whenever I ask my Mom what she would like for Mother’s Day, the answer is always, “Oh, I don’t need anything!” But let’s be real, Mom’s an all-star and she still deserves something. We decided to create a chic DIY leather sunglass (or glasses) case for mom this year. It is the perfect personal gift for mom to carry around during the summer season. Take this leather case to the next level by using leather stamps to add in a personal message. (Check out this leather stamped key chain tutorial to find out how!)
Materials + Tools:
— 8 x 11-inch piece of leather
— embroidery floss
— needle
— pen
— clip or clothespin
Instructions:
1. Trim your leather to a 8 x 11-inch rectangle. Divide into thirds and fold the bottom third to meet the middle third. Hold in place with a clothespin.
2. Mark five even dots on each side of the leather where you will punch holes. Set the leather puncher to the smallest setting and punch all ten holes.
3. Thread your needle with two colors of embrodiery floss and tie the end onto the first hole of your leather case.
4. Whip stitch your way up the case and then back down through the same set of holes. Tie the floss in a knot and trim. Do this on both sides.
5. Use your embroidery floss to create a thick braid that measures 24 inches in length.
6. Use your needle to create five small holes in the middle of the top third of the case. Create the five dots in the pattern you would see on the five side of a dice.
7. Sew the braid onto the top third of the case using the five holes as your guide to create an X stitch.
Purchase or trim a piece of leather hyde into a 8 x 11-inch rectangle. Fold into thirds and clip the bottom with a soft fashion clip, clothespin or leather clip.
Use a pen to evenly mark off five holes on each side of the case. Use the smallest setting on the leather punch to create holes on top of your pen markings.
String two of your mom’s favorite colors of embroidery floss onto the needle and tie to the bottom hole of the case.
Use a whip stitch to stitch your way up the case and then back down. Knot off the floss where you began stitching and trim the excess. Do this stitch on both sides of the case.
Create a thick 24-inch braid with about 12 strands of embroidery floss. Have some extra time? Try making a fishtail braid instead of a regular braid.
Use your needle to create five holes in the center of the top third of the case. Your dots should resemble the dots on the five side of a dice. Sew your braid onto the front of the case following the dots to make an X stitch.
We used a soft hyde and a harder hyde to test out making soft and hard sunglass cases. Our conclusion: We loved the natural edge that we got on the soft leather case.
We styled this shot with the obvious contents of a mom’s purse: a cute notebook, reusable water bottle, coupons and keys to Luke’s Diner, of course ;)
