Clutch purse / Leather Naruto Ninja Bag (ninja purse with bone closure)

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house everyone had wrapped presents except me. Not a shop was open not even a the local craft store. Oh $#!+ eh; what to do... Make a purse. A purse/bag like those ones from Naruto are pretty cool, how 'bout one of those.

Um, don't know how...

Figure it out quick...

Learning Objective:
By making this bag, students will develop skills in working with various materials and tools as well as problem solving through the project as they encounter pitfalls such as alignment with a variable medium. The theme throughout is working from a general plan while "figuring it" out as you go.

Deeper Purpose:
What makes this project super awesome is that it's natural materials and built to last. In our disposable crap culture we need to shift toward durable things that can be repaired. This bag has no zippers, velcro or snaps to wear out and is simple to repair. The exposed stitching may wear out but you can fix that easy. Make and fix, since our environmentally sustainable future is DIY.

While I've got your attention remember to check out my Bamboo Time Machine (I plan to make a feature documentary about it... when I get some proper funding). And Surfing the Waste my musical documentary about dumpster diving.

Here's how to:

Ask questions and give advice in the comments. Were all here to help :)

Step 1: Needful things

You'll need:

-Leather (top grain leather is strongest, it has a smooth side)
-Strong thread/cord
-Bowl or something round and about as wide as you want your bag to be deep.
-Sewing awl (eg. Speedy Stitcher) or some way to sew leather.
-Bone
-Sand paper and file (or a rock, or the rough bottom of a teacup...)
-Wire (LAN cable would work well)
- *** Bonus *** No measuring device!

Comments

[triumphman]

Looks awesome! Fits in with my Mountain Man gear! Just made a hatchet case like this, maybe my next intructable! Thanks for sharing! Cheers Triumphman.

[prince-of-weasels]

Looks like 5oz Chrome tanned leather.
For construction purposes only it is better to sew together inside out then turn.Decorative cording/beading/etc getting own set of holes ^_^ I like the closure solution you came up with even if it is a bit out of scale.I would have used a chicken bone or better yet a 30-30 shell case.I have an old suede jacket I see several of these lurking in.

[snotty]

In this case the leather was too stiff to turn inside out. The last one I did was bigger so I did that though.

[prince-of-weasels]

OK for too stiff leather turning is a bi*ch.Then we have to go to decorative edging.Take plain old rubber cement and slather the inside edges[1/4 inch] of the face and gullet(sides) let dry and then pound the edges together with a hammer.> Then awl your holes and whip stitch over the two raw edges//////// Even more fun Skip every other hole going and cross over coming back with different colour cord.XXX Have fun...............

[awin]

(removed by author or community request)

[snotty]

Iz imazin'

[snotty]

Awin looks like a spam bot.

[wizworm]

you could retrofit a belt loop by making a leather lace out of your material, or getting some leather boot laces and adding holes in the back that you could tie up to your belt/bike/backpack or just tie up in a decorative knot on the back and keep it a clutch.