Hey folks, I'm going to show y'all how to make a leather watch band with some good ol' rock star styling, and how to make leather bracelets. We'll also touch on basic leather crafting techniques.
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Signing UpStep 1: Tools and Materials
First off you will need tools. Everything is, for the most part, rather specific to leather crafting, all the tools I have I got from Tandy Leather Factory. They ship internationally. Here's a list of what you will need to obtain, borrow, beg, steal, improvise, or otherwise come into at least temporary possession of:
For Watch:
For the watch, I'm using one I got from Stauer. To attach to the wristband easily, it needs a T shaped attachment, as highlighted in the second picture.
For Watch:
- Rivets
- Snaps, I'm using Line 20
- Tools to set rivets and snaps
- 3-4 ounce veg tanned leather. Can be purchased in a convenient small project piece.
- Leather stain/dye, color choice is up to you, matching shoe/leather polish is a good bonus
- Razor blade, or other sharp thin knife
- Metal ruler
- Pen and paper are handy for working out the size
- Chopstick or other pointy instrument, called a scriber
- Sharp, heavy scissors
- Leather punch, size appropriate to your rivets and snaps
- Rubber Mallet, and a surface to work on
For the watch, I'm using one I got from Stauer. To attach to the wristband easily, it needs a T shaped attachment, as highlighted in the second picture.
pattern.pdf(612x842) 1 MB
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I received it as a gift.
http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/home.aspx
I purchased a 1 ton arbour press for about $30. You put the cased leather down, then the 3D stamp, then the arbour press head presses the 3d stamp. In this way even my 5 year old can safely and very effectively make excellent impressions with 3D and letter stamps.
With the 1 ton arbour press it is easy to press down too hard with small stamps and letters on thin leather, even for a 5 year old. You need to practice not putting your whole weight on the press, though it is so tempting. Tandy Leather sells something similar for $200, but has more gadgets.
Presses can indeed produce excellent, and consistent stamps, however I can honestly say I've never used one other than the Tandy version, I did not know they could be had so cheaply.
Thanks for the input!
If you put a leather flap over the watch it would look alot like Captain Jack's time travel/teleport device!
I don't even know how long I've been wanting to do bracelets like that and I had no idea how to. Thank you!
Even more awesome is the shop you linked, the only good one I could find that ships to my place!
1. You should to learn to dress and burnish your edges (someone at your local leather supply shop SHOULD be able to show you at least one of the methods). Doing this will make the bands more comfortable, will make them look nicer/more professional, and will make them more durable.
2. The "rivets" you're using are called cap rivets, and they're really kind of crap. When the tube mushrooms out to fill the cap, that thin metal splits & cracks and the chrome flakes off. Then the cracks spread (no matter what kind of metal they are) causing them to fall apart or they tend rust from the inside out (unless you specifically can find ones that are plated brass, but usually they're chromed or plated steel). Search around online and shell out for real, solid shank rivets. They cost a bit more and are a little harder to learn to put in, but the extra durability (and looks in some cases) is more than worth it.
I will have to do this once I find my box of scrap leather
Post pics of the finished watch!