Halloween Leather Bag Charm

We made a 3D leather Halloween pumpkin bag charm out of vegetable-tanned leather

Supplies

Pencil

Marker

Paper, tracing paper and baking paper

Polymer clay

Leather modelling tool

Leather beading hammer

Veg-tanned leather, ideally bellies

Strong scissors and/or craft knife

Bulldog clips

Leather paint and brushes. Angelus is perfect

Cork filler. Renia brand is ideal.

Contact adhesive

2-prong stitching chisel

Harness needles and waxed thread

Fine sandpaper

Key ring (split ring) and brass dog snap

Step 1: Draw a Spooky Pumpkin

Use a pencil and your imagination to draw a spooky pumpkin. Make sure it's a design you'll be able to paint later.

Step 2: Trace the Pumpkin

Trace the pumpkin on clear film or tracing paper

Step 3: Shape Polymer Clay

Shape polymer clay to the boundaries of the traced pumpkin

Step 4: Copy the Pumpkin Onto Clay

Lay the traced pumpkin over the polymer clay, and use a modelling tool to trace the outline, leaving an indentation.

Step 5: Model the Pumpkin

Use the modelling tool to create indentations for the eyes, mouth and ridges, smoothing the edges down.

Step 6: Bake the Clay

Put the polymer clay onto a baking sheet, and bake in the oven until hard.

Step 7: Select Your Leather

Select some vegetable-tanned leather from 0.8mm to 1.5mm thickness. Bellies work well, as they have more stretch than other cuts.

Step 8: Roughly Cut Out

Cut out two pieces roughly 20mm larger all around than the clay pumpkin.

Step 9: Soak Your Leather

Soak one piece in water until fully saturated.

Step 10: Mold the Leather

Using fingers, modelling tools and beading hammers, stretch and shape the leather around the clay until it is recognizable as a pumpkin.

Step 11: Clamp and Dry

Leaving the clay inside, use bulldog clips to clamp the front and flat back pieces of leather together while the leather dries.

Step 12: Remove the Clips

Once the leather is dry, it will maintain its shape, and you can remove the clips and clay.

Step 13: Make a Stalk

Cut two pieces of leather into a stalk shape. This will be sandwiched into the top of the pumpkin and form a loop for a keyring.

Step 14: Paint Your Pumpkin

Using Angelus acrylic paints, colour and outline the pumpkin face, as well as a stalk. Use multiple shades of orange for shading, and paint a clear outline.

Step 15: Fill With Cork

Once the paint is dry, spread cork filler into the cavity and allow to dry.

Step 16: Glue the Pieces Together

Spread contact adhesive over the front and back pieces. When ready, bring the two together, sandwiching the stalk, and beating with beading hammer.

Step 17: Punch Stitching Holes

Use a stitching chisel to punch stitching holes around the perimeter of the pumpkin, just outside the outline. A two-prong chisel is ideal.

Step 18: Stitch It All Together

With the pumpkin held gently but firmly in a stitching clamp, use saddle-stitch to sew the pumpkin together. The stalk should be sewn only around the top half to allow space for a keyring.

Step 19: Cut It Out

Cut out the pumpkin approximately 1mm to 2mm outside of the stitching using a craft knife.

Step 20: Smooth the Edges

Use fine grit sandpaper or an edge beveller to smooth the edges.

Step 21: Paint the Edges

Use Angelus acrylic paint along the edge. Two or three coats may be required to get a smooth even finish.

Step 22: Clip It On

Optionally, you can attach a snap hook to the keyring, so that you can easily clip the charm to your favourite bag and walk around feeling spooky.