Besides doing lots of different diy projects I also do mixed media art. From past projects, I have found belts with lots of detail look great on the mixed media art bottles I love to create. I approached my local charity shop and asked them if they would collect the belts that were too damaged for resale and I would buy them. Little did I know I would end up with loads of them. I hate wastage so I wanted to try and turn them into something I could use in my home. This leather belt wall hanging was the result. My inspiration for this project was this wooden wall art I made using scrap wood. I thought it would look cool to cut up the recycled leather belts and create a textured wall hanging.

Step 1: Make a Base

For the base, I used a recycled mosaic mirror that had fallen down and broken. I must also mention it was not my first attempt at this project, my first attempt failed and I will also share why it failed. I only included my failure so you don't get too confused by the photos. The size of the wood circle was 600mm across.

Step 2: First Attempt

I removed all the Mozaic tiles from the wood and covered the base in a really cheap plastic leatherette fabric. This way why my first attempt failed. The hot glue would not want to stick to the surface of the faux leather but I only discovered this when I held it up once completed.

In my first attempt, I also glued the recycled belts in a random manner which was not the look I was going for. It looked a bit too messy for my liking.

Step 3: Sourcing Belts

The charity shop did think it was a strange request asking for old damaged belts, but I use them when I create my mixed media art bottles. They add amazing texture to the surface of the bottles. They told me they get a huge amount of belts that are just thrown in with the clothes instead of the bin. I also asked all my friends in the beginning and this got me a fair few belts too.

But the number of belts I received was well over what I would need for my bottles but were perfect for this project. This was only a small amount of belts that were in the bag.

Step 4: Glueing the Belts

For my second attempt, I wanted to keep the belts going in the same direction. I started by cutting the belts into smaller pieces and using a hot glue gun to attach them to the base. I started at the top and worked my way down filling in all the gaps.

For this project, I would recommend using black hot glue because it blends in better with the belts. You can mix all the different colours and textures.

Step 5: Cutting the Belts to the Curved Shape

When you get to the edges, to get the correct shape here is how I cut mine. I placed the belt in place and used a marker pen to trace the shape from below. The pen mark is then used as a guide to cut the leather belt to shape.

Step 6: Add a Focal Point

Once the surface was covered I felt my leather belt wall hanging needed a focal point. I was looking around my local charity shop and found this contraption above, I believe it is a steamer. The shape and design of the steamer I found appealing and felt once painted it would look great. I painted it black with spray paint and rubbed some silver wax over the surface to highlight the textures.

Next, I drilled a small hole in the centre and screwed the steamer onto the board. My husband saw this project and commented that it looked like a Vikings shield with the steamer. Feeling I may have gone too weird on this project, I replaced the steamer with a small mirror. I would love to hear your thoughts on which one looks better.

Step 7: Completed Belt Wall Hanging

Next, I drilled a small hole in the centre and screwed the steamer onto the board. My husband saw this project and commented that it looked like a Vikings shield with the steamer. Feeling I may have gone too weird on this project, I replaced the steamer with a small mirror. I would love to hear your thoughts on which one looks better.

Step 8: More Trash to Treasure Projects

Another trash to treasure project was this antique dresser I restored. It was fit only for firewood until I gave it new life. See the tutorial in the link above.