i made this leather pouch for fun, and then my mom suggested it would make a perfect mother’s day gift for my grandmas! such a good idea, and i’m already planning another one 🙂 funny story though, my mom was so proud of my professional looking pouch that she showed a picture to my grandma, who showed it to my grandpa. turns out he loves leather bags like this (even with the pink flowers), and wanted to buy it from me. this sparked good memories of how supportive my family has always been of my crafts. i remember starting a “business” with my brother in grade 2, where i “sold” hand drawn cards to my grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and my parents were the first customers to buy my font. i never keep the money, but i’m so grateful for the show of support. now that i know my grandpa loves leather goods, i’m planning to make some bags and wallets for his 80th birthday later this year!

i had fun experimenting with block printing and leather on this cute cosmetics sized bag. i carved a stamp out of a design i found in one of my craft books and used permanent ink pads from my scrap booking phase to add some pink flowers to the beige leather i had. i think the colour contrasts well, and adds some nice interest to the otherwise plain bag. it did take over 24 hours for the ink to set on the leather, and the design is a bit splotchy. for the future, i would let the ink set for about 6 hours, then take a paintbrush and go over the design to spread out the little beads of ink that form over the leather. this way, the design is much more even and dries faster.

for the leather pouch, i made a basic pouch without the lining. i love that i don’t have finish seams on leather – it makes the process go so much faster! i tested out my new wash-away tape, roller foot, and mallet, and it was so helpful! normally, i try to stay away from buying excessive tools and make do with what i have, but with leather, having the rights tools is crucial to a smooth sew. this project involved much less frustration, unpicking, and finagling than my first attempt with leather, and i’m glad i invested in proper tools. it’s difficult to forgo the frugal mindset my parents have drilled into me, but sometimes it’s well worth it.

looked through my ribbon stash, and i found the softest blush pink velvet ribbon to complete the look! already planning many more variations of this pouch using some leather my dad’s co-worker gave me from her old couch. feels good to recycle materials.